Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting. These are definitely THE BEST mandarin orange cupcakes ever!

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting

Take your first bite into one of these fresh pretty Orange Cupcakes and you instantly get a burst of mandarin juices exploding in your mouth!

Then comes the delicious flavor of the mandarin orange sponge cake filling, infused with mandarins, light, moist and with the addition of a cheeky mandarin infused freshly whipped cream topping all over these little cakes, they are luscious!

What more could you ask for?!

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As you can see, I had fun piping the cream on the tops of these cupcakes!

I'm no cake decorator, that is certain, BUT... if you don't mind the 'rustic' piping, the flavors and textures in these cakes are truly amazing and will leave you wanting another!

You can involve the kids to help you add the creamy frosting on these cakes and be as creative as you like.

The cupcakes you see below have a drop of orange coloring added to the whipped cream, simply piped, and then sprinkled with a few chocolate sprinkles.

Check out our handy Oven Temperature Conversion Guide!

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting

At the end of the recipe, I've added a couple of photos to give you some ideas of how you can decorate these mandarin orange cupcakes.

This is a very simple and easy recipe, and totally made from scratch, so you don't need to buy a cake mix. 

These cupcakes have such a light fresh texture, perfect for those occasions when you want a nice refreshing, tropical tasting cake!

If you wanted to go even more tropical, you could do a combination of pineapple and mandarin cupcakes, and decorate the tops with some small pineapple and mandarin segments. 

Can You Freeze Mandarin Orange Cake?

Perhaps you're making these for a party or celebration such as July 4th, Easter, Game Night, a Pot Luck, and you want to make these ahead of time.

Well, you certainly can freeze these cupcakes. Make sure you do not add the frosting or decoration until they have defrosted.

Fresh cream will not freeze. Simply remove from the freezer, defrost at room temperature then decorate when you're ready.

So let's get straight to the recipe and see how we make these easy mandarin orange cupcakes. Please enjoy!

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

18 - 24 minutes (cook times will vary depending on your own oven)

Yield

18 cupcakes

Ingredients

The Cake

2 & ¼ cups or 280 g Plain / All Purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
¾ cups or 150 g regular sugar
3 Eggs
¼ cup or 60 ml of vegetable oil
300 g or 1 & ½ cups mandarins PLUS 1 cup of the juice from the can.
Zest of a fresh mandarin

NOTE: You can also use fresh mandarins. You will need to have the segments peeled, remove the pith and skin, and for the juice, use the same amount of mandarin or orange store-bought juice.

The cream topping:

300 ml or 1 ½ cups, 10 oz fresh whipping cream (heavy cream)
Zest of a fresh mandarin
1 -2 Tablespoons Powdered sugar to your liking.
½ tsp of Orange essence/extract - optional, or a squeeze of half a mandarin.

Instructions

1. Set oven to 180 C, Gas 4, 350 F

2. Have your cupcake liners in the cake pan ready.

3. Get everything ready to make the cake. Sift the flour, baking powder & salt. Set aside

4. Weigh out the mandarins.

If you plan to decorate the tops of your cupcakes, hold some nice shaped ones back for later.

5. In the mixer bowl, add the oil & 3 eggs, sugar, and the mandarin juice. Beat until all combined. Add the zest.

showing ingredients ready

6. At a slow speed, add the mandarins and mix in ⅓ of the flour mixture.

When it is all combined, add another ⅓. Combine on a slow speed.

Cake batter consistency
Look at those juicy mandarins in the cake batter!

7. With a metal spoon, gently fold in the remaining ⅓ of the flour into the cake mix.

Be patient, fold gently so you incorporate air and not cause the cake batter to end up with a 'rubbery' texture.

8. Pour the batter evenly into the cupcake papers and place in the oven for 18 - 24 minutes.

Check after 18 minutes using a toothpick to see if it comes out clean.

Every oven is different so cook times need to be a little flexible.

9. When the cakes are ready, take out of the oven and leave them for 2 minutes to relax in the tins.

10. Turn them out of the tins on a cooling rack.

11. Allow to completely cool. It is at this point you can freeze these mandarin orange cupcakes.

Just pop them in an airtight bag and defrost at room temperature before you add the frosting.

