Neapolitan Cupcakes

This was our second weekly special, and these cupcakes were not as desirable as some of our later ones, hard to believe considering how pretty they looked!

I got the recipe Lick the Bowl Good, however I wanted a strawberry frosting that I could pipe rather than spread. I found a recipe at Real Mom Kitchen then added some pink paste food coloring to get the color just right :)

Neapolitan Cupcakes
(makes 24)

Vanilla Batter
1 3/4 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup milk
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Still mixing on low speed, add the oil, then eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Then add the vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the flour, then the milk, and then the remaining flour until just combined. Set aside.

Chocolate Batter
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup milk
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Prepare the same as the vanilla batter, with the cocoa added to the dry mixture in the first step. 

Spoon the batter into prepared cupcake tin side by side (pictures can be seen on Lick the Bowl Good, unfortunately I didn't have time to snap a picture of this process before they went in the oven.)

Bake at 350 for 20-22 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. 

Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

1 cup butter (softened)

5-6 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup strawberry jam (the smooth kind, seedless if desired)

pink food coloring

Cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar, one cup at a time. Beat in the strawberry jam and mix well. Add more sugar if necessary to reach desired consistency. Add desired amount of food coloring and pipe on!

While I think these cupcakes were a bit too dense for my liking, they certainly win the prize as some of the prettiest creations I've ever made!