Lavender Cupcakes

Ever since I watched my very first (two) episodes of Cupcake Wars, I've been dying to make lavender cupcakes.  Casey--who ended up winning the episode, and starred in one season of Laguna Beach--embodied Hollywood legends in her cupcakes.  She made a Marylin Monroe cupcake with cherry and white chocolate flavorings, an Elizabeth Taylor cupcake with chili and chocolate flavorings, and a Grace Kelly cupcake with lavender flavorings.

We actually found her recipe (here) but decided it was way too busy and went with a different recipe.  Originally, Cady wanted to do a cupcake with lavender and lemon, so the second one we found was perfect because it had a lemon curd filling!

By the way, here is her Elizabeth Taylor recipe (here), her Marylin Monroe recipe (here), and her White Russian recipe (here).  Their first task was to make a classic drink into a cupcake.  Casey was able to serve her cupcakes at the Hollywood Walk of Fame 50th Anniversary party.  And she got $10,000, which she probably didn't need because her family is really rich.  (Her brother Doug went on to date Lauren Conrad on The Hills.)

Lavender Cupcakes:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
• 1 cup butter, at room temperature
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons milk

Preheat the oven to 350°F; line a 12 count muffin pan with paper liners.  Put the sugar and lavender flowers in a food processor. Process briefly to combine.  Tip the lavender sugar into a bowl with the butter and beat together until pale and fluffy.  Beat the eggs into the butter mixture, one at a time, then sift in the flour and fold gently. Stir in the milk, then spoon the mixture into the muffin cups.

Bake for about 18 minutes until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Lemon Curd Filling:

• 5 egg yolks
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 lemons, zested and juiced
• 1 stick butter, cut into pats and chilled

Add enough water to a medium saucepan to come about 1-inch up the side. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, combine egg yolks and sugar in a medium size metal bowl and whisk until smooth, about 1 minute.

Measure citrus juice and if needed, add enough cold water to reach 1/3 cup. Add juice and zest to egg mixture and whisk smooth. Once water reaches a simmer, reduce heat to low and place bowl on top of saucepan. (Bowl should be large enough to fit on top of saucepan without touching the water.) Whisk until thickened, approximately 8 minutes, or until mixture is light yellow and coats the back of a spoon. Remove promptly from heat and stir in butter a piece at a time, allowing each addition to melt before adding the next. Remove to a clean container and cover by laying a layer of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the curd. Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. 

Lavender Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 2 sticks butter, room temperature
• 16 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 tablespoons lavender extract
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

Beat butter, cream cheese, and extract together until combined. Beat in sugar until stiff enough. Frost cupcakes and top with a lavender flower.

Recipes from here and here.

We had too much frosting.  And we added some blue and pink food coloring to our batter to create the lavender color.  Also, we made the lavender extract for the frosting by brewing the dried lavender flowers for 5 minutes.

See Recipes for more.