Raspberry Creme Filled Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Coconut Ganache Frosting

A long name for a little cake, but that little cake has a ton of flavor!

My friend's birthday was a couple of days ago, so I decided to make her a batch of cupcakes to celebrate. It was a last-minute decision and my creation was from whatever I had in the house.

Magnolia Vanilla Cupcake: (I cut all this in half)

• 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.

3. In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

5. Cool the cupcakes in the tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

Filling: (all of these are approximations)

• 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 3-4 Tbsp Seedless Raspberry jam
• 2-3 tsp. Grenadine (optional)

1. Whip cream until soft peaks form.
2. Add jam and grenadine.
3. Continue to whip until stiff peaks form.
4. Use a pastry decorator bag and tip to fill the cupcakes. (My preferred method, but it takes more time is to cut a cone shape out of the top of the cupcake, cut the tip of the cone off, fill and cover with the cupcake top. It gives you more filling that way, but takes more time which I didn't have with this batch.)
   

Frosting: (again, approximations since I didn't measure)

• .5 cup Bittersweet chocolate chips, melted
• 2 Tbsp. Creme of Coconut (optional)
• 1/4 tea. Coconut Extract (optional)
• .25 cup Powdered Sugar (or more)
• 2-3 Tbsp. Whipping Cream (or more)

1. Start blending chocolate chips with coconut.
   
2. Add sugar and cream until consistency is soft and fluffy. Add more sugar or more cream depending on consistency.