Strawberry Crunch Cupcake
Strawberry crunch cupcakes- inspired by your favorite childhood strawberry crunch ice cream bars! Made with a fresh strawberry cupcake base, vanilla buttercream, and strawberry crunch topping; serve them with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the ultimate summer dessert!
Roasted Strawberries
- 2 cups fresh or frozen strawberries if fresh, hulled and quartered
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Strawberry Crunch Topping
- 6 Golden Oreo cookies
- ¼ cup freeze-dried strawberries
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Cupcake Batter
- 1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp cake flour *see notes for measuring*
- ¾ cup + 3 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 6 tablespoon unsalted butter, cubed room temperature
- ¼ cup sour cream or full-fat greek yogurt room temperature
- 2 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoon strawberry extract or vanilla extract
- ¾ cup roasted strawberries from recipe above
Vanilla Buttercream
- 1 cup + 4 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon heavy cream
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- fresh strawberries for topping
Roast the Strawberries
Preheat the oven to 375 F/190 C.
On a lined baking tray, toss the strawberries and sugar together. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Then scrape the strawberries (and their juices) into a bowl and mash with a potato masher. Set aside to cool to room temperature. Decrease the oven to 350 F/180 C.
Strawberry Crunch Topping
Cupcake Batter
In a stand mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Then mix in the cubed butter on low until it resembles coarse sand.
Mix in the sour cream and oil, then scrape down the bowl. Mix in the eggs and strawberry extract until just combined. Then mix in the mashed strawberries.
Use an ice cream or cookie scoop to scoop the batter into a lined 12-cup cupcake pan. The liners should be mostly full, with about ¼ inch of room at the top. Bake the cupcakes at 350 F for 17-19 minutes or until the tops spring back when touched. Let the pan cool on a wire rack before frosting.
Step-by-step process photos are provided above, in the body of this post.
*Measure your flour properly. This is my #1 baking tip! Do not ever scoop a measuring cup into your flour as this always leads to using too much flour. Instead, use the spoon-level method. This means fluffing the flour first, then spooning it into your measuring cup/spoon. For the BEST results, use a kitchen scale!*