Lemon Poppy Seed Cup Cakes

These easy Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes from scratch are beautiful, flavorful, and moist. They're topped with a sweet lemon icing that's the perfect final touch.

Welcome to My Kitchen Serenity! I'm so glad to share this lemon poppy seed cupcake recipe with you! First, I love all things lemon. There's my Lemon Chess Pie recipe and my Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings recipe.

So why not have another lemon recipe? These cupcakes are also one of my favorite year-round desserts; elegant enough for Christmas and Thanksgiving yet just right for spring and summer. Win-Win!

Why You'll Love These Cupcakes

These cupcakes are made from scratch so they contain all the basic cupcake ingredients such as flour, sugar, butter, eggs, etc. We add a small amount of instant pudding mix to ensure the cupcakes are moist. The addition of lemon juice and lemon zest gives the cupcakes an amazing, delicate lemon flair.

Are you more of a chocolate fan? Then head over to my Chocolate Orange Sheet Cake recipe. It's homemade goodness, just like this one!

After the cupcakes cool, we'll top them with a sweet lemon icing that's made from powdered sugar, milk, and lemon juice. MMM! I wish you could smell how amazing my house smells while these are baking!

Just a few notes about the ingredients. For the best results for these lemon poppyseed cupcakes, please follow the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

All-purpose Flour - do not substitute with self-rising. We will add salt, baking powder, and baking soda in just the right amounts.

Poppy Seeds - The poppy seeds are more for show because they don't really add a ton of flavor. They do, however, compliment the lemon flavor with a slight nutty flavor that's very pleasing to your palette! You could leave them out if you wish, but I highly recommend using them.

Instant Pudding Mix - all it takes is a couple of tablespoons of this to add a little extra moisture and flavor to the cupcakes. You can always use the leftover pudding mix to make pudding (just slightly decrease the milk added).

Fresh Lemon Juice - fresh tastes so much better than the concentrated version in the bottle. You'll need 3 large lemons for the juice.

Lemon Zest - zest one of the lemons before slicing it. Use a handy zester to remove just the yellow peel and none of the bitter white part.

Butter - the butter needs to be room temperature to ensure a creamy texture for the icing. Allow 1 hour for it to sit on the countertop to become softened. Unwrapping the butter and slicing it into chunks helps speed up the process.

How to Make the Cupcakes

Here's a quick review of the recipe steps with photos. Please follow the recipe card when making these cupcakes.

Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add the eggs, milk, and lemon juice and blend until smooth.

Add the flour, instant pudding mix, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest bowl. Blend until smooth.

Fold in the poppy seeds.

Fill each muffin cup.

Bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Let cool completely. Prepare icing.

Pipe the icing on top of the cupcakes. Garnish with poppy seeds and lemon zest.

Storing Cupcakes

Unfrosted cupcakes will stay fresh for up to 3 days if left covered on your counter top. However, since the icing is made of butter, it's best to store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Take them out about 30 minutes prior to serving them to let the icing soften up.

If you need to transport them, keep them in a plastic cake holder, such as this one from Southern Homewares, to help keep them nice, fresh, and intact. The lid locks onto the base and is somewhat translucent.

Make-ahead Cupcakes

Cakes and cupcakes are always better eaten the next day. However, I would wait to frost the cupcakes until the day you plan to serve them.

Freezing Cupcakes

Cakes and cupcakes freeze well and often makes them even moister than before you froze them! Be sure they're completely cooled. Skip the icing for now. Then wrap the cupcakes in several layers of plastic wrap, followed by a layer of tin foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. When you're ready to eat them, remove the plastic wrap and foil, then let them thaw on the counter top for 2-3 hours. Top with frosting. Enjoy!