Vernal Equinox Celebration - Blueberry Cupcakes

I'm not a big fan of Easter. Not only because I consider myself an atheist, but also because I resent the Czech traditions related to this holiday... The custom of often drunk men spanking women with willow rods and throwing cold water on them, and women rewarding them with decorated eggs doesn't really appeal to me... On the other hand, who wouldn't like a day off from work? So I decided to celebrate the end of winter, vernal equinox.

...and, about a week ago, I made these blueberry cupcakes with lemon mascarpone frosting, decorated them with chocolate candy eggs... and enjoyed a free Friday and Monday in Prague with Honza, visiting our grandmas and aunties.

By the way, blueberries are good for you. Apart from a lot of other phenols, they contain a chemical called chlorogenic acid, an esther of caffeic acid and L-quinic acid. It is a powerful antioxidant and, in spite of its name, it doesn't contain any chlorine. Its name comes from the Greek xλωρός (light green) and -ϒένος (a suffix which means "giving rise to") - when the chloronergic acid oxidizes, a green colour is produced. 

Blueberry-enriched diet was shown to provide cellular protection against oxidative stress and reduce a kainate-induced learning impairment in rats (Duffy et al., 2008). Antioxidant properties of natural polyphenols are also investigated for their therapeutic potential for Alzheimer's disease (Choi et al. 2012), as the fruit polyphenols have been shown to have beneficial effects on brain aging (Lau et al., 2005).

Vernal Equinox Blueberry Cupcakes with Lemon Mascarpone Frosting

Ingredients (makes for about 12 cupcakes)

     Cupcakes
45 g butter
1&1/2 cup plain flour
3/4 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup plain white yogurt
1/2 cup whole milk
1/8 cup vegetable oil
0.5 tbsp. baking powder
0.5 tsp. vanilla extract* (not the Dr.Oetker clear essence!)
0.5 tsp lemon zest
0.25 tsp. salt
0.25 tsp. baking soda
1 large egg
*the only good vanilla extract I discovered in CZ/SK so far is the one from Marks and Spencers, in the UK I like the one from Dr.Oetker (brownish and thick, available with, or without the vanilla seeds)

     Lemon Mascarpone Frosting
200 g mascarpone cheese
40 g unsalted butter (softened)
6-8 tbsp. powdered sugar
juice from 1/2 lemon
(10 g whipping cream stabilizer (CZ/SK smeta-fix Dr.Oetker) - only if the frosting turns out too runny)

Directions
      Cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Whisk together the melted butter and oil
3. Add the egg and whisk to blend
4. Add yogurt, milk, vanilla extract and lemon zest and mix thoroughly
5. Mix the dry ingredients and slowly add the dry mixture to the wet one and whisk thoroughly until smooth
6. Stir in the blueberries
7. Line a cupcake/muffin pan with cupcake cases and fill each one a about 3/4 full
8. Bake for about 20 minutes (toothpick inserted in the centre should come out mostly clean)

     Lemon Mascarpone Frosting
1. Beat butter with a mixer until pale and fluffy (about 3 min)
2. Combine the powdered sugar and lemon juice, if too runny, add some more sugar
3. Add the sugar-lemon mixture to the mascarpone, add butter and whisk until smooth and creamy
4. If too runny, add the whipping cream stabilizer