Fresh Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins with Lemon Curd

Light, moist and impossible to stop at just one.

by Samantha Tulett

Published Feb 14, 2026

RECIPE ↓

35 MINS

MODERATE

12 MUFFINS

About the Recipe

These are the kind of muffins that disappear quietly and quickly. Soft and beautifully tender, they’re studded with fresh strawberries and finished with a creamy ring of cream cheese icing and a bright lemon curd centre. Every bite is light, slightly tangy and perfectly balanced between sweet and fresh.

What I love most about this recipe is the texture. The cream cheese in the batter keeps them incredibly moist without feeling heavy, and the extra egg yolk gives richness without density. They feel like something you would order from a beautiful neighbourhood café, but they’re completely achievable at home. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator and they stay delicious for days, if they last that long.

RECIPE

Fresh Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins with Lemon Curd

by Samantha Tulett | City Slicker

BAKE TIME

20 MINS

TOTAL TIME

35 MINS

INGREDIENTS

Wet Mixture

½ cup cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup white sugar

2 eggs + 1 extra egg yolk

½ cup canola oil

½ cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry Mixture

2¾ cups plain flour

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp fine sea salt

½ tsp cinnamon

Zest of 1 lemon

Filling

1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped

1 tsp plain flour, for tossing strawberries

Icing

200g cream cheese, softened

1 cup icing sugar, sifted and adjusted to taste

½ tsp vanilla extract

Pinch fine sea salt

To Finish

100g lemon curd

12 whole strawberries

Paper muffin cases

METHOD

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs and extra yolk and beat until well combined. Pour in the canola oil, milk and vanilla extract and mix gently until smooth and glossy.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and lemon zest.

Toss the chopped strawberries in 1 teaspoon of flour to prevent them sinking.

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. The batter should remain slightly lumpy. Do not overmix. Fold in the floured strawberries right at the end.

Spoon the batter into the muffin cases, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with moist crumbs attached.

Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once the muffins are completely cool, beat the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and salt until smooth and fluffy. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe a ring around the top of each cooled muffin, leaving the centre open. Spoon a generous dollop of lemon curd into the centre of each icing ring and finish with a whole strawberry on top.

Tips

Do not overmix the batter. Once you add the dry ingredients, fold gently and stop as soon as you no longer see streaks of flour. A slightly lumpy batter gives you a softer, lighter crumb.

Toss the strawberries in flour. This step helps prevent the fruit from sinking to the bottom and keeps the berries evenly distributed throughout the muffin.

Cool the muffins completely before icing. Even slight warmth will cause the cream cheese icing to loosen and lose its shape. If your kitchen is warm, pop the muffins in the fridge for 15 minutes before piping.

Storage matters. Because of the cream cheese icing, these should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving for the softest texture.