Sweet Sacred Heart Treats

Celebrate the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart with a simple but special dessert.

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, which is a movable feast celebrated 19 days after Pentecost. It's always on a Friday, and since it's a solemnity, that means it's not a Meatless Friday!

My friend Barbara Stein shares this strawberry-topped cupcake recipe for your family to enjoy today. Don't panic at seeing a cupcakes-from-scratch recipe. I've baked cakes from Barbara's recipes before, and it's honestly almost as easy as opening a box mix -- but the flavor is so much better, and you probably already have all of these ingredients in your pantry. (If you prefer to make your cupcakes from a mix and top them with fresh strawberry slices, of course that works too!)

Strawberry Cupcakes

Makes 12-15 cupcakes

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup strawberry jam thinned with water to make syrupy (total of 3/4 c. liquid)
1/4 c. milk
10 drops red food color
Buttercream frosting (below)
12-18 thick strawberry slices, drained on paper towels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan and a 6-cup muffin pan with paper liners (you may get 12 to 15 cupcakes, maybe 18 depending on how full you fill them).

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well.

Finally stir in the thinned jam, the milk and food coloring. Beat until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the liners (I like to use an ice cream scoop filled about 2/3).

Bake 15-20 minutes or until they test done with a toothpick. Cool. Frost with white buttercream frosting (below) and top with a strawberry slice.

If you are making them up more than an hour ahead of time, wait until ready to serve to top with the strawberry.

Buttercream Frosting

1/4 c. softened butter
3 c. powdered sugar
4 T. milk
1/2 t. vanilla

Beat butter and powdered sugar slowly for several minutes. Add milk slowly, then vanilla. Beat for several minutes until frosting is soft and creamy. Add more milk if necessary.

Read more about the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart and ways to celebrate this day.