HANNAH'S RED VELVET SURPRISE CUPCAKES

This delicious recipe is from NYT Bestselling Author Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen Mystery novel RED VELVET CUPCAKE MURDER. I love her recipes.

Before you can make the cupcakes, you must make the CHOCOLATE APRICOT SURPRISES.
6-oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (that's one cup of chips)
2 tbsp apricot jam
2 tbsp salted butter

If the jam has big pieces of apricots, cut them into smaller pieces before you measure out the jam. You can also simply pick them out and only use the clear part of the jam.

Place the 3 ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl. (A 2 cup measuring cup works fine.)

Microwave on high 1 minute. Take the chocolate mixture out of the microwave and stir the contents until smooth.

Tear off a piece of waxed paper and place on a piece of cardboard or a cookie sheet right next to the chocolate mixture.

Use a 1/4 teaspoon measuring spoon to scoop out the mixture. Scrape it out of the spoon with your clean finger and drop onto the waxed paper in little mounds. If it spreads too much and won't mound, let it cool for a minute or two longer.

Once you start making the chocolate mounds, be sure you make 24 mounds for your 24 cupcakes.

Refrigerate the chocolate surprises until you are ready to use them in your cupcakes.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and make the RED VELVET CUPCAKES:
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup salted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cocoa powder
2 tsp red food color gel* (Betty Crocker Classic Gel Food Colors are great)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (packed down in the cup when measured)
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp red wine vinegar (white vinegar may be substituted)

Line 24 muffin cups with paper cupcake liners (best to use 2 liners per cup or heavier liners like parchment or foil).

With electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, and vegetable oil until nice and fluffy. Mix in the salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cocoa powder; be sure to mix in thoroughly.

Add the food color gel and vanilla extract. Beat until the color is mixed in thoroughly.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.

Add 1 cup of the flour and mix in thoroughly. Turn off mixer and scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber or silicone spatula.

Pour in 1/2 cup of the buttermilk and mix in thoroughly at low speed. Add a second cup of flour, mix in thoroughly then turn off mixer again and scrape down sides of bowl. Add in remaining buttermilk and mix well. Add the remaining flour and mix thoroughly.

Mix in the vinegar then turn off mixer and give the batter a final scrape down and stir with the spatula. Note: Vinegar may make batter foam up a bit but that is okay.

Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full of batter.

Remove chocolate surprises from the fridge and peal off the waxed paper. Place one in the center of each cupcake, pushing them down slightly. Be care not to push them all the way to the bottom! Continue filling liners with batter until 3/4 full. (These cupcakes do not rise much so don't worry about that being too much.

Bake at 350 degrees 20 to 23 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan on a wire rack. DO NOT REMOVE FROM PAN UNTIL COMPLETELY COOLED.

Frost cupcakes with the following CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
4-oz cream cheese
1/4 cup salted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups powdered sugar (packed down in the measuring cup)

Place cream cheese and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds. Stir. If you can stir the cream cheese and butter smooth, take the bowl out and put on counter. If it's not soft enough to stir, microwave on high in 20-second intervals until it is.

Add the vanilla extract and stir it in.

Add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cups at a time, stirring after each addition. Continue to add powdered sugar until the frosting is spreadable, but not runny.

When frosting, work out from the center and don't go all the way to the edge. Allow a little red to show.
Sprinkle frosting with a little red decorating sugar, if desired.

Yield: 24 cupcakes
*Do not mistake red food color gel for red decorating gel, they are not the same. If using liquid food coloring, double the amount.