Raspberry Lemonade Cake

For our Christmas dinner, I was responsible for making the dessert. Since I have recently discovered Pinterest, I found a recipe for "Lemonade Raspberry Cupcakes" that I had been wanting to try. So I decided that this was the perfect time to try!

1. Gather all of your ingredients.

1 cup butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
grated zest and juice of a lemon
1 cup milk, divided

2. Preheat oven to 375 F and line 24 muffin tins with paper liners (or in my case get the cake pan to spray later).

3. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.

4. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.

5. Add to the butter mixture a third at a time, alternating with half the milk and half the lemon juice after each of the first 2 additions of flour. Beat until just combined.

6. Fill the prepared tins and bake for 20 minutes, until springy to the touch. Tip the cupcakes in their tins to help them cool. Let cool completely before frosting. If you like sprinkle with colored sugar. Makes 2 dozen.

Fresh Raspberry Frosting

1 cup fresh raspberries (or thawed from frozen)
1 cup butter, at room temperature
3 cups confectioners’ sugar

In the bowl of a food processor, puree the raspberries until smooth. If you like, press the mixture through a sieve to get rid of the seeds. (can't find said pictures. sorry, use your imagination!)

In a medium bowl, beat the butter and half the sugar until smooth. Add the raspberry puree, then more sugar until you have a fluffy, spreadable consistency. Add a splash of water, too (a tablespoon or two) if it needs it.

Pour on top, refrigerate!

EAT and Enjoy!