Cupcakes or cake? Which do you prefer? I’ve always been amazed at how loyal some people are to these two tasty desserts. While I prefer the joy that comes from enjoying a tall, three-layered slice of my favorite-flavored cake, my sister has always been drawn towards the decadent decor and mouth-watering goodness of a perfectly baked cupcake. No matter what the debate, no matter how heated the argument may get, we all have our reasons of loyalty to our favorite dishes.
But what if you could combine the tastes and texture of a well known cake, with the decor and delight of a traditional cupcake? Would you do it? What would the taste be like? How about the texture? That cake I am referring to is, of course, cheesecake.
Going completely against baking nature and form, we’ve combined the smooth, rich taste of cheesecake with the hand-held ease of a traditional cupcake to create the most delicious, most mouth-watering blend of baking behemoths you’ve ever seen! Best of all, we used our amazing Freeze Dried Raspberries to do so! Get ready, it’s time to bake up some Raspberry Cheesecake Cupcakes!
Ingredients (Cupcakes):
3 cups Honeyville Yellow White Cake Mix
1/3 cup Butter, melted
3 Eggs
1 1/4 cup Water
1/4 cup Greek Yogurt
Cheesecake Filling:
4 oz Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Milk
1/4 cup Honeyville Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
1 tsp Vanilla
1 cup Honeyville Insta-Whip + 1 cup Water
Raspberry Buttercream Frosting:
3/4 cup Butter, softened
1 cup Honeyville Freeze Dried Raspberries
2 1/2 Tbsp Milk
2 cups Powdered Sugar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, beat together cake mix, butter, eggs, water, and yogurt, until a smooth, thin batter forms.
Pour batter in your USA Pan Muffin Pan, lined with cupcake lines, about 3/4 full for each cup.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-22 minutes, or until cupcake tops spring back after touch. Cool on a wire rack.
Once cupcakes are cool, cup a bowl shape in each cupcake using your Wüsthof Paring Knife.
Next, make your cream cheese filling by combining cream cheese, yogurt, milk, vanilla, and pudding mix in a medium bowl and beating with an electric mixer until smooth. In a separate bowl add insta whip and water and beat together until soft peaks form. Fold insta-whip in cream cheese filling until fully combined and light and fluffy.
Using a pastry bag, pipe cream cheese filling into bowl of cupcake.
In a large bowl, combine butter, raspberries, milk, and powdered sugar, and beat until a smooth, buttercream frosting forms.
Using a pastry bag, pipe frosting over the top of each cupcake, then serve.
These cupcakes are the perfect blend of deliciousness and tradition. The cupcake itself, thanks to the greek yogurt, bakes up light, fluffy, moist, and with a texture that is almost similar to sponge cake. The cheesecake filling is absolutely amazing, and the raspberry buttercream frosting gives the perfect addition of color, decor, and taste to this amazing dessert.
Whether your heart is set up cupcakes or traditional cake, you have to agree, these cupcakes are worth every bite!
