Raspberries and Orange Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream
Paula Delapenna
These Raspberries and Orange Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream are the perfect combination of spring and summer. The spongy vanilla base offers some freshness thanks to the orange, which is balanced by the sweetness of the raspberry jam.
In a small saucepan, add the raspberries, the orange juice and the sugar. At mid-high heat, using a wooden spoon, stir until all the liquid has evaporated. the raspberries have losed their shape and you have a thicker consistency. Set aside.
Base:
Preheat your oven to 180 ℃. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and set it aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the butter and the sugar. Add the eggs, vanilla essence, cooking cream and orange zest. Whisk until the mixture is fluffy and well-combined.
Fold in the flour to the butter, making sure not to overmix it.
Add the batter to a half of each muffin liner. In the middle, add a heaped spoon of raspberry jam and cover with some batter, to fill 3/4 of the muffin liner. You could also add some jam on top of the batter.
Pop in the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until when you insert a toothpick in the center, it comes out clean. Let them cool completely before covering with the buttercream.
Buttercream:
In a large bowl, add the butter at room temperature. Using an electric mixer, mix for a few minutes until it gets a lighter color.
After turning the mixer off, add one third of the icing sugar and the salt, and keep mixing until it's all well-combined with the butter. Repeat this with the remaining sugar in two more steps.
Lastly, pour the cooking cream and the vanilla essence, and mix for a few more minutes until it's grown in volume and it looks smooth.
Assembly:
Take a cupcake and cover with the desired amount of buttercream.
Enjoy with a warm cup of coffee, tea, as dessert or just on its own.
Notes
BAKING: Depending on the muffin liner's size, cooking time may vary.
BUTTERCREAM: It's possible to replace the cooking cream with whole milk. Both ingredients help to get a runnier buttercream.
STORAGE: Store it in an air-tight container for a max of 3 days in the fridge.