Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

Yield: 12 cupcakes
Oven Temperature: 350℉

Ingredients:

For the strawberry filling:

• 8 oz. fresh strawberries, rinsed and drained
• 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1/2 tbsp. lemon juice
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp. corn starch (might not be needed)

For the cupcakes:

• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 1 tbsp. vanilla
• 1 c. cake flour (can substitute for all-purpose gluten-free flour)
• 1/3 c. dark cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. boiling hot water

For the whipped cream:

• 2 c. heavy cream
• 1/3 c. powdered sugar
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Other:

• 12 ripe strawberries

Instructions:

For the filling:

1. Chop 8 oz. of strawberries into small pieces. Since this is a cupcake filling, the strawberries need to be pretty small. Place the chopped strawberries into a heavy-bottomed sauce pan and stir in the sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Put the pan over a medium heat and allow it to come to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
2. Let the strawberries simmer until they are cooked an a sauce has formed (takes 15-20 minutes). Reduce the heat to medium-low. If you like the consistency of the strawberry sauce, you can omit the cornstarch. If not: place the cornstarch in a small bowl. Take a tablespoon of sauce from the pan and whisk it with the cornstarch until the lumps disappear. Add the cornstarch mix to the strawberry sauce and stir vigorously until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat. If you used frozen berries you might need to add more cornstarch. If you don't like cornstarch as a thickener, you could use pectin instead.
3. Chill the sauce in the fridge until you are ready to fill the cupcakes.

For the cupcakes:

1. Start the cupcakes by preheating your oven to 350℉ and lining a muffin pan with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, oil, egg, sour cream, and vanilla. The sugar should nearly dissolve into the wet ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powders, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. I use cake flour in this recipe because I like the flavor. You can easily substitute the cake flour for all-purpose flour or gluten-free all-purpose flour. With some gluten-free flours I like to add 50% more vanilla to even out the flavor. You could add more vanilla as well, if you would like.
4. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Rapidly stir in the boiling hot water. Batter should be fairly thin.
5. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the top of the cupcakes spring back when touched. Do not over bake. Cool completely on a wire rack.

For the whipped cream:

1. Make the whipped cream while the cupcakes cool. In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) beat together the heavy cream, powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla. You can adjust the amount of powdered sugar to your own taste. Beat the cream mixture until stiff peaks form (the whipped cream needs to be piping consistency). Set aside until you are ready to assemble the cupcakes.

Assembly:

1. Rinse 12 whole strawberries and pat them dry with a drying cloth or paper towel. Cut each strawberry vertically in half. I cut off the strawberry tops because I arranged the strawberries top down, but If you want to arrange them differently you might want to keep the strawberry tops for aesthetic reasons.
2. When the cupcakes are completely cool, core each cupcake with a cupcake corer. If you don't have a cupcake corer you can use a spoon to make a hole for the filling. Fill the cupcakes with the strawberry sauce. You can use a piping bag to fill the cupcakes or you can gently scoop the filling into the wells. 
3. Place the whipped cream into a piping bag fitted with a star tip (I used an oversized star tip) or tip of your choice. Pipe the whipped cream as desired (I piped mine into a swirl starting at the edge of each cupcake and ending in the middle). Arrange the cut strawberries on top of the whipped cream. (I placed mine top down with one strawberry half in front and one behind and to the side).
4. Eat and enjoy.