The Perfect Blend of Creamy and Crunchy; Strawberry Crunch Cupcakes

This easy recipe for homemade Strawberry Crunch Cupcakes will become your new favorite! Moist vanilla cupcakes with my signature cream cheese frosting and a delicious fruity strawberry crunch topping. Trust me, the strawberry shortcake crunch takes these cupcakes to the next level.

Best Strawberry Crunch Cupcakes Recipe

If you grew up in the US, you must remember those Good Humor Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars! If not, you must try them when you visit the States next. The flavor and texture of strawberry crunch are insane; now you can try it on a cupcake.

This recipe requires no fancy ingredients, and the steps are straightforward and uncomplicated. Even beginner bakers can master it! My recipes are always from scratch, with my pro baking tips and easy-to-follow instructions.

The cupcakes are super moist and delicious, and the silky, rich cream cheese frosting is the perfect contrast to the strawberry crunch. They are so good; I'm sure they'll wow your friends and family!

Katalin's Take On How to Make The Actual Strawberry Crunch

Strawberry crunch topping is a great way to add texture, flavor, and color to desserts. It tastes incredible on cupcakes and in my full-size Strawberry Crunch Cake, which is excellent for special occasions. It's made from Golden Oreos and freeze-dried strawberries, but the key is to add melted butter as you blend it all, as this gives you bigger, stickier chunks.

Trust me, this is what makes my strawberry crunch recipe irresistible! I also don't use jelly, like some recipes, as it can make it mushy. And if you have leftovers, you can sprinkle strawberry crunch on ice cream, yogurt, or oatmeal. It's amazing!

Ingredients

Vanilla Cupcakes

• 113 g (½ cups) Unsalted butter at room temperature
• 150 g (¾ cups) Granulated sugar
• 2 Eggs at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
• 120 g (½ cups) Whole milk at room temperature
• 185 g (1½ cups) All purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoon Baking powder
• ½ teaspoon White vinegar
• ½ teaspoon Baking soda

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 230 g (1 cups) Cream cheese full fat (33%+) e.g. Philadelphia, use it cold
• 115 g (½ cups) Mascarpone full fat (41%+), use it cold
• 60 g (½ cups) Powdered sugar, sifted

Strawberry Crunch

• 110 g (10 pieces) Golden Oreos
• 20 g (2 tablespoons) Freeze dried strawberry
• 30 g (2 tablespoons) Unsalted butter Melted but not hot. Butter is needed to create the bigger chunks, but it can be left out if aiming for a more sandy texture.
• Pinch of salt
• Few slices of fresh strawberries to decorate

The Vanilla Cupcake Base Comes Together Really Easily

Preheat your oven to 350℉/175℃ (no fan) and prepare a cupcake tin with muffin liners.

Cream the room-temperature butter and sugar together until they are pale and fluffy using an electric hand whisk or stand mixer. I have an entire article about how and why to cream butter with sugar; it will produce baked goods with a lovely light and airy texture, so make sure to get it right.

Then, slowly add the room-temperature eggs and allow them to incorporate into the mixture before adding the next one. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Sift the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) into a separate bowl. Turn the mixer down to low speed (or use a rubber spatula), and add the dry ingredients in thirds, alternating with the room-temperature milk. Don't overmix; it just needs to be incorporated.

Next, we add my secret baking hack for a super moist sponge. In a small bowl, stir together the vinegar and baking soda. It will foam up. Immediately fold it into the cupcake batter using a spatula. The vinegar and baking soda mixture will make your cupcakes extra moist and fluffy, without the taste of the vinegar, so make sure you don't skip it.

Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners, filling each about three-quarters full. Be careful, as cupcake liners are coming in different sizes, so you might be able to bake slightly more or fewer cupcakes than 12.

Bake the cupcakes at 350℉/175℃ for 20–22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let the cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack. Don't attempt to frost them while they're still warm, as the frosting will melt.

My Signature Silky Cream Cheese Frosting

Ensure all the mascarpone and cream cheese are very cold before you begin; this helps them whip up properly. Also, use high-fat cream cheese, like Philadelphia, and high-fat mascarpone, as low-fat dairy products contain more water.

Sift the powdered sugar to remove any lumps, then whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl using an electric hand mixer until they reach a creamy, fluffy consistency. You can also use your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, but don't overmix it, or it can go runny and then split.

Make The Strawberry Crunch

Place the Golden Oreo cookies and freeze-dried strawberries into a food processor and pulse until they crumble into evenly sized-pieces. Don't go too far, and blend them into powder! You can also put them both into a ziplock bag and bash with a rolling pin.

Melt the butter (I put it in the microwave for 20-30 second increments on low power) and then let it cool slightly. It must be runny but not hot to combine correctly with the topping.

Now add the butter and a pinch of salt (don't skip this!) to the Oreo strawberry mixture and stir until everything is combined. Don't be tempted to add more Oreos, as the crunch topping will firm up as it cools.

Place the mixture in the fridge until you're ready to decorate your strawberry crunch cupcakes!

Now, the Fun Part! Assemble

Pipe the cream cheese frosting on top of each cupcake. The nozzle tip is not too important in this recipe since the frosting will be fully covered with the strawberry crunch topping, anyway.

Gently dip each frosted cupcake upside down into the strawberry crunch to fully coat it in the topping.

Sprinkle each cupcake with even more crunchy strawberry crumble and then decorate with sliced fresh strawberries and crushed Golden Oreos.

Leftovers? This Is How You Store Them

Your strawberry crunch cupcakes are best served fresh, but any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days.

The frosting and strawberry crunch will not freeze well, so I don't recommend freezing them once they're frosted. However, I like making batches of the vanilla cupcake base to have them ready to go in the freezer. Store in ziplock bags or wrapped in plastic food wrap.

For more information, read my guide on how to store and freeze cupcakes.

Try Different Flavor Variations

Now that you've mastered the strawberry crunch cupcake recipe, you can adapt it to suit your taste!

Try other cookies instead of Golden Oreos, but make sure to add enough butter if they don't have a cream filling, as the mixture needs fat to act as a binder. I like to add regular Oreos sometimes to get a chocolate hit. You could also swap out the freeze-dried strawberries for freeze-dried raspberries.

Grating some lemon, lime, or orange zest into the cupcake batter can add some delicious citrus zing to the recipe! You could even add some shredded coconut.

If you want to double down on strawberry flavor, scoop out a little bit of each cupcake and fill them with strawberry compote before frosting.

Expert tips for making strawberry crunch cupcakes

1. The milk, butter, and eggs must be at room temperature before you begin making the cupcakes for proper emulsification. See my guide on softening butter quickly for tips on doing so without using a microwave.
2. Use good-quality vanilla extract, not synthetic-tasting vanilla essence, in the vanilla cupcake base.
3. Don't make the baking soda and vinegar mixture in advance. The longer it sits, the slower the chemical reaction will be, and the less your cupcakes will rise!
4. Do not overfill your cupcake liners, or they can mushroom out of the cases.
5. Avoid overbaking the cupcakes, as it can dry them out. And we always want fluffy, moist cupcakes!
6. Don't leave out the salt! While it might seem odd to add salt to dessert recipes, it will enhance the flavor of the strawberry crunch topping and also balance the sweetness.
7. Never frost-warm cupcakes! Wait until it is thoroughly cooled and at room temperature, or it may melt the frosting.
8. If the frosting feels too soft to pipe, place it in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.

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