Lemon-Marionberry-Lavender Mini-Cupcakes

Lemon Cupcake with Marionberry-Lavender Preserves 

and Lavender flavored frosting:

I LOVE Lavender. I know that most people don't really like it other than for its sweet aroma. But I personally could eat lavender flavored food/sweets/candy all day long. So I was thinking one day, "How can I incorporate lavender into a cupcake?" And I just kept thinking about it until I thought, "A lemon flavored cupcake with lavender flavored frosting would be devine!"

So of course I had to Google it and see if anyone had a recipe I could use to make it all happen. All the recipes I found either had way to many steps or were to complex for my patience/expertise. I also found a farm in Hood River that had culinary lavender and Marionberry-Lavender preserves in their online store, so I ordered those, but figured they wouldn't arrive as quickly as I would like.

And then I found these on Sur La Tables website 

(and then went to the store and bought them):

Lemon Extract (which I am pretty sure you can 

get at any grocery store as well) and Lavender Extract!

So I figured if I took a basic vanilla flavored cake recipe but substituted the lemon extract for the vanilla extract it would suffice. And if I took a basic vanilla frosting recipe and replaced the vanilla with the lavender extract I would be good to go.

I was surprised that my culinary lavender and Marionberry-lavender preserves got to me within two days of me ordering them. Well now I could put some of the preserves into my cupcakes as well. 

So here is how to make my lovely little creations:

Lemon Flavored Cupcake Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract
• 1/2 cup oil (I used vegetable oil)
• 1/2 cup buttermilk 

(which I was out of so I used whatever milk was in the fridge)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, prepare muffin/cupcake pans with paper liners.
2. 1st bowl: Mix together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. 2nd bowl: With electric mixer, beat eggs 10 - 20 seconds. Add sugar and beat on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add lemon extract and oil. Beat together.
4. Reduce speed to low, alternately mix in flour mix and milk into first bowl, beat until just combined. Scrap down bowl. Batter will be thin. Fill paper liners 2/3 full with batter and bake 12 - 14 minutes. Cool in pans 1 - 2 minutes. Remove and finish cooling on wire racks.

Lavender Flavored Frosting:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick/8 tablespoons) butter, softened.
• 8 oz. of cream cheese, softened.
• 1 teaspoon Lavender Extract (more or less to taste).
• 4 cups powdered sugar.
• 1 - 4 tablespoons heavy whip cream.
• Food Coloring (use directions on box to achieve a purple color)

1. Place butter in bowl, blend slightly. Add cream cheese and blend until combined, about 30 seconds.
2. Add lavender extract and powdered sugar and blend on low until combined. Increase to medium and beat until fluffy.
3. Slowly add whip cream until desired consistency is met, beat until fluffy.
4. Mix in food coloring with mixer to achieve a purple/lavender color.

Putting the Cupcakes together:

• Cut out holes in the cupcakes and pipe marionberry-lavender into holes. Or pipe preserves directly into the cupcake with approriate decorating tip stuck straight down into the cupcake.
•  Frost cupcake with Lavender frosting in a decorating bag with your favorite decorating tip or in a ziploc bag with a bottom corner cut off
• You can use yellow dusting sugar/sprinkles for decoration, edible flowers, really anything. I had wanted to use some of these candies to put on the top but couldn't find them anywhere I went.