Are you still looking for the perfect treat for your Memorial Day picnic (or even planning ahead for the Fourth of July)??? Look no further, these cupcakes are yummy and patriotic!

If you haven’t heard of Blue Velvet cupcakes, they are actually the same recipe as Red Velvet Cupcakes with different food coloring. Although, I am a HUGE fan of Red Velvet. I love the fun blue color from these!

That blue color can be achieved by using the correct food coloring. As always, I highly recommend gel food coloring over the traditional liquid food coloring. Not only does gel food coloring provide a more intense color, there are a lot more color options out there. This can help you achieve the color that you want without the guessing game.

For this recipe, I used Royal Blue.

Cream Cheese frosting is the traditional frosting that accompanies Blue Velvet. However, I like to put a little twist on that by making a Whipped Cream-Cream Cheese Frosting. The traditional frosting can be way too sweet for me, so the whipped cream gives it the right level of sweetness and texture.

If you are looking to make patriotic cupcakes, consider garnishing your cupcakes with a maraschino cherry. They add the red color that you need, and a bit of added flavor.

Blue Velvet Cupcakes

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 bottle of royal blue gel food coloring (liquid can be used as a substitute, but it will take a little work to achieve the proper color)
• 1 t of vanilla extract
• 1 t of oil (can use vegetable, canola, olive, etc.)
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 T unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 t baking powder
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 t vinegar
• 1 t baking soda

Yields 20-24 cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing after each. Add food coloring, vanilla, and oil. Mix until fully blended.
3. In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa, and baking powder. In a large measuring cup, combine buttermilk, vinegar, and baking soda. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk mixture to the large bowl, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix well after each addition. Line a muffin pan with paper lining cups and spoon batter into the paper liners.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for  20-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcakes comes out clean. Cool.

Whipped Cream-Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1 t pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 t almond extract
• 2 cups heavy cream

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, sugar, and extracts using an electric mixer. After ensuring these ingredients are well combined, begin pouring in the heavy cream. Continue whipping the mixture until it has the appearance of whipped cream and can hold a stiff peak.

Frosting adapted from All Recipes