Strawberry Cheescake Cupcakes

My bestie-esty just turned 24! And despite being my bestest friend, she is not a huge dessert fan!! =O but...she does love a good cheesecake! And she loves strawberry cake! So I decided to combine her two favorite treats into one! A strawberry cake filled with a cheesecake filling and topped with a strawberry cheesecake frosting! It was soo delicious and cute :) a pretty pink color! Yum! She loved them! And I took them to my photography show as a treat and everyone enjoyed those as well! They are so delicious! :) 

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cake flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2¼ cups sugar
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
3 large eggs plus 1 large egg white
1 cup milk
2½ cups finely chopped fresh strawberries

Filling:

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

½ cup sour cream

1 tub thawed Cool Whip

2 tsp. vanilla

Frosting:

 8 oz. cream cheese

½ stick butter

4 cups powdered sugar

2 tsp. strawberry extract

¼ cup sour cream

Directions:

To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder and salt; whisk to blend.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla.  Beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in the eggs and egg white one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in two additions alternating with the milk, mixing each addition just until incorporated.  Gently fold in the chopped strawberries with a spatula.

Divide the batter between the paper liners, filling each about ¾-full.  Bake until light golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-28 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking.  Allow to cool in the pans a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

 To make the filling, combine all the ingredients in a bowl except the cool whip and mix until combined. Fold in the whipped cream until its a bit fluffier. Cut out a small core from each cupcake and fill with the cheesecake.

To make the frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese. Add in the sour cream and strawberry extract. Add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time until your frosting is smooth and delicious.

Frost your cupcakes and serve them up! They are so rich and delicious, they are a perfect treat for any occasion! 

Enjoy!

Luvyerguts<3

N&A