This is the absolute best, citrusy Lemon Blossoms recipe you’ll ever have. Tender and moist lemony mini cake is topped with a sweet, silky smooth, homemade lemon glaze. Made easily with cake mix, these Lemon Blossoms will brighten your day with a double dose of citrusy goodness.
✔️ Easy Lemon Blossoms Recipe
You had to see this coming! A food blog with tested recipes, tutorials, and food facts named Lemon Blossoms HAD to feature a recipe with the same name – I’m just surprised it didn’t happened sooner
This easy recipe combines simple ingredients to create a luscious treat that everyone – especially lemon-lovers – will adore. This lemon blossoms recipe combines simple cake mix and instant lemon pudding to create a delicious dessert with a burst of bright and refreshing lemon flavor.
🔎 What Are Lemon Blossoms and How Do They Taste?
Lemon blossoms are moist mini muffins that are dunked and drizzled with a brightly flavored, sweet lemon glaze. They are tender and light and taste citrusy and sweet.
These zesty little muffins are inspired by Paula Deen’s recipe for lemon blossoms. Just like my Lemon Blueberry Crumb Bars and my luscious Lemon Poke Cake these lemon desserts use store-bought cake mixes and packaged pudding mix which make these recipes easier to make and cut on prep time.
⭐️ Why You’ll Love This Lemon Blossoms Recipe
- Easy and Foolproof: Using cake mix and instant pudding, combined with just a few other simple ingredients results in a foolproof recipe that is easy to make.
- Versatile: Lemon blossoms are perfect for parties and baby showers, especially in the spring and summer months. They can be packed in lunchboxes, served as a snack or for breakfast. They also make for a sweet gift for party hosts, teachers, and everyone with a sweet tooth.
- Delicious: Their tender and moist crumb, the right amount of sweetness and tart citrus flavor make these lemon blossoms so flavorful.
✔️ Ingredients, Substitutions and Add-ins
For the complete list of ingredients and exact quantities, check the printable recipe card below.
- White cake mix: The first key ingredient is white cake mix. This provides a base for the muffins and gives them their light and fluffy texture. Use your favorite brand.
- Lemon pudding mix: This important ingredient adds a burst of lemon flavor and helps to keep the muffins moist.
- Zest: Lemon zest imparts even more lemon flavor and produces a bright and zesty aroma.
- Eggs: Large eggs help to bind the ingredients together and provide structure to the muffins.
- Butter: This crucial ingredient adds richness and moisture to the muffins.You can unsalted or salted butter.
- Lemon juice: Nothing compares to the fresh, tart and tangy flavor of fresh lemon juice.
✔️ Substitutions:
- Use a different cake mix: Yellow cake mix gives the mini cakes a nice yellowish color. For a stronger lemon flavor, use lemon cake mix.
- Swap the lemon pudding mix with vanilla pudding mix: This gives the mini muffins a milder lemon taste and accentuates the vanilla flavor. You can add a teaspoon of lemon extract or increase the amount of fresh zest to balance the flavor.
✔️ Additions:
- Add finely chopped nuts for added crunch.
- Add mini chocolate chips or white chocolate chips.
🔎 How Do you Make Lemon Blossoms?
Here’s the quick version of how to make these easy mini muffins. You can mix the batter by hand or in an electric mixer. Find all of the details on the printable recipe card below.
- Prep: Preheat the oven and spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray, butter or vegetable oil.
- Make the blossoms batter: Melt the butter and set aside to cool slightly. Combine cake mix, pudding mix, and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl. Pour the eggs and the slightly cooled butter into the dry ingredients and mix until a thick batter forms. Pour the eggs and the slightly cooled butter into the dry ingredients and mix until a thick batter forms.
- Bake: Scoop small amount of batter t into the prepared mini muffin tins. Bake for the recommended time or until the edges are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool briefly in the tin before transferring to wire racks.
- Make the glaze: Whisk together the glaze ingredients together.
- Dip and drizzle: Dip the warm blossoms into the sugar glaze and swirl to remove any excess. Although drizzling the glaze is optional, it makes for a beautiful presentation.
- Cool and serve: Return the muffins to the cooling rack and allow the them to come to room temperature. Serve.
✔️ Common Questions About Lemon Blossoms
🔎 Can I Use a Different Type of Cake Mix?
A white cake mix is best if you want the blossoms to be light and fluffy but you can use other styles, like a yellow cake mix, if you prefer. If you want an even more lemony treat, try using lemon cake mix.
