Blueberry Balsamic Spice Cupcakes

Boxed spice cake made to taste homemade, filled with blueberry balsamic compote and topped with spiced balsamic buttercream. One bottle of Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic runs through every layer.

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Servings

24

Prep Time

45 minutes

Cook Time

65 minutes

Calories

295

Author

Kelly Calton

Cook Mode

Ingredients

1/2 cup Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic
3 cups frozen blueberries
1/3 cup sugar
3 tsp fresh lemon juice, divided
1 tsp gelatin powder
1/2 cup Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic
1 box (about 15.25 oz) spice cake mix
Melted butter, cooled, in place of the oil on the box
Milk, (2% or higher), in place of the water on the box
Eggs, as the box directs, plus 1 extra egg yolk
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground clove
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground clove
The chilled balsamic reduction
Milk, a teaspoon at a time

Directions

Make the compote (start early)
1. Bring 1/2 cup balsamic to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Add the blueberries, sugar and 1 tsp lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then lower to a steady simmer for 25 minutes.
2. Take off the heat and blend until relatively smooth.
3. Gently warm the remaining 2 tsp lemon juice (do not boil). Stir in the gelatin and let it bloom for 5 minutes, then microwave no more than 10 seconds to loosen it.
4. Stir the gelatin into the warm (not piping hot) compote until fully incorporated. Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours, until set.
Make the reduction (same pan)
5. Don't wash the berry pan. Add 1/2 cup balsamic and keep it at a bare simmer over low heat until reduced by almost half, about 10 minutes. Pour into a bowl and refrigerate.
Bake the cupcakes
6. Heat the oven as the box directs, usually 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans.
7. Prepare the cake mix with the swaps above, stirring in the extra cinnamon and clove.
8. Fill liners about two-thirds full and bake per the box, about 19 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Make the buttercream
9. Cream the butter until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar, scraping the bowl.
10. Mix in the salt, vanilla, cinnamon and clove, then the chilled reduction.
11. With the mixer on low, add milk 1 tsp at a time until it pipes or spreads the way you like.
Fill and frost
12. Use a small knife or apple corer to cut a well about 1 inch deep into the top of each cupcake.
13. Spoon in about 1 Tbsp of set compote.
14. Frost over the top to seal in the filling.

Article: Blueberry Balsamic Spice Cupcakes

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Oct 7, 2026dessert

Blueberry Balsamic Spice Cupcakes

Name: Blueberry Balsamic Spice Cupcakes
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 1 h 5 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Yield: 24
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1/2 cup Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic; 3 cups frozen blueberries; 1/3 cup sugar; 3 tsp fresh lemon juice, divided; 1 tsp gelatin powder; 1/2 cup Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic; 1 box (about 15.25 oz) spice cake mix; Melted butter, cooled, in place of the oil on the box; Milk, (2% or higher), in place of the water on the box; Eggs, as the box directs, plus 1 extra egg yolk; 1 tsp cinnamon; 1/4 tsp ground clove; 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened; 4 cups powdered sugar; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 tsp vanilla; 2 tsp cinnamon; 1/4 tsp ground clove; The chilled balsamic reduction; Milk, a teaspoon at a time

Some recipes come from our kitchen. This one came from a friend's.

Kelly Calton, who co-owns [Outside the Lines Painting and Crafts]with her sister Renee, sent us these spice cupcakes this fall. One bottle of Lush Orchard Fruit Balsamic, a Greek fruit balsamic, runs through every layer: the blueberry compote filling, and the reduction that finishes a cinnamon and clove buttercream.

The best part? She started with a box mix. A few small swaps (melted butter for oil, milk for water, an extra yolk and a little more spice) make it taste made from scratch. "They'll never know it was a box!" Kelly told us. She's right.

Plan ahead. The compote needs a few hours to set, so make it the night before. Then reduce the balsamic in the same unwashed pan, and you're ready to bake, fill and frost.

Want to know more about Kelly & Renee and their business? Read [The Art of Giving: Ornament Workshop & Sweet Pairings with Outside the Lines], the collaboration we planned with Kelly and Renee that brings together art, pairings, sweets and gifting.

It's a pantry staple. It's a gift. It's an experience. Same bottle.

Written by Kristina DeRolf