JAM-FILLED SOUR CREAM CUPCAKES

This recipe, adapted from marthastewart.com, is called Halloween cupcakes.  Martha’s cupcakes were frosted with vanilla frosting and decorated with orange and black jelly beans.  I scooped out the tops of my cupcakes and spooned in some strawberry jam, replaced the tops, then iced them with white chocolate cream cheese frosting.  A sprinkling of toasted sliced almonds finished them off.  Everyone loved them.  The cupcakes, though very good, were not as good as my all-time favorite, Southern Living's vanilla cupcakes.  I’ve never found a recipe to top it. 

You'll get an even dozen cupcakes, and they freeze beautifully.  You can frost these with orange-tinted icing for Halloween, red and green icing for Christmas, or any one of a gazillion ways for whatever holiday or season is at hand.

Jam-Filled Sour Cream Cupcakes Adapted from marthastewart.com Rating:  8.5 out of 10 PRINTABLE PAGE

INGREDIENTS: 1-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, lightly spooned and swept 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature 3/4 cup sugar 2 large eggs 1-1/2 tsp. vanilla 2/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream Heat oven to 350F.  Line a standard (12-cup) muffin tin with paper liners. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until combined. Beat in vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in flour mixture and sour cream in alternating batches, beginning and ending with the flour. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean and the top is springy to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely before spreading with frosting.