When it comes to the holidays, or any occasion for the matter, I like to take classic and traditional flavors and turn them into new and exciting treats that people wouldn’t have thought of. I wondered how I could incorporate cranberry into a cupcake and discovered that I could cook down cranberry juice into a syrup and swirl it into the cupcakes to add a concentrated cranberry flavor. It also adds a lovely color! These cupcakes are bursting with fresh orange flavor and the cranberry compliments it beautifully, all topped with a super light white chocolate frosting. 

 This recipe makes 15 cupcakes

 Ingredients:

  For the Cranberry Syrup

1 Cup Cranberry Juice 

¼ Cup Granulated Sugar 

  For the Cake Batter

1 Cup (200g) Granulated Sugar

1 ¾ Cup (225g) Cake Flour

1 ½ Tsp (2g) Baking Powder

½ Tsp (1g) Baking Soda

½ Tsp (1g) Salt

4 Tbs (57g) Softened Unsalted Butter

¼ Cup (60mL) Vegetable Oil

2 Large Eggs, Room Temperature 

2 Tsp (8g) Vanilla Extract

Cranberry Syrup (from above) 

1 Tbs (8g) Freshly Grated Orange Zest

1 Tbs (5g) Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice 

1 Cup (240mL) Buttermilk, Room Temperature

  For the Frosting:

1 ½ Cups (339g) Softened Unsalted Butter

2 Tsp (8g) Vanilla Extract

¼ Tsp (a pinch) Salt

1 Tsp (2g) Freshly Grated Orange Zest 

6 Oz White Chocolate, melted and cooled to room temperature

2 ½ Cups (325g) Confectioner’s Sugar

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F (180C) and line a cupcake pan with paper liners. 

2.     Pour the cranberry juice and sugar into a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, then lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until reduced and thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Set aside and allow to cool completely. 

3.     In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. 

4.     Add the butter and mix on a low speed until the mixture resembles a bread crumb texture. 

5.     In a separate bowl, combine the oil, eggs, vanilla, orange juice, and orange zest. Pour the mixture into the dry mixture and mix on a low speed until just combined. 

6.     Add the buttermilk and mix on a low speed until combined, then divide the batter amongst the cupcake liners, filling each one about 2/3 of the way full.

7. Put about 1 Tsp of the cranberry syrup on top of each cupcake, then use a toothpick to swirl the syrup around the batter in each cupcake. I recommend spraying the top of the cupcake pan with cooking spray (doing it with the batter already in the pan is fine) to prevent any sticking.

8. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely. 

9.     For the frosting, use a large bowl and a hand mixer or the bowl or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment to cream the butter on a medium-high speed for about 3 minutes or until light. Add the salt, orange zest, and vanilla and mix for another minute. 

10.     Add in the cooled melted white chocolate and mix until well combined. Add the powdered sugar ½ cup at a time and fully mix in each addition, turning the mixer on high for a few seconds between each addition to keep the frosting light. Stop adding sugar when the frosting is sweet enough for you. 

11.     Pipe the frosting on top of the cooled cupcakes and top with fresh orange zest.