Happy Tuesday to everyone in Steemit-ville!! I have another photo shoot for you!
But, before we go there, let me say that this is a historic day for all of us here in this crazy experiment we call Steemit. The HardFork, love it or hate it, it's here upon us. In my attempt to figure out what affect these changes will have, I have to tell you, I really don't have a clue. The way I look at it is that this entire platform is one huge experiment and today is just another tweak of that experiment. We will see ( Vamos a ver).
Well, my expertise is clearly not in the technology of Steemit, so lets' get to what I am good at, and that's presenting food. That's what I know how to do. I always include a recipe with my food posts, but let's be honest, every recipe turns out very different based upon the individual. Five people can take the same recipe and come out with five different results. Recipes, are more like 'guidelines.' (Reminds me of one of my favorite lines from the movie Pirates of the Caribbean, "..the code, let's just say it's more like guidelines than rules").
As I have mentioned in most of my previous posts, I live in Chile. That means I am in the Southern Hemisphere and that means Spring (Primavera) is almost here. That means berries will soon be coming! For most of you up North, I hope you still have some berries left. If not, you can always go to the store and buy some from Chile. Next time you go to buy berries, take notice, most of the time they are from Chile.
I did want to mention that part of my inspiration for today's post was that my very first post was of a cupcake recipe / photo shoot. So, far, my very first post has been my most viewed and best payout. So, I am going to see it has something to do with cupcakes or just dumb luck.
I’m very fortunate for the fact that I live in an area that is one of the berry growing capitals of the world. Does that make me the happiest person ever? You bet! I make the most of it by scarfing as many berries as I can fit in my mouth all summer long and then I freeze all the extras for the winter like a squirrel with acorns. It’s probably a certifiable condition but I think I can live with that. I’m serious about my berries.
Raspberries are my favorite though, and when you combine them with cake and chocolate you’ve got a sweet that would win over any reluctant heart. I used fresh raspberries to make a simple raspberry cream filling and then you mix some of the extra with your frosting. I also did two-sided frosting, which looks fancy and difficult, but it’s super easy. Okay, and did you guys know that chocolate chunks in a cupcake is a major win? Because it totally is! Like the kind of win that makes you never want to do differently. A life changing thing.
Prep Time: 55 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Yield: 12 - 14 cupcakes
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Filling:
- 1/3 cup fresh raspberries
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons butter, softened
Frosting:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tablespoons milk
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon milk
- Additional fresh berries and chocolate chips for topping as desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C) and grease (or line with paper liners) a 12-count cupcake pan.
- Beat butter and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl. Add oil, yogurt, milk, and vanilla. Stir in the salt, soda, and flour until smooth, then add chocolate.
- Spoon batter into pan and fill each slot nearly to the rim. Bake for 22 - 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes then loosen from pan and place on cooling rack to finish.
Filling:
- Pour the raspberries into a medium bowl and mash with a whisk. Add the other ingredients for filling and whisk until smooth.
Frosting:
- Beat butter with 1 cup of powdered sugar, then slowly add in the rest. Add salt, vanilla, and milk and beat until light and fluffy. Divide in half and beat cocoa powder and additional tablespoon of milk into one half and add about 3 tablespoons of the prepared filling to the other half.
- Fill a pastry bag fitted with bismark tip with remaining filling and pipe into centers of cupcakes. To frost cupcakes with striped frosting fill two separate piping bags (without tips) with each flavor. Put both bags in a larger piping bag with large star tip and pipe frosting on your cupcakes.
- Top cupcakes with raspberries and chocolate chips if desired.
Ok, I do want to mention that I am really proud of these photos, all of which were taken with my Nikon D5300.
