Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
Today is the last day of cupcake week. I hope you guys have enjoyed it as much as I have (be sure to enter in my cupcake giveaway by midnight Aug 28th). I wanted to make something light and summery and when I saw these in my Google Reader earlier this week, I knew they’d fit the bill. Pink lemonade is the perfect summertime beverage. It just doesn’t feel right to drink it any other time of year. And, they’re so darn cute with the pink frosting and pink cake.
For the frosting on these guys, I added an extra two Tbsp of the concentrate and also a couple Tbsp of milk to thin it out. Hubby thought these cupcakes were too sweet because of the frosting, but that’s so something he’d say. I loved them. I was eating the leftover frosting by just piping it onto my finger. It is very sweet, and very good. Although next time, I might use more milk and less of the concentrate to help Hubby’s lack of a sweet tooth!
I am also submitting these as my entry for Flavor of the Month on Bake at 350. This month, the flavor is Pucker Up! (lemon or lime)
Don’t forget to enter in my 2nd blogiversary giveaway by midnight on August 28th!
Check out my week of cupcakes here.
Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
Yield: 20 cupcakes
Ingredients:
For the Cupcakes
2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Pinch salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 egg whites
2/3 cup thawed frozen Pink Lemonade Concentrate
1/2 cup buttermilk
Pink food coloring
For the Frosting
3 cups + 3 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
1/8 tsp salt
2 Tbsp pink lemonade concentrate
Milk to reach desired consistency
Pink food coloring
Directions:
For the Cupcakes
Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin pan with liners. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites and lemonade concentrate. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk, making three additions of flour mixture and two of buttermilk, beating until just smooth.
Add just enough food coloring to turn the batter a light shade of pink.
Scoop batter into liners (fill about three-fourths full). Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting (see below).
For the Frosting
Add the butter, confectioner’s sugar, salt, lemonade concentrate, and a few drops of food coloring to the stand mixer and mix on low using the paddle attachment until combined.
I wanted to clarify my comments above about the frosting being too sweet. I was silly and added 4 Tbsp of the pink lemonade concentrate to try to thin it out. Then I tasted it and was like what the heck and I doing! I should be adding milk to thin it out. So if you use the recipe as written with the 2 Tbsp, I don't think it will be too sweet. Just use milk to thin in instead of more concentrate like me!
Turn the speed to med-high until the buttercream is fluffy and uniformly pink. Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes.
Recipe from Sweet Cheeks
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
What a great and yummy idea! I wish I lived closer and could have joined. I need to research the bakeries in Phoenix and find some delicious cupcakes.
What an amazing idea and post, awesome.
what a great post and a fun idea!
You did SUCH a great job with this. I’m so happy it went well for you! And no rain? Double bonus!!!
How neat, all the cupcakes look yummy to me!
Very cool! Your group must have been exhausted at the end of the day. I am from Boston but now live in PA, your post made me want to head home for a visit. 🙂
Thanks everyone. We definitely lucked out with the weather. It was a bit hot, but not unbearable.
It was an exhausting day. I think we left the last bakery around 8:30. Hubby and I grabbed some dinner and got home around 11:00. We were exhausted!
I am jealous! This is right up my alley. I need to get myself out to Babycakes ASAP!
I used to live in Quincy and a stop into Babycakes was mandatory at least once a week for DH and me.
i live in the north end and have been wondering about the new lyndell’s!! great info for a fellow bostoner!!
What a great crawl! Glad to see you had fun and I hope to make a stop to check these out when I’ll be visiting in a few months! I’ve been on a slight commenting hiatus with my busy schedule lately… but it’s great to catch up and see what’s cooking in your kitchen!
Such a fantastic idea – I love Boston… and cupcakes.
What a great idea! I am in Boston and I am amazed at all of the cupcake shops that keep popping up. And another one: I just read that Todd English is opening “Curly Cupcakes” on Charles street!
kitchenbelle.com
fabulous idea for 24,24,24! i’m hungry for cupcakes now….
Great post! I can’t wait to try some of these places out the next time I’m in Boston.
Love this idea! Great post and pictures. The straw in the Pink Lemonade cupcake at Sweet is so cute!!
Thank you SO much for this! Although, I wish I had all of this info on Friday when we were wandering around town just for fun! I am SO going to have to try some of these places!
I love the fact that you did this crawl – I wanted to do the same thing after reading a Boston.com article a few months ago but never got off my lazy butt to do it. You’ve inspired me to start visiting some of these places.
From a wedding standpoint, I love all the pictures of the cupcakes – this is because I want them as a part of my wedding reception and need to find the right bakery to get them from.
As always, great post!
You forgot to try the the only cupcake store that would have scored a 5.0. Sensational cupcakes in saugus just 10 mins from boston. You really should try them they are simply sensational. http://Www.sensationalcupcake.com
Thanks for the note about Curly Cupcakes, I’ll have to check that out too.
As mentioned in the post, we were only trying cupcake bakeries that were accessable via the T. We wanted to be able to rate bakeries that anyone could get to in the city. There are quite a few other bakeries that don’t meet that criteria. I’ll definitely have to try Sensational Cupcakes next time I’m in the Saugus area though.
you should have gone to Lyndell’s – the *real* Lyndell’s – in ball square close to Davis. their cupcakes are great. there is also an adorable cupcake-related story about Lyndell’s: http://www.wickedlocal.com/somerville/homepage/x418534015/Groom-to-be-My-love-is-like-a-Lyndell-s-cupcake
I agree with everyone that this was a great idea and I love reading the reviews. I also second the idea of going to the real Lyndell’s in Somerville, it is the same place, but the original store. However in my opinion the best thing at Lyndells is their black and white cookies. They are like flat cupcakes more than cookies and the frosting on them is at least an inch thick. Their chocolate frosting is A-MA-ZING!!!
I have to give a nod to Lyndell’s in Somerville.I ended up with a ton of goods from them at The taste of Somerville.
If you’re out on the T again you have to check out Sweet Tooth in South Boston just up Broadway from the Broadway T stop. Their cupcakes are enormous and are the absolute best I’ve ever had.
http://www.sweettoothboston.com/
They are also available at Lamberts in downtown Boston.
I love the idea of the Boston Cupcake Crawl. All the cupcakes look amazing and makes me want a cupcake!
VERY cool! I haven’t been to a bakery for cupcakes (anything, really) here in FL.
Have you come down off your sugar high yet? 🙂
~ingrid
It sounds like a lot of fun! Thanks for the recommendations and ratings – it’s always good to get another perspective (other than yelp)!
that’s the cutest idea ever!!!
i really enjoyed one of kickass cupcakes vegan pumpkin spice cupcakes once, and I hear that sweet has vegan offerings on Mondays! I can’t wait to check it out!
How fun! Man I wish we were neighbors. I’d love to cupcake crawl with you! I totally have to jank this idea for my hood. Complete with your cute little scorecards and goodie bags. J’dorable!
/Clara
Please come see me as part of your next cupcake crawl, Sugar Bakery… I am the cupcake lady ask for me. Always loooking to know if people enjoy my cupcakes:)
Please come by sugar bakery ask for me, I would love to be part of your next adventure. Always looking to see what people think of my cupcakes 🙂
What a great 24,24,24 theme!!
I just got selected for this month and am very excited!
I also just got back from Boston where I did a great walking tour of the North End Market area:
http://www.eatlivetravelwrite.com/2009/08/north-end-market-tour-boston-1.html
(and the two posts that follow it!)
What a brilliant idea! I think I’ll try and organise a cupcake crawl now! Loving the little bags you made 🙂
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