Fresh Cranberry Orange Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting Recipes

FRESH CRANBERRY ORANGE CUPCAKES WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• In a small saucepan bring the sugar and water to a boil and dissolve the sugar completely. Let the syrup rest for 5 minutes to cool it, then pour it into a bowl with the cranberries. Let the syrup cool to room temperature, then cover the bowl and put it in the refrigerator overnight.
• Drain the cranberries and shake them out a bit to make sure you only have a thin coating of the syrup on them. Spread out the superfine sugar on a plate and roll the cranberries in the sugar. Test out the rolling with just a couple at first. If the coating seems gloppy or thick, shake out the cranberries some more or pat them dry with a paper towel.
• Transfer the cranberries to a tray lined with wax paper and let them dry for 1-2 hours. Once they are ready the sugar will have formed a stable crust.
• Preheat oven to 350F. Set out a standard sized 12 well muffin tin and fill the wells with cupcake liners.
• Using a food processor or a knife, roughly chop the cranberries until you have 1 1/2 cups of chopped cranberries.
• In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a small bowl rub the sugar and the orange zest together until the sugar is fragrant. Using a stand mixer with the flat beater on medium speed, cream together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and add the eggs one at a time, scraping after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat in.
• Reduce the speed to low and add the dry ingredients. Beat until just mixed together with a little flour still showing. Take the bowl of the mixer off the stand, add the cranberries, and fold them in with a silicone spatula.
• Divide the batter among the 12 wells in the tin. Bake for 25-28 minutes, or until the cupcakes are lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean. Let them rest for 2-3 minutes, then carefully take them out of the muffin tin and let them cool on a cooling rack. Can be made up to 2 days ahead.
• Using a hand mixer, whip the cream cheese and butter on high until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix in. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix on low until combined, then increase the speed to high and beat together until smooth.
• Pipe or spread frosting over the tops of each cupcake. If you wish, sprinkle a bit of red sanding sugar over to decorate. (Another good idea would be to use themed sprinkles depending on the occasion.) If you made the sugared cranberries, top each cupcake with 2 or 3 of them.

CRANBERRY STUFFED CUPCAKES WITH CRANBERRY CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cupcake pans with 15 cupcake liners, spacing them out evenly between the two pans.
• Sift together the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl, then lightly stir in the salt and set aside. Combine the heavy cream and 1/2 cup corn in a food processor and puree until smooth, being careful not to overblend so the cream doesn't turn into butter. Add the sour cream and blend just to combine, then set aside.
• Cream together the butter, coconut oil and granulated sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed, scraping down the sides occasionally with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is incorporated evenly, until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla. Reduce the mixer to medium-low and add the dry mixture and corn puree mixture in 3 alternating additions, then fold in the remaining 1/2 cup corn kernels with a rubber spatula. Using an ice cream scoop, distribute the batter evenly among the cupcake liners.
• Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pans and continue to bake until the cupcakes are thinking about starting to turn brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs on it, 6 to 10 minutes more. If the cupcakes need more time, continue to bake and check them frequently (like every 30 to 45 seconds). Let them cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the buttercream: If desired, press the cranberry sauce through a fine-mesh sieve to get rid of the cranberry skins, which will yield a smoother buttercream. This step is not necessary, though. Beat together the cranberry sauce, butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, salt and vanilla and continue beating until combined. Beat in the heavy cream. Transfer to a piping bag.
• To assemble: Use an apple corer to extract the centers of the cupcakes. Transfer the thick cranberry sauce to a piping bag or resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped off, then pipe it into the centers of the cupcakes. Pipe a blob of frosting onto the cupcakes and decorate with sliced cranberries and rosemary sprigs. Enjoy! These are best enjoyed within a day or two.

