Neapolitan Cupcakes

I think summer has officially arrived. I don't care what the calendar says. The temperature's been in the nineties, the pools are opened, the college kids have come home, people are barbecuing, the roses are blooming, it is so totally summer.

And what says summer more than a carton of ice cream, especially that party classic, Neapolitan ice cream.

Now, I'm going to level with you: I only ever ate the vanilla part of the Neapolitan ice cream. Chocolate ice cream is not my favorite (I prefer my frozen treats more on the refreshing side) and I never liked strawberry ice cream. I think because it tastes really artificial, because otherwise I love strawberry anything. But turn it into cupcakes, and Imma stuff my face with them.

These cupcakes are aMAZing. Super moist, super tasty, with chunks of real strawberries in the middle. Basically, I just split my birthday cake cupcake batter into 3. To one I added melted semi-sweet baking chocolate, to another, I added some strawberry preserves and diced strawberries, and the third kept simple, reliable vanilla. You can easily use your favorite vanilla cake recipe (so long as it yields approximately the same volume of batter) or even a box mix. I won't tell.

But the real reason I made these cupcakes was because I wanted to see if I could swirl 3 flavors of frosting together. And guess what?

Nailed it!

The chocolate frosting I made a little too thin, which is why you just see that thin ribbon of it (and you can see how it's a little more wavy than the vanilla or strawberry). But it still looks amazing, and that's an easy fix.

I meant to take pictures to show you guys how I did it, but I forgot. But the secret is really super simple: plastic wrap. Roll up a thin log of frosting in plastic wrap, twist up the ends, snip off one end, and place in piping bag. Repeat with other colors/flavors. You can also do this with disposable piping bags, but plastic wrap is cheaper, and unless you're using a giant piping bag, that gets a bit awkward to hold. 

I forget where I originally saw this method (I think it might have been on Instructables) but it was one of those so-simple-it-hurts d'oh moments. Like, how did I not think of that without someone having to tell me? But before I found that tip, swirling more than one color of frosting seemed impossible, or at least too complicated to be feasible. Now I look for excuses to swirl colors.

I've been told that I didn't need go crazy and make a Neapolitan cupcake just so I could swirl 3 flavors of frosting. But it wouldn't make sense to do that on any other flavor.

Duh.

Neapolitan Cupcakes

Yield: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 recipe Birthday Cake Cupcakes (vanilla extract reduced to 1/2 tsp.)*

1 1/2 oz. semisweet baking chocolate, melted

1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tbsp. strawberry jam or preserves

Approx. 1/2 cup diced fresh strawberries

2 drops red food coloring (optional)

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare the batter as directed, using only 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract. Divide the batter evenly among 3 bowls (1 1/2 cups batter per bowl). In one bowl, mix in the melted chocolate and cocoa powder. In a second, add preserves, diced strawberries, and food coloring, if using. In the third, mix in the extra vanilla extract.

Divide the three batters equally between 24 baking cups. Bake about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool on wire racks.

*Feel free to use your favorite vanilla cake recipe or box mix. Be sure to adjust baking times as directed.

Recipe by Kim

Neapolitan Frosting

Ingredients
For the vanilla:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tbsp. solid white vegetable shortening (Crisco)*
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp. milk or cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the strawberry:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp. solid white vegetable shortening (Crisco)*
2 tbsp. strawberry sauce or seedless strawberry jelly**
1 cup powdered sugar
Pinch salt
Red food coloring (optional)

For the chocolate:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp. milk or cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions
For the vanilla: With an electric mixer, beat the butter and shortening on medium speed until smooth. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the powdered sugar. Add the milk and vanilla and gradually increase speed to high. Whip on high until smooth and fluffy.

For the strawberry: Beat the butter, shortening, and sauce on medium until smooth. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the powdered sugar and salt. Beat on low until just incorporated, then increase speed to high and whip until smooth and fluffy. Add food coloring, if using, until the desired hue is reached.

For the chocolate: Beat the butter on medium speed until smooth. Mix together the powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Reduce speed to low and gradually add the sugar mixture to the butter mixture. Add the milk and vanilla and gradually increase speed to high. Whip on high until smooth and fluffy.

*The shortening is for texture. Feel free to skip it, if you'd prefer.

**I used strawberry champagne sauce, which was very thin.If using jelly, you might need to add a little milk to help thin out the frosting.

Recipes by Kim