🔎 Can I Use a Different Type of Pudding Mix?
Lemon pudding mix will give you the most lemon flavor but you can choose another flavor if you want less lemon.
🔎 What Can I Use Instead of Lemon Zest?
If you don’t have lemon zest, use lemon extract. 1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon is all you need.
🔎 What Other Flavors of Blossoms Mini Muffins Can I Make?
- Strawberry Blossoms: Use strawberry cake mix and strawberry pudding. Keep the lemon glaze for “strawberry lemonade blossoms”.
- Chocolate Blossoms: Use chocolate cake mix and chocolate pudding. Go over the top and dunk the warm mini muffins in chocolate ganache for extra decadence.
- Hot Cocoa Blossoms: Use chocolate cake mix and vanilla pudding. Cover them with chocolate glaze made with cocoa powder, powdered sugar and heavy cream.
- Strawberries and Cream: Make it with strawberry cake mix and vanilla pudding. As for the topping, make a quick strawberry glaze with powdered sugar and strawberry syrup.
🔎 How to Decorate your Lemon Blossoms?
A drizzle of lemon glaze make these lemon blossoms look beautiful but, if you want to go all out and impress your family and friends with a beautiful dessert, you can use different sprinkles (tiny white or yellow stars or hearts sprinkles are super cute) Top them with finely chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans or with lemon zest.
You can also fill these tiny lemon muffins with lemon curd and top them with meringue or whipped cream and a small piece of thinly sliced lemon.
🔎 What to Serve With Lemon Blossoms
Pair the blossoms with your favorite tea or coffee — try a whipped dalgona coffee (with or without the Kahlua) for a really special treat. They also pair perfectly with drinks like a strawberry lemonade vodka cocktail or a French martini.
✔️ Make Ahead, Storing, and Freezing Lemon Blossoms
Make Ahead: Lemon blossoms can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature.
Refrigerator: Lemon Blossoms can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week in an airtight container or resealable bag.
Freezer: To freeze Lemon Blossoms, allow them to come to room temperature before placing them in an airtight container or resealable bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.
🔪 How To Prepare The Perfect Lemon Blossoms
- Make sure you use instant lemon pudding mix and not the type that needs cooking.
- Don’t follow the cooking instructions printed in the box of cake mix or instant pudding.
- Keep an eye on these mini muffins to avoid over-baking. You don’t want to miss out on the moistness that pudding mix imparts by drying them out.
- When making the glaze, add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar in small increments until you get the desired glaze consistency.
- Use a fork or a small pastry bag with a small tip to drizzle additional icing over top, or to create designs or patterns.
- To get equal amounts of muffin batter, use a cookie scoop to portion out the batter into the mini muffin cups.
- To prevent the blossoms from sticking together when frozen, freeze in a single layer or separate layers with wax paper or parchment paper.
Lemon Blossoms Mini Muffins
Ingredients
For the Glaze
- 2 cups powdered sugar, or more if needed
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more if needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter and set aside so it cools slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer whisk together the cake mix, pudding mix and lemon zest until just combined.
- Add the eggs and the slightly cool melted butter and by hand or using a handheld electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix until combined, about 2-3 minutes. The batter should be thick but smooth.
- Fill each tin cup halfway full and bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges start to get lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the mini cupcake comes out clean. Do not over bake!
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Remove and place on a cooling rack.
- To make the lemon glaze, in a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Add additional lemon juice in very small increments until you have reach a thick glaze consistency.
- While the lemon blossoms mini muffins are still warm, dip each muffing top with the lemon glaze. Gently swirl off any excess glaze and let them set on the cooling rack.
- Cool the lemon blossoms muffins completely before serving.
Optional:
- You can drizzle additional glaze over the glazed top as decoration Use a fork or a small pastry bag with a small tip.
Notes
- Make sure you use instant lemon pudding mix and not the type that needs cooking.
- Don’t follow the cooking instructions printed in the box of cake mix or instant pudding.
- Avoid over-baking which can dry out the delicate mini muffins.
- When making the glaze, add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar in small increments until you get the desired glaze consistency.
- Use a fork or a small pastry bag with a small tip to drizzle additional icing over top, or to create designs or patterns.
- To get equal amounts of muffin batter, use a cookie scoop to portion out the batter into the mini muffin cups.
- Using a gentle twist motion helps in getting the mini muffins off the baking pan.
- Mini muffin liners are not necessary.
Leave a Reply