The Story:
Cupcakes tend to be something that keep me social. I bake, and then I need to give all the treats away. So I meet a lot of new people on campus and in my apartment complex. It’s remarkable how many people want to be your friend when you carry around a plate of cupcakes all the time.
And not only does this cupcake look like a party, the recipe calls for a party as well! Because it makes 48 cupcakes 
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake:
1 box Devil's Food Cake mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Lemon Cake:
1 box White Cake mix
4 egg whites
1/3 cup oil
2/3 cup milk
juice of 2 lemons
zest of 2 lemons
1/2 cup sour cream
Strawberry Buttercream:
2 cups butter, softened
5-6 cups powdered sugar
1/3-1/2 cup strawberry puree, fresh
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line pans with cupcake liners.
2. Sift both cake mixes (into separate bowls) and set aside.
3. Chocolate Cake: Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth. Add cake mix and stir until fully incorporated.
4. Lemon Cake: Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth, add cake mix and stir well.
5. Fill your cupcake liners by placing one small scoop of chocolate batter on one side and lemon on the other side. It doesn't need to be perfect, they will bake beautifully no matter what.
6. Bake cupcakes for 15-20 minutes, or until an inserted knife comes out clean.
7. Buttercream: Beat butter for 2 minutes, scrape down sides and beat again. Slowly add powdered sugar until your mixture is very thick. Add your strawberry puree a little bit at a time until your frosting becomes light and fluffy. If the frosting becomes too thin, then add more powdered sugar. Add vanilla extract and beat.
8. Pipe buttercream onto cooled cupcakes and top with a fresh strawberry.
9. Throw a party!
Notes
Make your strawberry puree by placing berries in a food processor or in a blender and mix until very smooth, like a soup. For an extra boost of flavor, add freeze dried strawberries to the puree.
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Oh my…I’m so making these. They look delish and with 48 cupcakes I’m sure I’ll make a lot of new friends (:
that frosting looks soooooo delicious
Gorgeous! So THAT’S how you make friends after college, I see! Haha. I love how pretty these look!
OMGoodness Lizzy! I made these for a birthday party over the weekend and they were delicious. I must say instead of lemon I used vanilla since it was for kids. I used the strawberry buttercream recipe from the pop tarts recipe…YUMMO! I added a teaspoon of strawberry icing fruit and it was simply divine. I really like the idea of using freeze dried fruit. The possibilities have just become endless! Thanks again for another winning recipe combination.
Just made these this morning! Haven’t made the buttercream yet but the cupcakes alone are super yummy!!
Hi Lizzy, have you ever tried making a vanilla OREO cup cake and vanilla OREO frosting?
Check out my cookies and cream cupcakes!
Hi Lizzy,
May I substitute white cake for yellow? I’d love to make try this recipe but I’m out of white cake.
Thanks in advance.
BTW I love your blog.
I like this weblog it’s a master piece! Glad I found this on google.
These looks absolutely gorgeous, and I would like to know where do you get those sanding sugar that you sprinkle on the top. Love the presentation, too pretty that I don’t want to eat it
I get my sanding sugar from a place in Salt Lake City, Utah called Gygi’s.
The frosting looks so pretty, want to know what piping tip did you use because it doesn’t looks like the one that you’re normally use, is it the open star tip?
Yes, it is an open star tip
Can I use the lemon cake mix instead of the white cake mix? If yes, Should I just omit the lemon zest and juice then? Thanks!
Yes, you can do that! I just like to use the white and turn it into lemon because they I can control how lemony I make it