One of my favourite cakes for Easter is a classic Simnel Cake but the kids find it a bit too much so I played around with the recipe a little bit and adapted a basic cupcake recipe to create these simple to make Simnel Cupcakes perfect for a little Easter treat so here you go an easy to make version of the Simnel Cake for Easter in cupcake form.

a set of 3 simnel cupcakes on a cake stand, each cupcake is topped with a circle of marzipan and a small ball of it too

Easter Cupcakes – Simnel Recipe

Simnel Cake is a delicious rich fruit and marzipan cake that is served at Easter it’s amazing, but as I said the kids find it too rich (much like they do with traditional Christmas Cake). However, these lighter cupcakes they love.

a cake stand with 3 simnel cupcakes on top and 3 below, dried cranberries are sprinkled around the base and a yellow tea towel can be seen in the background

With dried fruit, marzipan and no spices just some vanilla extract for flavour they have a similar taste but for those that don’t like rich fruit cakes these are perfect.

Simnel cupcakes on a table - two of them with marzipan topping and dried cranberries around the table

Ingredients for Simnel Cupcakes for Easter

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
2 cups mixed dried fruit (I used golden raisins, cranberries, and cherries)
1 cup apricot jam
8 ounces marzipan

How to Make your Easter Simnel Cupcakes

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin pan with liners.

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dry ingredients for making simnel cupcakes in a bowl

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

brown sugar and butter in a bowl ready to cream together

3. In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and brown sugar.

adding eggs to creamed brown sugar and butter

4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.

vanilla extract, lemon juice and zest added to beating eggs and sugar mix

5. Add the lemon juice, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. Beat to combine.

flour added to the wet ingredients for making cupcakes

6. Add the dry ingredients and mix to combine.

adding a mix of different dried fruit to cupcake batter for easter cakes

7. Fold in the dried fruit.

Simnel cake batter in cupcake cases ready to go in the oven

8. Transfer the batter to the prepared muffin pan, filling each cup 2/3 full of batter.

9. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

10. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely, then place the apricot jam in the microwave for 30 seconds. Brush the top of each cupcake with the warm jam, then place the cupcakes in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.

cutting marzipan into circles for the top of simnel cupcakes for easter

11. While the cupcakes are chilling, roll out the marzipan and use a round cookie cutter to cut out 12 circles. Then, roll the scraps into 12 balls.

balls of marzipan and circles added to the top of 6 simnel cupcakes for an Easter treat

12. Place one circle on top of each cupcake, then top it with a marzipan ball.

Easter cupcakes inspired by traditional simnel cake with marzipan topping and filled with dried fruit

Yield: 24 Cupcakes

Easter Simnel Cupcakes

A lighter version of the traditional Easter Simnel Cake, these Simnel Cupcakes are filled with dried fruit and topped with delicious marzipan.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Chill Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 lemon
2 cups mixed dried fruit (I used golden raisins, cranberries, and cherries)
1 cup apricot jam
8 ounces marzipan

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin pan with liners.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and brown sugar.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.
Add the lemon juice, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. Beat to combine.
Add the dry ingredients and mix to combine.
Fold in the dried fruit.
Transfer the batter to the prepared muffin pan, filling each cup 2/3 full of batter.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow the cupcakes to cool completely, then place the apricot jam in the microwave for 30 seconds. Brush the top of each cupcake with the warm jam, then place the cupcakes in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
While the cupcakes are chilling, roll out the marzipan and use a round cookie cutter to cut out 12 circles. Then, roll the scraps into 12 balls.
Place one circle on top of each cupcake, then top it with a marzipan ball.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 255Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 180mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 2gSugar: 27gProtein: 3g

More Easter Treats for the Family

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Easter hot cocoa bombs (perfect for adding to kids Easter Baskets)
Mini Egg Blondies
Carrot Patch Cupcakes for the Easter Bunny

Simnel Cupcakes

Easter Cupcakes – Simnel Recipe

Ingredients for Simnel Cupcakes for Easter

How to Make your Easter Simnel Cupcakes

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