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These quick and easy olive oil and citrus cupcakes are super delicious and actually make just as good of a sweet breakfast as they do a snack or dessert! They’re light, fluffy and reminiscent of a good lemon drizzle cake – with added orange!
These lemon and orange cupcakes were a hit in our house because they’re not too sweet or too tart, not too dense or too light – they’re just perfect in every way! You don’t even need butter either – the olive oil adds fat in the same way, while the yogurt acts as to bind the ingredients together just like eggs would!
One of the really great things about these cupcakes is that you don’t need a stand mixer to make them! Just a few bits of everyday kitchen equipment you probably already have (see the section below on equipment needed).
What ingredients do I need to make these lemon and orange cupcakes?
The ingredients list is pretty basic, and everything has a purpose! So:
- plain flour to hold the cupcakes’ structure
- salt to bring out the gorgeous citrus flavours and balance the sweetness
- bicarbonate of soda and baking powder so that thee cupcakes rise and become light, fluffy and airy
- vanilla extract for a little flavour boost in the background
- plain natural yogurt to bind all of the ingredients together, acting similarly to how an egg would
- caster sugar (if you can’t find this then use granulated sugar) for sweetness
- extra virgin olive oil for both flavour and fat – the flavour goes brilliantly with citrus and all cupcakes need some sort of fat to keep them moist rather than dry and crumbly
- the juice and zest of both a lemon and an orange for mixing into the batter for flavour. It’s also great to spoon a little bit of the remaining juice over each cupcake once they’re cooked in order to keep them moist.
You could, of course, add a drizzle of frosting to these olive oil cupcakes. To make this, I’d recommend whisking together some sifted icing sugar with remaining orange and lemon juice. Then just drizzle the thin icing lightly over the tops of the cupcakes.
How can I adapt these cupcakes?
You could probably make these cupcakes vegan-friendly by using vegan yogurt, although I’m unsure if it would behave the same as I’ve never personally tried this.
You could also swap the olive oil for a neutral-flavoured cooking oil if you’re not such a fan of the taste of olive oil. If you were to do this, there are plenty of ways you could customise these!
- add in some chopped fresh berries for an extra fruity twist (making these light cupcakes even more perfect for breakfast)
- add in white chocolate chips and swap the orange for another lemon for lemon and white chocolate cupcakes
- remove the lemon and orange zest and add extra vanilla and some chocolate chips to the batter for vanilla chocolate chip eggless cupcakes
- swap the lemon for another orange and add chopped candied ginger and dark chocolate chips for lemon, ginger snd dark chocolate cupcakes
… and pretty much an unlimited number of more possible customisations!
What equipment do I need to make these eggless cupcakes?
Nothing out of the ordinary! Try these:
- a cupcake tray and some cupcake cases – I like pretty cupcake cases like these ones!
- Some simple kitchen scales to weigh your ingredients accurately – the cupcakes won’t have the right texture if your ratios are off!
- A sieve for the dry ingredients
- Measuring spoons for the vanilla and citrus juices, as well as a juicer like this one for collecting the juice
- a handheld zester for the lemon and orange – or you can use a microplane!
- A large bowl like one of these and a whisk for mixing together the ingredients!
What other recipes should I try?
There’s quite a few! If you’re a fan of fresh, fruity flavours then you might also like my strawberry and white chocolate cupcakes.
However, if you’re serving these as part of a sweet brunch spread, then the perfect accompaniment would be my berry cheesecake breakfast bowl – it’s so light and creamy, but still pretty healthy! Plus, it’s also eggless!
Or, there are my refined sugar-free flapjacks. Unfortunately, they aren’t eggless like these citrus olive oil cupcakes, but you could try using egg substitutes if for some reason you’re unable to eat eggs.
Lemon & Orange Olive Oil Cupcakes
These simple and easy lemon and orange olive oil cupcakes are eggless and full of citrus flavour! They're light, fluffy and moist with plenty of fresh summer flavour.
Ingredients
- 200 grams (1 1/4 cup) plain flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 275 grams (1 cup, 9 oz) plain, natural yogurt
- 150 grams (2/3 cup) granulated sugar
- 125 ml (1/2 cup) extra virgin olive oil
- 1 orange, zested and juiced
- 2 lemons, zested and juiced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and place 12 cupcake cases in a cupcake tray.
- Sift the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder together and set aside.
- In another bowl, mix together vanilla, yogurt, sugar, oil, orange zest, lemon zest and 2 tbsp juice from each lemon and orange. Leave to stand for 5 minutes.
- Add flour mixture and whisk until there are no lumps. Spoon mixture into cupcake cases until around ⅔ full and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan. While cooling, mix together remaining orange and lemon juice and spoon around ½ tsp over each cupcake.
Notes
Cupcakes keep for 3-5 days in an airtight container at room temperature.
If you wish to use regular oil instead of olive oil, do not change the amount. However, do note that this will affect the flavour of the cupcakes.
If you wish to use only orange or only lemon in the recipe then simply substitute in the one you do want to use for the one you don't and continue the same.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 cupcakeAmount Per Serving: Calories: 214Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 1mgSodium: 126mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 1gSugar: 15gProtein: 3g
Nutrition information is an estimate and may not always be accurate.
Don’t forget to pin this recipe for later!
These sound delicious. Love the citrus flavours paired with the olive oil. Fresh, bright and summery.
They taste as good as they look! And definitely – the flavours are just gorgeous! They remind me of mini lemon drizzle cakes, but with orange as well!
Looks delicious!
Thank you! They really do taste as good as they look! Do you think you’ll try making them?
The whole family loved these! Was odd cooking with no egg or butter but they turned out way yummier than I expected! We will be making them again soon!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! I found it a little odd too, although the oil takes the place of butter well! It’s great to hear that you’ll be making them again – I do actually have a chocolatey spin off this recipe coming soon so make sure to keep an eye out for that!
Wat if we don’t add orange or lemon zest
Then it won’t taste as much of lemon and orange – the cupcakes may be a little bland.
Then can we add little more lemon or orange juice to give it a perfect taste
Not necessarily – adding extra liquid may affect the structure and texture of the cakes to make them soggy. Especially as juice is much milder than zest. It’s unlikely that you’d be able to achieve the same flavour and texture as you would by using zest.
So can we drizzle extra juice once the cake is baked n allowed to cool as per our taste ? Will it affect the texture in any case ? If I need more tangy …extra lemon or orange juice or both
You can drizzle some on top for sure! I actually always do that with these cakes as it adds even more moisture. For more tanginess, I’d focus particularly on the lemon juice, but make sure to leave at least some orange juice in the mix or the orange flavour will be very subtle and mild.