Vanilla Cupcakes with Maraschino Cherry Frosting

In case you haven’t noticed the tacky teddy bears and heart shaped boxes of chocolate popping up everywhere, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Even though I won’t be spending Valentine’s Day alone, I’m still not fond of this holiday, so I’m getting my cutesy themed post out of the way for you guys. I used my go-to low-fat vanilla cake recipe and topped them off with cherry frosting and sprinkle covered maraschino cherries! They’re a sweet treat to enjoy no matter what the occasion is!

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(makes 12 cupcakes)

Ingredients:

½ cup sugar

½ cup Stevia (sugar substitute)

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 eggs (room temperature)

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 cup skim milk

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

I received these custom cupcake toppers from Gypsies Crafts and Treats! Check out her Etsy shop for more or make a custom request!

For frosting:

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

4oz low-fat cream cheese, softened

5 tsp maraschino cherry syrup

3 cups powdered sugar

12 maraschino cherries (you can get them with or without stems)

Red sugar sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C) and line a muffin pan with paper cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, beat together sugar, butter, and eggs with an electric mixer.

Slowly stir in flour, baking powder, salt, milk, and vanilla extract. Mix until completely smooth and then distribute batter evenly among cupcake liners.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then pop them out onto a cooling rack to cool another 10-15 minutes.

While you’re waiting you can whip up your frosting!

In a medium sized bowl, cream together butter and cream cheese until mixed and fluffy. Stir in maraschino cherry syrup. Mix in powdered sugar one cup at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until frosting is fluffy and smooth. Set aside or place in the refrigerator for a few minutes while you work on the next step.

Place maraschino cherries on a couple paper towels to absorb some of the extra juice. Pour red sugar sprinkles into a small bowl and roll one of the cherries around in the bowl until completely coated. Set on a small plate and repeat with remaining cherries.