Receta Small Batch Vanilla Cupcakes with Fresh Strawberry Buttercream
Last Monday it was Cory's (pardon me, I need to roll my r's for his name…Corrrrrrrrrrry's) birthday and if made me a cake for my birthday so of course he would get a cake back! Sunday while watching Life Kate, thankfully, reminded me of Cory's birthday. I immediately sprung over to the kitchen and began whipping up a small batch of cupcakes. I have a "stand-by" vanilla cake recipe, but I wanted to try something new… and I didn't want to have to figure out how much I would have to reduce my cake recipe to make 12 cupcakes. I decided to try out the fabulous Joy the Baker's recipe - and it was already formatted for 12 cupcakes! Lucky me!
But I didn't want to use any old buttercream recipe. Lately I have really gotten into experimenting with different buttercream flavors - in particular ones with fresh fruit. After quizzing Cory on what kinds of fruit he likes, we landed on strawberry. I might like to note that at this point I don't think Cory knew he was getting cupcakes. I must say… this is probably one of my favorite buttercream's I have EVER made. It tasted light and the sweetness came mainly from the strawberries. (note: I made mine a lot thinner because I wanted it to look like a "drippy" glaze, but it'll easily thicken up with more powdered sugar)
The next day Kate and Zenka brought the cupcakes up to North Campus and the text I received a few hours later confirmed my suspicion - Cory LOVED the cupcakes!
Vanilla Cupcakes with Fresh Strawberry Buttercream
adapted from Joy the Baker
makes 12 cupcakes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- a scant 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and butter into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or use a handheld beater and beat on slow speed until the mixture is a sandy consistency and everything is combined. Gradually pour in half of the milk and beat until the milk is just incorporated.
Whisk the egg, vanilla and remaining milk together in a separate bowl for a few seconds, then pour into the flour mixture and continue beating until just incorporated. Scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side or the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Continue mixing until the batter is smooth. Just a few minutes. Do not overmix.
Spoon the batter into paper lined muffin tins, dividing between the 12 cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until light golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool slightly in the pan, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Fresh Strawberry Buttercream
1 cup of strawberries, washed and cut into fourths
5 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar (more of less depending on the thickness you desire)
Beat butter with a hand mixer until fluffy, set aside.
Puree strawberries in a food processor, beat into butter until well combined.
Beat in powered sugar ¼ of a cup at a time. When desired consistency is reached, begin frosting cooled cupcakes.