Cupcake Madness!!

So I've been playing with my baking a lot more lately and found this AMAZING recipe for a "juicy" Lemon Cake with a Raspberry Buttercream.  I changed it up a little bit as the original recipe called for a lot of artificial ingredients (lemon extract, raspberry flavoring, and food coloring) that I then substituted natural whole ingredients for.

I have since modified the Raspberry Lemonade Cupcake and made a Strawberry Lemonade Cupcake and can see this really working for any citrus fruit... I have dreams of a Cherry Limeade or an Orange Dark Chocolate.... mmmmmm.....

I've included some alternates in the original recipe that you can try:

Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Makes 24 standard cupcakes, 48 mini cupcakes

1 cup butter at room temperature 

6 ounces cream cheese  (alternates: sour cream, yogurt)

Zest of 3 Lemons

Juice of 3 Lemons

1 1/3 cup sugar

4 eggs

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt   

1 cup butter at room temperature

2-4  tablespoons fresh raspberry puree (Alternate: Strawberry puree) (also I strained the seeds out, you can leave them in)

4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar 

48 Raspberries for the filling (12 strawberries)

1/2 cup cornstarch

1. Preheat over to 325. 

2.  Beat together the butter, cream cheese, lemon zest and sugar, then beat in eggs and extract until smooth.

3. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl. 

4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the cheese mixture and beat with your mixer on low speed until just combined.

5. Divide the batter evenly between 24 cupcake cups that have been lined with paper cupcake liners.

6. Toss berries gently in the cornstarch to coat them lightly

7. Press berries (2 Raspberries or 1/2 Strawberry) into the center of each cupcake until they are covered.

8. Bake for 25 minutes until firm to the touch.

9. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan- then transfer to a wire rack.

10. Frost when cooled.

For Frosting:

Beat butter with an electric mixer until it is fluffy and pale. Gradually add in powdered sugar and mix in low speed until it is thick and paste-like. One tablespoon at a time, add in the raspberry puree until the frosting as reached a good piping consistency. (If it is still too thick, you can add it 1 tsp of lemon juice, but mine was fine!)... I also did this by hand with a whisk, but a mixer would be soooooo much better!

Note: These are garnished with sparkly pink sugar and a colorful drinking straw. I also made mini's so they only had 1 raspberry pressed inside (1/4 slice of strawberry). I also could sooooo see these baked inside fun paper (dixie) cups.