Jennifer Borden, professional baker and Edible Rhody recipe contributor
This is a festive and fun dessert to welcome the arrival of fresh local strawberries. Once their fleeting season is over, try this with raspberries, blueberries or ripe peaches. Each component can be made in advance and final assembly comes together quickly.
Ingredients
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 2 cups whole milk, room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- 1 teaspoon pure Madagascar vanilla
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 4 tablespoons virgin coconut oil
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon pure Madagascar vanilla
- 3 tablespoons limoncello, divided (see note*)
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure Madagascar vanilla
- 1 jar good-quality lemon marmalade (or your favorite citrus marmalade, jam or jelly)
- 1 pint fresh ripe strawberries, washed, dried and quartered, 2–3 strawberries reserved and sliced for garnish
- Fresh mint sprigs for garnish (optional)
Preparation
For the vanilla pudding, whisk together sugar, cornstarch and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add ¼ cup milk and whisk to form a paste. Add remaining milk and egg yolks, whisking to combine. Cook over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon until thickened, about 15 minutes. Do not let boil. Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla. Strain pudding through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and cover surface with plastic wrap to prevent skin from forming. Refrigerate until ready to use. (Can be made 1 to 2 days before assembly.)
Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 6-cup muffin tin. Sift together flour, salt and baking powder and set aside. Combine sugar, butter and coconut oil and whip until fluffy using a standing mixer with a paddle attachment. Add egg, sour cream, vanilla and 1 tablespoon limoncello, mixing to combine. Add flour mixture and blend just to combine, scraping down the bowl as needed. Do not over mix.
Divide batter among cups and bake 30 minutes, rotating pan once halfway through. Remove the pan and cool on a rack for 5 minutes. Cut top off each cupcake while still warm and brush tops and bottoms with remaining limoncello. Wrap cupcakes if not using right away.
Chill the bowl and whisk attachment of the standing mixer in the freezer for 15 minutes. Remove bowl; add cream, powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat on high until stiff peaks form. Place whipped cream in a pastry or zip-top bag and refrigerate until final assembly.
Choose 6 glass containers (Mason jars, stemware, etc.) for serving. Spread 1 tablespoon marmalade atop the bottom ½ of each cupcake and place halves inside each jar or glass. Scoop 2 to 3 tablespoons pudding atop each cupcake base. Divide ½ the chopped berries atop the pudding. Add cupcake tops followed by remaining berries. Pipe a dollop of whipped cream in a decorative swirl over each dessert and garnish each with sliced strawberries and a small sprig of mint.
*Note: You can also substitute Grand Marnier or Framboise, which I would recommend if using orange marmalade or strawberry jam rather than lemon marmalade.
