Gluten free and Dairy free Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Curd

I was looking through all my recipes on here the other day, and realized that I haven't really talked about chocolate cupcakes.

Sure I posted this back in twenty-ten (can you believe this blog has been around for three years already? I can't..but maybe thats because I abandoned blogging for a year or so in that time..)

Anyway, that post. Oh those early posts. I like to think that over the years the content of this little blog of mine has gotten better; especially when I see how awful those earlier days where. 

I  mean really- in your face photos, lots of dairy, gf flour I thought was good at the time, and the ever changing font size ala the fad of 2010.

Classy stuff I tell you.

I should just delete those early days, but it just would feel wrong to do so. Not all babies start out cute, ya know? Things progress, it would be unnatural to pretend they didn't..does that even make any sense to anyone but myself?

But cupcakes...

I now have to perfect cupcake situations. A white cake filled with lemon curd, and a chocolate cake filled with raspberry curd.

Both will soon make appearances at some upcoming events, me thinks.

{I also realize I never shared my lemon curd recipe with you, that will make an appearance soon as well :) }

Raspberry curd, is basically the same as lemon curd--except it takes like twice as long. It may just be easier to use raspberry jam. (with the seeds strained out)

Why did it take an hour and a half to make this little jar of sauce, you may ask. 

Seeds. That is why.

Unlike lemons, that you just have to juice, raspberries have to be smashed. Smashed and de-seeded. Its about as fun as it sounds. By that, I mean not at all.

Than if you get impatient, and decide to put half of the raspberries in with seeds-you'll have to spend another forty-five minutes straining out seeds at the end.

ugg. 

Worth it though.

You want to make it the day before you need to fill your cupcakes, so that it will firm up in the fridge over night. Also, try to limit the amount of times you take a spoonful to your mouth.

I also went ahead and made the cupcakes the day before use, so that they would be all ready for finishing touches in the morning. In the morning, when I would be visiting one of my longest friends brand new baby girl, and bringing some treats with me. My mother taught me to never make a house visit empty handed, so I don't. Actually now that I say that, I'm not sure if she taught me to, or thats one of those things I tell myself I need to do... 

I also, listen to this, used these same cupcakes for two other things.

The recipe made 26 regular size cupcakes, and 10 mini. Four to new momma, 20 to my momma (to bring for one of her students b-days) and 1 regular, and 9 minis to my sunday school class. The three year old-turning four year old requested chocolate cupcakes with pink frosting and sparkles for her birthday. So thats how all this began in the first place. (she got the big one to take home, the rest of the kids ate the mini ones in class)

If you know your math, you'll notice that that leaves 1 big cupcake, and 1 little one unaccounted for. I can tell you, I ate the mini one (I had to make sure it was edible, it would be wrong if I didn't, right) the regular sized one was eaten by someone else in the house. Because sharing is caring.

(recipes at the end of the post)

Now that you have your fresh raspberry curd, and cooled cakes its time to fill 'em up, and make them pretty!

Get your cake, and either a cupcake corer, or an apple corer (honestly, they work the exact same) and drill a whole smack in the middle.

like so:

Now this next step is very important.

Take that little middle, smear it with raspberry curd, and stuff it in your mouth. 

It is absolutely crucial that you don't forget this step.

Unless you want to pretend that the whole never happened, and filling miraculously appeared in the middle--don't eat it. Cut it in half, and save to put on top of the filling. (you want to replace the piece with the top of the cake, back in its place)

You got your wholes, just go on and fill them up with curd.

for some reason that last sentence does not sound so appetizing...

Next, frosting!

Because the cupcakes I was making where going to celebrate a new baby girl, and a birthday girl-I chose to frost with pink rosettes. Similar to what I did for my birthday cake, but it worked out a lot better ;)

The secret: a bigger tip.

To make the rosettes, you use the biggest star tip you can find. I have three sizes, a small, medium and large. The large was used.

Frosting the rosettes is actually really easy: you just do it from the inside out, as opposed to the outside in you would use for a regular star frosted cupcake.

You start with a little dollop in the middle, and stretch it around and around until your cupcake is covered.

I wish I was talented enough to photograph myself while doing it, but alas I am not...

so here is a helpful video someone else did :)

For the min cupcakes, I did not fill them, and I used the medium sized star tip. They look a little sad because I decided to only frost the ones I needed to deliver, put the remaining frosting in the fridge and left to snuggled a baby for a couple hours. When I came back, and was ready to frost my little guys, the frosting was rock solid. Once it was soft enough to use, I frosted them; but the frosting was a little runny. Luckily they are only for three year olds.

Here are the recipes guys:

For the cake, I use Bakers German Chocolate cake recipe.
 Here are the ingredients I used, click on the link for complete recipe!

1 package BAKERS German Sweet Chocolate

1/2 cup water

4 eggs, seperated

2 Cups GF flour ( I use King Arthurs GF Flour or Trader Joe's GF Blend)

2 tsp Xanthan Gum

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Salt

1 Cup Dairy free Butter

2 Cups Sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup Buttermilk (to make: 1 cup dairy free Milk (almond for me) plus 2 tsp apple cider vinegar, or lemon juice. Let sit for 10 minutes, then ready to use!)

Wow that was a long post. 

Thanks for tuning in and reading everyday guys, your the best!

Enjoy!!