Vanilla Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
A simple vanilla cupcake topped with a strawberry cream cheese frosting that actually tastes like strawberry. This frosting is bursting with strawberry flavor. Vanilla Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting are the perfect cupcake for any occasion.
Servings: 30 cupcakes
Calories: 209kcal
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/4 cups whole milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 2 sticks unsalted butter room temp
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the Frosting
- 1 1/2 sticks butter room temp
- 12 ounces cream cheese 1 1/2 8 oz pkgs
- 1 1/2 cups FREEZE DRIED strawberries or 1.2 oz package
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 3 - 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- pinch salt
For Candied Strawberry Slices
- 8 fresh strawberries - sliced thinly
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
Make the candied strawberry slices
- Preheat oven to 225°F.
- In a small pot, combine sugar and water. Heat over medium, stirring frequently, until sugar has completely dissolved. (You just made a simple syrup)
- Dip strawberry slices into simple syrup and lay them on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat (Silpat) or parchment paper.
- Bake for 2 hours. Remove, set aside to cool.
Make Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Whisk flours, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Cream butter and sugar together for 5 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla.
- Add 1/3 of the flour, half of the milk, followed by another third of the flour, the remaining milk and ending with flour.
- Scrape bowl, making sure to get the bottom. Fold it a few times to make sure everything is incorporated.
- Line a cupcake pan with cupcake papers and fill 2/3 full. Bake for 16 - 18 minutes, or when tester comes out with a few crumbs on it.
- Remove from oven and let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Make Frosting
- In a food processor (or spice grinder), grind freeze-dried strawberries until they are a fine powder. It's ok if there are a few pieces as long as they are not bigger than a small pea. Set aside.
- Beat butter and cream cheese together. Add lemon juice, strawberry powder, powdered sugar and salt. Beat until fluffy (about 5 minutes)
- Pipe frosting on cupcakes, or use a small knife or off-set spatula. Garnish, if desired.
Notes
CHEF'S NOTES:
You can make strawberry slices a day ahead. I have made them on a silpat and on parchment. A few stuck on the parchment and had to be carefully peeled off, but it wasn't catastrophic. That being said, they didn't stick at all on the silpat.
Make sure the strawberries for the frosting are FREEZE DRIED. Not "dried" fruit, like raisins or dried cranberries. This will not work.
You can make strawberry slices a day ahead. I have made them on a silpat and on parchment. A few stuck on the parchment and had to be carefully peeled off, but it wasn't catastrophic. That being said, they didn't stick at all on the silpat.
Make sure the strawberries for the frosting are FREEZE DRIED. Not "dried" fruit, like raisins or dried cranberries. This will not work.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 209kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 2g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 87mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g