Lavender Vanilla Cupcakes

Taking a cue from the lavender vanilla macarons from a couple posts ago, I decided to translate this flavor combination into a cupcake. I honestly did not find too many recipes for lavender frosting out there, so I was wary at first. Two primary ways to infuse the lavender flavor involved soaking lavender buds in milk or using an extract made from lavender buds soaked in vodka. My traditional vanilla frosting recipe uses cream, so I decided to use that as a way to convey lavender. Soaking the buds overnight gave a very pleasant flavor that worked out just right in the frosting.

Lavender Cream

1 tbsp dried lavender buds
4 tbsp heavy cream

Combine the buds and cream in a small bowl, stirring to fully submerge the lavender. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, though longer won't hurt.

Vanilla Cupcakes
yield: about 18-20 cupcakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/3 cups sugar

3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla

2/3 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, 325 if using dark pans. Line cupcake tin with 24 liners.

In a large bowl, sift together dry ingredients. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes on medium speed. With the mixer running on low speed, add in the eggs one at a time, waiting for each to be incorporated before adding in the next. Finally, add in the vanilla. Make sure to scrape down the bowl regularly. The mixture may look curdled, but that's not a concern.

Add in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, scraping down the bowl as needed.

Divide the batter amongst the cupcake liners (about 1/4 cup batter per cupcake) and bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

Lavender Frosting

1 cup butter, softened
3 1/2 - 4 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
1/2 tbsp vanilla
4 tbsp lavender cream

Cream the butter in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add in the confectioner's sugar gradually, mixing and scraping the bowl as necessary. After half of the confectioner's sugar is added in, add the vanilla and half of the cream. Mix well. Add in the rest of the confectioner's sugar, reserving about a 1/2 cup. Add in the remaining lavender cream, mix well, and test the frosting for sweetness and spreadability. If necessary, add in the remaining sugar. Otherwise, omit it.*

*This seems like a strange process, but this is how I always make a light and fluffy frosting. I hate frostings that are too sweet, but confectioner's sugar is necessary to make the frosting spreadable. My "add a little cream then a little sugar" testing method, along with omitting the final 1/2 cup helps me to get the frosting just the way I like it.