Cherry Poppin' Cupcakes

This week was my birthday (Happy birthday to me!) I turned 30…eeek! Actually, it really wasn’t that big of a deal. I don’t feel 30 so I’m not having a mid-life crisis or anything. Anyway, since this was my birthday cupcake, I decided to bake with one of my favorite flavors: Cherry! I love cherry flavored anything, really. Cherry coke, cherry limeade, cherry slushies, cherry pie…I could go on and on, but I won’t. I’ve really been looking forward to this cupcake, and it was definitely worth the wait. Last time I made a cherry-ish cupcake I was unhappy with the lack of cherry flavor in the frosting, which made me a little nervous about this one. Surprisingly, this one turned out much better than my last cherry cupcake (Cherry Limeade) I don’t know why, so I guess I’ll have to go back and assess my previous recipe. Perhaps the cherry flavor was boosted by the actual cherry pieces in the cupcake, this time? Either way, they were delish. They were light and flavorful, and I think someone even described them as “dreamy”

That, my friends, is a compliment that I will TAKE!

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did!!

Cherry Chip Cupcakes

adapted from The Nonpareil Baker

For cupcakes:

2 c + 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour, divided

1 Tbsp baking powder

¼ tsp kosher salt

¼ c milk

½ c maraschino cherry juice

2 tsp almond extract

½ c unsalted butter

1 ¼ c granulated sugar

10 oz maraschino cherries, finely chopped

4 egg whites

For frosting:

¾ c unsalted butter

3 ½ c confectioners’ sugar

¼ tsp salt

2-3 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice

Preheat oven to 340 degrees and prep your cupcake trays with liners.

Put egg whites in mixer bowl and beat at medium speed until foamy (about a minute) then increase speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form (about 3-4 minutes.) Pour your egg-cloud into a clean bowl, and set aside. Wash out your bowl.

Dump your cherries into a mini chopper, if you have one. If you don’t, I’d suggest using a food processor, rather than manually chopping these into little bits. Give them a few pulses and you’ll chop your cherries into nice itty-bitty pieces. If you have to do it manually, I'm sorry. Set these aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, salt, and baking powder. In large liquid measuring cup, combine your milk, cherry juice, and almond extract. Set aside.

Put your butter in your mixer bowl and beat for 1 minute at medium speed. Scrape the bowl down, then set to medium speed and begin adding your sugar, about ¼ c at a time. Beat for about 1 minute, until light and fluffy. Decrease mixer to low and slowly alternate adding your flour mixture and your liquid mixture, starting and ending with flour. Mix this only until thoroughly combined. Remove bowl from mixer, and scrape the bowl down.

Sprinkle your 2 Tbsp of flour over cherries, and mix until flour disappears. Stir cherries into batter. Grab your egg white cloud and plop in onto your batter. Your batter will be really thick, so CAREFULLY fold your cloud into the batter. I say carefully because if you over mix, your cloud will deflate, thus leaving your batter looking puny. If you’ve done it correctly, your batter will have grown. Growing is good!

Grab your trusty scooper and scoop batter about 2/3 full into your cups. Bake these for 20 minutes, or until they bounce back when the tops are touched. Cool cupcakes in pan for 5-7 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely.

While these cool, prep your frosting. Put butter, 2 Tbsp juice, and extract in mixer and beat until smooth. Slowly add confectioners’ sugar, about ¼ c at a time. Beat until smooth. Add more juice until frosting reaches your desired consistency, which for me resulted in a total of 3 Tbsp cherry juice.

Pipe or spread on your cupcakes, then garnish with a cherry.

Enjoy!!