This is the second time in a few weeks that I’ve made these cupcakes.  The first time I made them I think I had one or maybe two, and the rest were given away.  I’ve been wanting another ever since, so I just had to make them again!  The chunks of fresh strawberry throughout the cake and strawberry puree in the frosting give them a wonderful real strawberry flavor.  These really beat the pants off the strawberry cupcakes I used to make!  During my first attempt at these the frosting came out nothing like the way I think it was supposed to, even though I followed the recipe exactly.  This time I made my own modifications and I was much more pleased with the result.  Pink frosting with a great strawberry flavor but firm enough to be able to pipe onto the cupcakes.  Success!  The frosting is quite a bit more pink in real life than in these pics, but feel free to add a little food coloring to achieve your desired “pinkness” :-)

(Edited on 7/24/09 to add a new photo) 

  • Yield about 18 cupcakes

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ cups cake flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • ½ cup unsalted butter
  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/3 cup buttermilk
  • ¼ cup oil
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 cups chopped strawberries
  • ½ c. strawberries
  • 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 ¾ cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • ½ tsp. lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla

Directions

  • 01

    Preheat the oven to 350°. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

  • 02

    Sift flour, salt and baking soda into a medium bowl. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until combined. Add buttermilk, oil and vanilla and beat until combined. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in chopped strawberries. Fill cupcake wells ¾ full with batter. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.

  • 03

    For the frosting, puree strawberries in food processor. Strain through a mesh sieve to remove seeds, and set aside. Beat the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add lemon juice, vanilla and strawberry puree. Adjust the amount of puree to achieve your desired consistency. Frost cupcakes when completely cool.