Strawberry Cupcakes

For our family reunion and for baby the shower,
I made some strawberry cupcakes from the
Martha Stewart Cupcake Cookbook.

Here's the recipe:

Martha Stewart's Strawberry Cupcakes
Serves: 34

2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 larges whole eggs + 1 egg white
1 cup milk 2 cups (about 20) strawberries, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with paper. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla until pale and fluffy. Add whole eggs and white one at a time (when I double it, I just use 7 eggs) until well incorporated. Combine flours, baking powder, and salt. Add alternately with milk, Beat until well combined. Stir in fresh strawberries by hand. Fill tins 3/4 full. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (In my oven I only cooked for about 22 min).

I was in such a hurry when I made them before,
that I didn't have time for fancy frosting.
I just threw some ingredients together.
The result was very tasty,
but perhaps not as pretty as I would want.
Shown here:

So, today I made some strawberry cupcakes
for two different card making events I have tonight.
This time I tried two different recipes for frosting.

The Strawberry Meringue Butter cream from the Martha Stewart Cookbook looks really pretty and holds it's form. You definitely taste the butter, but, it's not very sweet. Maybe if I added some strawberry flavoring it would be give it more flavor and make it sweeter.

Strawberry Meringue Butter Cream Frosting

1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, (8 oz., rinsed, hulled, and coarsely chopped)
4 larges egg whites
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, cut into tablespoons room temperature

Directions 1. Combine egg whites and sugar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a saucepan of simmering water. Cook, whisking constantly, until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm to the touch (about 160 degrees). The mixture should feel completely smooth when rubbed with your fingertips. 2. Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the egg-white mixture, starting on low and increasing to high speed until it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks. Continue beating until the mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 10 minutes. 3. Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low speed, add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. (If frosting appears to separate after all the butter has been added, beat on medium-high speed until smooth again, 3 to 5 minutes more.) Beat in vanilla. Beat on lowest speed to eliminate any air bubbles, about 2 minutes. Stir in finely chopped strawberries (or pureed in a food processor) with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using the same day. Or can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for a month.

The second is a Strawberry Cream Cheese recipe I got from this blogspot http://mybakingaddiction.blogspot.com/2009/07/strawberry-cupcakes-with-sensational.html
I like it better because it is very sweet and delicious, but the frosting just about needs to be refrigerated to keep its form when piped on.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup whole strawberries
1 stick unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 8 ounce package of cream cheese, slightly cold
1/2 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
22 ounces of confectioners' sugar (approximately 1.4 pounds)

Method: Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add in the cream cheese and beat until combined. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree (save any remaining strawberry puree for another use); mix until just blended. Do not overmix or frosting will incorporate too much air.

Hmm??
It will be interesting to have a taste test tonight
and see what people like the best.
Maybe there is a happy medium out there somewhere.
Something that would keep it's form when piped on
but also tastes sweet and full of strawberries.

Any suggestions?