eat :: st. patrick's day green velvet cupcakes

for whatever reason i could not get my act together for st. patrick's day. i finally was able to pull something together and made green velvet cupcakes. just like my classic red velvets with green food coloring - duh! this is such a classic recipe. the cream cheese frosting recipe always gets complements on it!

3 1/2 cups cake flour {not self-rising}

3/4 cup {1 1/2 sticks} unsalted butter, soften

2 1/4 cups sugar

3 eggs, at room temperature

a few drops of green food coloring

3 tbls unsweetened cocoa

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 tsp cider vinegar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

preheat oven to 350 degrees.

line a muffin tin with cupcake papers. or if you want to make a cake, grease and lightly flour three 9x2-inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with waxed paper.

in a small bowl, sift the cake four and set aside. in a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

in a small bowl, whisk together the green food coloring, cocoa and vanilla. add to the batter and beat well.

in a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour. with each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat.

in a small bowl {there are a lot of small bowls in this recipe} stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. add to the batter and mix well. using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.

divide the batter among the muffin cups. bake for 19-24 minutes. for a cake bake 30-40 minutes. allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

1 pound (two 8oz. packages) cream cheese, soften and cut into small pieces

6 tbls unsalted butter, soften and cut into small pieces

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

5 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

in a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. add the vanilla and beat well. gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating continuously until smooth and creamy. cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours to thicken before using.