As you know, fresh whipped cream will not freeze so it's best to decorate once defrosted. 

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, showing baked cupcakes on cooling rack before frosting and decorating
Waiting for these to cool is the hardest part!

How To Make The Fresh Cream Filling & Topping

12. Add all the ingredients to your mixer bowl.


13. Start on a slow speed, as it thickens, increase the mixer speed and whisk until the cream is stiff and thick.

The cream should stay on the beater when you take it out of the bowl.

Consistency of whipped cream


14. You can now use a piping bag or simply spread the cream over the tops of your cupcakes and decorate how you wish! Please enjoy.

In the photos below, I've done two cupcakes, one in a heart-shaped pattern and placed a couple of mandarin segments on the tops of the frosting and the other with a small amount of piping with a little flower on the top.

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting, showing decoration and frosting from above
Here's a frosting and decorating idea for Valentine's Day, decorate in a heart shape!

Just so you have some ideas of what you can do to decorate using a creamy frosting. 

You could go totally tropical and add some pineapple segments on the top too! Pineapple and mandarin would certainly make for a tropical flavor. 

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting
Mandarin cupcakes with a simple flower decoration

We'd love to hear from you and what you thought of our recipe. Did you make any changes or add some other ingredients? Let us know in the comments below. Thanks for reading and happy cooking!

Recipe Card

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping

Yield: 18
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 18 minutes
Total Time: 28 minutes

Mandarin Orange Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Topping, easy made from scratch recipe with a creamy frosting

Ingredients

The Cake

  • 2 ¼ cups / 280 g Plain / All Purpose flour
  • 2 Teaspoon baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • ¾ cups / 150 g regular sugar
  • 3 Eggs
  • ¼ cup / 60 ml of vegetable oil
  • 300 g / 1 & ½ cups mandarins PLUS 1 cup of the juice from the can.
  • Zest of a fresh mandarin

The cream topping

  • Zest of a fresh mandarin
  • 1 -2 Tablespoons Powdered sugar to your liking.
  • ½ tsp of Orange essence / extract - optional, or a squeeze of half a mandarin.

Instructions

  1. Set oven to 180 C, Gas 4, 350 F. Have your cup cake liners in the cake pan ready.
  2. Get everything ready to make the cake. Sift the flour, baking powder & salt. Set aside. Weigh out the mandarins.
  3. *** If you plan to decorate the tops of your cupcakes, hold some nice shaped ones back for later.
  4. In the mixer bowl, add the oil & 3 eggs, sugar and the mandarin juice. Beat until all combined. Add the Zest.
  5. On a slow speed, add the mandarins and mix in ⅓ of the flour mixture. When it is all combined, add another ⅓. Combine on a slow speed.
  6. With a metal spoon, gently fold in the remaining ⅓ of the flour into the cake mix. Be patient, fold gently so you incorporate air and not cause the cake batter to end up with a 'rubbery' texture.
  7. Pour the batter evenly into the cupcake papers and place in the oven for 18 - 24 minutes. Check after 18 minutes using a toothpick to see if it comes out clean. Every oven is different so cook times need to be a little flexible.
  8. When the cakes are ready, take out of the oven and leave them for 2 minutes to relax in the tins. Turn them out of the tins on a cooling rack. Allow to completely cool.
  9. It is at this point you can freeze these mandarin orange cupcakes. Just pop them in an airtight bag and defrost at room temperature before you add the frosting. As you know, fresh whipped cream will not freeze so it's best to decorate once defrosted. 

Now the Fresh Cream Topping

  1. Add all the ingredients to your mixer bowl. Start on a slow speed, as it thickens, increase the mixer speed and whisk until the cream is stiff and thick. The cream should stay on the beater when you take it out of the bowl.
  2. You can now use a piping bag or simply spread the cream over the tops of your cup cakes and decorate how you wish! Please enjoy.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 18 Serving Size: 18 Servings
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 146Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 82mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 1gSugar: 12gProtein: 3g

Delicious Recipes Using Mandarins

Here's a selection of other delicious recipes using mandarins.

If you're making a variety of different cupcakes, try these Key Lime Cupcakes from Culinary Ginger. Delicious with a nice tang!

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