Almond Cupcakes with Sour Cream and Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Almond sour cream cupcakes

Ingredients

makes approx 6

1 Cup cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup butter, room temp

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp almond extract*

1/3 cup sour cream

Almond paste

*you can use vanilla extract instead for a plain vanilla cupcake

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. In larger bowl, beat butter and sugar until light.

Add egg and almond extract and beat until creamy.

Gradually beat in half the flour, then half the sour cream, then repeat until all ingredients are added. Mix well.

Line cupcake tin with liners and fill until about 2/3 full. Roll a small amount of almond paste into a ball and push gently into the batter in one of the cups. Repeat for all of the cups.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops of the cupcakes are golden brown and springy to the touch. Remove and let cool. Yum!

Chocolate Almond Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8 oz package non-fat cream cheese

1/4 cup butter

3 cups confectioner's sugar

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)

Blend the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Add 3 cups of sugar one at a time until completely blended. Add vanilla and almond extracts. Add cocoa power, mix throughly. Frost liberally :)

Thoughts: SoooooOooo much more moist than the vanilla cupcakes I made on Friday! I think the sour cream really makes a different. I also used a regular aluminum pan and the cupcakes didn't burn at all. I've read that non-stick pans conduct heat more readily than regular pans, which is probably why they burn things so badly! The almond paste in the middle is a nice touch, but a little chewy. Maybe its the brand of paste I used, but I might go without it next time. I'm undecided on the frosting. When I licked the spoon I was super disappointed... the combination of the cream cheese, cocoa and almond extract was too much for me. However, on the cupcake it was actually really delicious! Still, next time I would eliminate either the cocoa or almond to make the frosting a little more traditional. So, final verdict: very good! What I would do next time: eliminate the almond paste in the middle, and make the frosting more simple by eliminating a flavor. Happy baking!