Blueberries and cream cupcakes for St-Jean-Baptiste Day

So today is a holiday in Quebec. One of the only days of the year (aside from Christmas and New Year's) when the grocery stores are closed. Today is also the day that I decided to do a marathon cooking session. Now normally would not this be a problem (after all I did go grocery shopping last night), but today also seems to be the day that I'm running out of my staples.

So I started my day around 7:15am as we were expecting company around 11:00 and then we'll be attending a barbecue later in the afternoon. I had a full plan of action on this rainy day (at last I was able to use the oven since it's rainy and cold today!)

1) Key lime pie
2) Spinach and artichoke dip
3) Blueberries and crean cupcake

Simple enough and pretty straight forward until I realized that we forgot to pick up baguette for our typical French lunch (pate, cheese and cured meat). So I got out my trusty Joy of Cooking cook book and got to making bread.

In the end, everything worked out (you'll be able to see all the other recipes later this week, but let's just say that I didn't sit down (not even for a minute) until my husband's parents arrived!

So today's featured recipe is the blueberries and cream cupcake. I chose this recipe as the cupcakes are white and blue, the colours of the Quebec flag which I thought was pretty fit given that this is "la fete Nationale!"

This is a pretty simple, no fuss recipe that I modified from Martha's Stewart Cupcakes book. Although it is labelled as a cupcake, my husband and I both felt that it tasted more like a muffin than a cupcake (but they were still delicious!)

Hope you enjoy!

Blueberries and Cream Cupcakes
(inspired by Martha Stewart)

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup butter at room temperature
1 3/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup milk
2 cup fresh blueberries, plus more for garnish
2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup confectionner's sugar
1 pack of instant pudding

Preheat oven to 350F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

Using your mixer on medium speed, cream butter and sugar until fluffy.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated. Beat in vanilla. Add the pack of instant vanilla pudding.

Reduce speed to low. Add flower mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk and beating until combined after each.

Fold in blueberries by hand.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 fill.

Bake until pale golden for about 25 minutes.
Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

Cupcakes can be stored up to 3 days at room temperature in airtight containers (if they last that long, but that never happens at my house).

To finish, dollop cupcakes with whipped cream, and garnish with blueberries

Makes 24 cupcakes