Silver White Cupcakes with Lemon Curd and Blackberry Topping

Succulent blackberries perfectly complement the tangy lemon curd topping on these tender, light and fluffy silver white cupcakes.  The mini-cupcakes (as in the photos below) make a lovely bite-sized dessert for spring or summer parties, or showers for babies or weddings.

We thoroughly enjoyed these tantalizing cupcakes at a recent get-together for my daughter's birthday.  I adapted them from a recipe for Silver White Cake, which was one of several easy one-bowl cake recipes offered in my vintage Betty Crocker's Cookbook, First Printing, 1969.

Whether you choose to make the standard-sized cupcakes or the mini-cupcakes, you'll find them...

                                             A Delightful Way....
 
                                  To Celebrate Spring or Summer!

Approx 2 doz. standard-sized cupcakes or 4 doz. mini-cupcakes

Ingredients (recipe may be halved)

The Cupcakes

• 2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour (I use White Lily)
• 1 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 TB + 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. table salt
• 1/2 c. shortening
• 1 c. milk (I used 2 %)
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. egg whites (approx. 4 egg whites), room temperature

The Topping

• Approx. 20 oz. of jarred lemon curd (or two ea. 10 oz. jars)
• For the standard-sized cupcakes:  approx. 1 doz. whole blackberries (cleaned & dried w/a paper towel), cut in half
• For the mini-cupcakes:  approx. 2 doz. whole blackberries (cleaned & dried w/a paper towel), cut in half 

The Supplies

• For the full-sized cupcakes:  approx. 2 doz. standard-sized paper baking cups
• For the mini-cupcakes:  approx. 4 doz. mini-paper baking cups 

Directions

1. Line the cupcake pans with the paper baking cups.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, shortening, 2/3 c. of the milk and all of the vanilla in a large mixer bowl on low speed for 1/2 minute.  Scrape the bowl.
3. Preheat the oven to 350º.
4. *Carefully increase the mixer speed to high and beat for 1 minute.  Scrape the bowl.  *Beat an additional 1 minute on high and scrape the bowl again.
5. Add the remaining milk and the egg whites and, carefully increasing the speed, *beat for 1 minute on high.  Scrape the bowl.  *Beat an additional 1 minute on high and scrape the bowl for the last time. 
6. Fill each cupcake paper about 1/2 full with the batter.  Bake the full-sized cupcakes approx. 17 minutes and the mini-cupcakes approx 15 minutes, or until the cupcakes are a light golden brown and a wooden toothpick inserted into the center of a couple comes out clean and the cupcakes spring back when lightly touched with the finger.
7. Cool the cupcakes in the pans on wire rack(s) approx. 10 minutes, then remove from the pans and finish cooling on wire rack(s).
8. When the cupcakes are completely cooled,* spread carefully with the lemon curd and top with a blackberry half.  Store in a covered plastic container in the refrigerator.  Though the cupcakes are best eaten within a day, they will keep up to a week in the fridge. 

*Tips

• Carefully increase the speed of the mixer each time you beat the batter on high.
• Once completely cooled, if not topping the cupcakes right away, store in a covered plastic container at room temperature or in the fridge (place wax paper or parchment paper between layers if stacking).

                                                   Simplicity...

                                                  At It's Best!

Enjoy these easy, luscious cupcakes for a wonderful, light spring or summer dessert!