I had a few strawberries left over from the cake I baked yesterday, so I decided to convert them into delicious strawberry cheesecake cupcakes to bring along to dinner tonight at my in-laws. I have to say my imagination contributed immensely to this recipe so even though I have tried them and decided that I really like them, I will leave it to my family to submit the final verdict. I’ll keep you posted!

Strawberry Cheesecake Cupcakes with Lemony Custard Filling

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INGREDIENTS

For the cake

• 6 pureed strawberries (passed through a food processor)
• 8 oz pack of cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup whole milk, at room temperature
• 6 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces, slightly cold

For the custard

• 1 ½  cups whole milk
• 1 ½  cups evaporated milk
• 8 large egg yolks
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 6 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 teaspoons lemon extract or more to taste
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For the icing

• 2 8oz pack cream cheese
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 2 cups confectioners icing
• 3 pureed strawberries (passed through a food processor)

DIRECTIONS

For the cake

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cupcake pans with cupcake liners and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl beat the cream cheese until smooth, add the strawberry puree and beat for another minute to incorporate. Add the egg whites, one at a time while continuing beating at medium speed. Finally, add the milk and vanilla extract and beat for another minute, and then set aside.
3. In another bowl mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and beat for 1 minute. Add each table spoon of butter, one by one, while beating at medium speed until a crumbly texture is evident (about 3 minutes). Then add the wet ingredients slowly to the flour mixture and incorporate by beating for another 2 minutes.
4. Distribute the batter among the 24 cupcake liners until about 2/3 of the way up. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool completely at room temperature before icing.

For the custard

1. Combine the milks in a medium nonreactive saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat.
2. Whisk together the yolks, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl.
3. Slowly whisk the warm milk into the egg mixture then return the mixture to the pot over medium heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly, until thickened.
4. Scrape the mixture into a bowl and whisk in the lemon and vanilla extracts. Let cool to room temperature then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours.

For the icing

1. Whip the cream cheese and butter in a medium size bowl until creamy.
2. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat for 3 minutes.
3. Add the puree strawberries and beat for 1 more minute making sure all ingredients have been incorporated.

To assemble

1. Remove a small, centered, cone-shaped piece from the top of the cupcakes (take a look at Annie’s blog for how to do this, she is the cupcake expert: How to make filled cupcakes).
2. Fill the space with the Lemon Custard and set aside (I used a piping bag with a round tip to do this but you can also use a spoon to transfer the custard if you prefer). Do this for all the cupcakes.
3. The custard should be thick and sticky so the was no need to cover the top of the cutout after adding the custard. I left it open and iced over it.
4. Ice the cupcakes with the cream cheese, strawberry icing. I used a piping bag with a large round tip to do this, but you can do it anyway you want. Refrigerate the cupcakes for at least 1 hour before eating. Enjoy!

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