CRANBERRY CUPCAKES WITH WHITE CHOCOLATE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with liners.
• Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Beat egg whites in a glass, metal, or ceramic bowl until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
• Cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Mix in orange zest and vanilla extract. Add in 1/2 the flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Add buttermilk and heavy cream, mixing until just combined. Mix in remaining flour mixture until just combined. Batter will be thick.
• Fold 1/3 of the beaten egg whites into the batter until incorporated. Fold in remaining egg whites until no streaks of egg white remain. Fold in chopped cranberries. Spoon batter evenly into each prepared cupcake liner, filling each liner about 7/8 full.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cupcakes spring back lightly when touched, 20 to 25 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool completely, about 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the frosting. Beat butter in a bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until completely smooth, 3 to 4 minutes. Add powdered sugar and salt, and beat until smooth and well combined, another 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in melted white chocolate and beat until combined, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour in heavy cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat until frosting is smooth, light, and fluffy, 2 to 3 more minutes.
• Frost the cooled cupcakes with the frosting.

CRANBERRY-ORANGE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• For the cupcakes: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners, and coat the liners and the top of the tin with cooking spray.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, clove and salt together in a medium bowl. Beat the sugar and eggs in another medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. While continuing to beat, gradually pour in the butter, then beat in the orange zest. Adjust the speed to medium-low, and add half the flour mixture. Add the milk, then the remaining flour mixture, taking care not to overmix the batter. It will be thin, like pancake batter; transfer it to a liquid measuring cup to make filling the muffin cups easier.
• Divide the batter evenly among the cups of the prepared muffin tin. Bake until the tops spring back when pressed, 20 to 22 minutes. Cool the cupcakes in the tin for a few minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. (The cupcakes can be baked a day ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.)
• For the frosting: Bring the cranberries, granulated sugar, orange juice and ginger to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar dissolves, the cranberries burst and the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely. Set aside 1/3 cup for garnish.
• Beat the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth. Beat in the confectioners' sugar. Add the cooled cranberry mixture, and beat until completely incorporated.
• Divide the frosting evenly among the cupcakes, and use a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon to swirl. Garnish each with a dollop of reserved cranberry sauce and a piece of orange zest.

ORANGE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Beat cream cheese, butter or margarine, orange peel, and orange juice until creamy. Beat in confectioner's sugar until blended and smooth.
• Spread about 1 1/2 teaspoons on each cooled cookie. Sprinkle with walnuts.
• Let icing set 1 to 2 hours. Refrigerate in an airtight container with waxed paper between layers up to 1 week.

CRANBERRY SPICE "TURKEY" CUPCAKES WITH VANILLA CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• For the cupcakes:
• To make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350˚F, and line two cupcake pans with twelve paper baking cups each. Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a bowl, and set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add each egg slowly, one at a time, mixing after each addition.
• Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, followed by one third of the water. Mix slowly. Then add another third of the flour mixture, followed by another third of the water. Mix slowly again. Finally, add the last third of the flour mixture and the last third of the water. Mix until all the ingredients are incorporated.
• Scrape down the bowl, and add the cranberries. Fold in using a spatula until the cranberries are scattered throughout the batter.
• Using a standard-size ice cream scoop, fill each baking cup so that it is two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
• Let the cupcakes cool and then frost with Georgetown Cupcake's signature swirl (see note)
• For Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting:
• In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer or in a bowl with a handheld electric mixer, mix all the ingredients for approximately 3 to 5 minutes, until frosting is light and airy. Frost each cupcake with a thick layer of the frosting using an offset spatula.
• For the fondant turkeys:
• Roll out a small ball of brown fondant, approximately the size of a golf ball, to form the body of your turkey. Then roll out a ball of brown fondant, approximately half the size of the first ball, to form the head of your turkey. Attach the head to the body using piping gel or water.
• Roll out two small balls of white fondant, each approximately the size of a pea, to form the eyeballs of your turkey.
• Roll out two small balls of black fondant, each approximately the size of half a pea, to form the pupils of your turkey's eyes. Using piping gel or water, attach the pupils to the eyeballs, and the eyeballs to the turkey's head.
• Roll out a small piece of orange fondant, and shape it into a crescent to form the turkey's beak. Attach it to the turkey's head using piping gel or water.
• Roll out four small pieces of brown fondant and shape them into rounded teardrops to form feathers.
• Let the fondant turkey and feathers set for 5 to 10 minutes, and then place the turkey on top of a cupcake, with the feathers placed behind.
• Line up six pieces of candy corn, pointed side down on the brown fondant feathers behind the turkey's body to form another layer of feathers.