So delicious Strawberry cupcakes

(I think without the frosting, these would also double as strawberry muffins and they are quite delicious plain!) Um, okay I am in the process of making them as muffins right now, tonight, after dinner. We made these for my neighbor's birthday, I knew how much her and her girls loved fruit, so I thought they would be the perfect birthday treat for her- plus the strawberries here are just divine!

This recipe is adapted from Annies eats (same place as the chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes)



Now, I followed her cupcake recipe almost exactly, with a few minor ingredient changes- she used cake flour, I used all purpose, she used buttermilk, I used milk- got to use what you can get in Japan.

Cupcake recipe:
Oven: 350'

2 1/2 cups cake flour (or all purpose)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter (I actually used salted, it was all I had- tonight I am using unsalted though)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup buttermilk (or milk)
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups chopped strawberries

Cream butter and sugar in bowl until fluffy, slowly add the eggs, mix some more, then add the milk, oil, and vanilla. Sift together dry ingredients, add slowly to mixture. Fold in chopped strawberries. Fill muffin cups half way.
Baking time: approximately 20 min.

Frosting: ( I still cannot add that much butter to my icing- so I changed her amounts to the following):

1/3 cup cream cheese
7 TBSP butter
1 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 TBSP vanilla
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup strawberry puree

Beat cream cheese and butter in bowl until creamy. Add some of the powdered sugar and mix. Puree strawberries in food processor. Add the strawberries, vanilla, and lemon juice to the mixture, slowly add in the remaining powdered sugar.

You can garnish the tops with strawberry slices too.

I added too much strawberries and I think that is why my frosting did not have volume on top of the cupcake like I wanted, it just kind of fell down, still tasted very very very good though, I have the leftovers in the fridge and have been using them on Dave's unsweetened chocolate scones that he made last weekend.

If you don't make these, you are crazy!