I absolutely love diving into vintage community recipes, and today’s find comes straight from an old church cookbook printed in 1967.

While vintage recipes are treasures, they sometimes need a modern tweak. The original version called for just 1/2 cup of blueberries and a whopping 1 1/2 cups of sugar for the batter. I felt that was much too sweet and lacking in fruit, so I changed it up a little. That is the great thing about recipes: you can always adapt them to suit your own taste buds.

Here is my updated, perfectly balanced take on these classic lemon blueberry cupcakes.

The Cupcake Batter

Yields: 15 standard cupcakes (or a larger batch of mini cupcakes) Prep time: 15 minutes | Bake time: 18-20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 pint fresh blueberries (Use anywhere from 1 to 2 cups, depending on how much blueberry flavor you want!)

Instructions:

1. Prep the oven and pans: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. (Since this makes 15 cupcakes, you will have a second partial batch to bake).
2. Combine the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar: Using a mixer in a large bowl, beat the softened butter on high speed until creamy. Add the sugar and beat on high speed until completely creamed together.
4. Add the wet ingredients: Turn the mixer to low speed and add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract. Turn the mixer up to medium-high speed and beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure everything is mixed evenly.
5. Incorporate the flavors: Turn the mixer back to low. Slowly add the dry flour mixture, followed by the buttermilk, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Beat just until incorporated—be careful not to overmix! Gently fold in the fresh blueberries by hand.
6. Bake: Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling each about 2/3 of the way full to leave room for them to rise. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes (or 11 to 13 minutes if you are making mini cupcakes), until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
7. Cool: Note that these cupcakes will not brown on top. Allow them to cool completely before frosting.

The Cream Cheese Frosting

I also adjusted the sugar in the original frosting recipe. The 1967 version called for 1 1/2 lbs of sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla, which is incredibly sweet. I reduced the sugar and bumped up the vanilla to let the cream cheese tang shine through.

Ingredients:

• 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
• 1 lb sifted confectioners sugar (between 3/4 lb and 1 lb makes it just right, depending on your sweetness preference)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Blend the base: With a mixer, blend together the room-temperature butter and cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add the sugar: Gradually add in the confectioners sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Taste a little as you go—if you desire more sugar, feel free to add more until you hit that perfect sweetness factor.
3. Finish and frost: Beat in the vanilla extract.

Once the cupcakes are completely cooled, you can scoop this frosting into decorating bags with your favorite tip to make them look beautiful. Mom just used her trusty fork, as always! You can easily use this super simple frosting on any cake or cupcake you like. Enjoy!