St. Patrick’s Day Buttermilk Cupcakes Recipe

You gotta have a little touch of green to get you in the St. Patrick’s Day spirit! And these perfect cupcakes are just the way to celebrate! I’m already planning a tablescape with Buttermilk Cupcakes & these cute mini shamrock pinatas!

These St. Patrick’s Day Buttermilk Cupcakes have just a simple and perfect cream cheese frosting. They are rich, spongey, and old fashioned.

They are fun to make because they require a special ingredient – buttermilk.

Why Add Buttermilk to Desserts?

Buttermilk is a gorgeous ingredient that’s perfect in baked goods.

My favorite quality of buttermilk is the slight tang. It’s perfect for desserts because it balances the sweet so well! Buttermilk also makes for a beautifully spongey cake. You can also use buttermilk to make lassis, custards, and more!

Buttermilk is only real when it’s a naturally fermented. But the kind you can find in grocery stores works perfectly in baked goods – it just isn’t quite as delicious as the real thing!

St. Patrick’s Day Buttermilk Cupcakes Baking Instructions:

This cupcake is a buttermilk, vanilla, and unsalted butter cupcake recipe. It’s sweet, simple, and totally delicious! There are some quirks – like the fact that this recipe uses both baking soda and baking powder (which is unusual) and that we are using egg yolks (which is delicious!) But adjustments always need to be made when working with ingredients like buttermilk.

But as far as baking times, what to look for when they are done, and frosting them – everything about this cupcake is straightforward.

Simple Cream Cheese Frosting

I paired these cupcakes with a simple cream cheese frosting. But one of my favorites frosting recipes for any dessert is this Honey & Vanilla Buttercream Frosting Recipe.

Whatever you choose, be sure that it has a very light color, so you can add your green food coloring for St. Patrick’s Day! That’s what makes these cupcakes so special.

Also, don’t forget the green cupcake liners! That way you can match them to the frosting.

St. Patrick's Day Buttermilk Cupcakes Recipe

Brittany Bly

These mini sponge cakes are made with buttermilk and paired with a simple cream cheese frosting - yum!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Servings 18 -24 cupcakes

Ingredients

  

For the Buttermilk Cupcakes:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs at room temperature
• 2 additional egg yolks
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter melted but not hot
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 18-24 green or St. Patrick's themed cupcake liners

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
• 8 oz. cream cheese room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract and/or 1 dollop of vanilla bean paste
• green food color around 1/4 tsp.

Instructions

 

• Preheat your oven to 350°F.
• In a Kitchen-Aid Mixer, beat your eggs, egg yolks, and sugar into creamy.
• Then add your melted butter but be sure your butter isn't hot!
• Next add your vanilla and buttermilk and mix until creamy and smooth.
• Add your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt) to a sifter and sift the ingredients into your buttermilk and sugar mixture.
• After every half cup to cup of dry ingredients added, mix your ingredients in your Kitchen-Aid mixer. Continue until you've sifted and added all of your dry ingredients into your buttermilk mixture and everything is blended.
• Add your cupcake batter until lined cupcake tins and fill them to about 2/3 full. Your batter should be enough for 18-24 cupcakes.
• Bake at 350°F for 18-20 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick comes out crumbly.
• Once you remove the Buttermilk Cupcakes from the oven, allow them to cool completely before frosting - up to 1-2 hours.
• To make the frosting, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth and evenly blended.
• Then add the vanilla and beat again until evenly mixed.
• Next, add the powdered sugar, 1/2 at a time until you get a smooth, creamy consistency. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl!
• Add a small amount of green food coloring and continue to blend. Add coloring until you reach your desired green. As food gel becomes more common than food color, be sure that you add only a tiny amount at first and build your color from there.
• Be sure to only frost your cupcakes once they are completely cool. Add your frosting into a piping bag for a cute floral look. Or just use a butter knife to spread it across the top!

Keyword buttermilk cake, buttermilk cupcakes, cream cheese frosting, cupcakes, dessert, green cupcakes, st. patrick's day

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