Strawberry CheezeCupCakes

We had another birthday at work on Friday! My wonderful boss, Rory, celebrated another year. I've heard her talk about these cupcakes that Flying Star make: a vanilla cupcake stuffed with strawberry frosting called Strawberry Blonde. I decided to finagle a similar cupcake for her birthday. Only, you know me, I can't help but throw in 'a little bit a' this and a little bit a' that'.

I made some fabulous vanilla cupcakes thanks to the fabulous ladies who made Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. I had some Pillsbury Frosting that is accidentally vegan, plus some Tofutti: Better Than Cream Cheese, and strawberry preserves. I combined all of them. :)



And here is Cody's artistic picutre...


Golden Vanilla Cupcakes
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20-22 minutes

1 cup soy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp cornstarch
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt (increase salt to ½ teaspoon if you’re using oil instead of margarine)
½ cup non-hydrogenated margarine, softened (I use Earth Balance), or ⅓ cup canola oil
¾ cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp almond extract, caramel extract, or more vanilla extract (I always use almond!)

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2. Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside for a few minutes to get good and curdled. If using margarine: Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix. In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer at medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. (Don’t beat past 2 minutes). Beat in the vanilla and other extract, if using, then alternate beating in the soy milk mixture and dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times. If using oil: Beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extracts, if using, in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix until no large lumps remain.

3. Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting
Prep time: 5 minutes

1/4 cup non-hydrogenated margarine, softened (Again, try Earth Balance)
1/4 cup vegan cream cheese, softened (I like Tofutti)
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Cream together margarine and cream cheese until just combined. Use a handheld mixer to whip while adding the confectioners' sugar in 1/2 cup batches. Mix until smooth and creamy, then mix in the vanilla. Keep tightly covered and refigerated until ready to use.

Ok, so now we prepare.

1. With a clean, washed hand, I used my pinkie to make a whole in each cool cupcake. Now, don't just stick it in, you have to move it around to make room. That's what she said. If you don't have a frosting piping bag, you can fill a ziplock bag and cut a small hole out of the tip. You need to stick the bag into the hole and fill it with as much strawberry frosting as possible.

2. Next I spread about 1 tsp of strawberry preserves on top of each filled cupcake. Nothing tricky or fancy here.

3. This next part is also easier if you have a piping bag, but if you don't, you can just spread the frosting. Use the cream cheese frosting to top the preserves, then put a small dollop of preserves on top of the cream cheese frosting.

That's it! I have to admit, the Pillsbury frosting was a little too sweet for me, but it's what I had on hand so it worked. They were still extremely yummy! A big thanks to my husband for being creative and comparing my beautiful cupcakes to my beautiful orchids. <3