peanut butter and jelly cupcakes {msc}

I know a girl who would eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches every school day, day in, day out. I wish My Kids were that easy. Said girl would love this baking club assignment, though I wonder if she'd want one after her sandwich lunch. Maybe for breakfast?

While I'm not a fan of Crumbs Bake Shop, their cupcake is the first one I'd ever eaten which had some frosting/filling on the inside. I loved that idea and used it on this one— scoop out a bit of the cake and add a dollop of the jam.

The cupcake came out a bit dense, though that could be my fault, as I halved the recipe and eyeballed 1/2 of 3/4 cups and other such measurements. I might have ended up with a bit more flour than required. (Tangentially, The NY Times just published an article about using a food scale, and I'm beginning to see the light.) Nevertheless, I like the concept, the flavor (sour cream adds a bit of richness to batter), and the nostalgia of bygone school days that eating this treat brings.

Thanks to Karen at Karen's Cookies Cakes & More for picking this back-to-school-appropriate recipe.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes
adapted from Martha Stewart

Printable Recipe

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

6 ounces unsalted butter, softened

1⅓ cups sugar

⅔ cup natural, creamy peanut butter

3 large eggs, room temperature

½ cup sour cream

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Frosting

Strawberry jam, for topping

makes 22 cupcakes

Preheat oven to 375ºF.

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Set aside.

With the paddle attachment of electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar thoroughly, about a minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the peanut butter and mix thoroughly. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the sour cream and vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Do not overmix, or the cupcakes will become tough.

Bake for 20-22 minutes.

Once cupcakes are cool, create a teaspoon-sized hole in the center of each cupcake. Fill the hole with jam.  Frost tops with peanut butter frosting. Place a dollop of jam in the center of each cupcake. The cupcakes are best eaten day-of, but will keep in the refrigerator for two days.

This post is linked up to I'm Lovin' It Fridays, tatertots and jello, creative juice, cast party wednesday, sweet treats thursday, show and share