White Cake - Vanilla Cupcakes

I wanted to try this recipe because its titled "The Perfect White Cake" and I've had trouble in the past with vanilla cake recipes coming out perfect. They did indeed bake up quite perfect and they tasted like cake! Not like pancakes! Perfect! It's a very stark white cake, using only egg whites, so if you like white cake to be alittle richer like I do, I would keep in two of the egg yolks, like this recipe - just don't add the oreos. But overall, these were great, and the buttercream was tasty too.  

White Cake - Vanilla Cupcakes
Adapted from: I am Baker
Yield: 21 cupcakes

2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 cup milk at room temperature*
6 large egg whites at room temperature*
2 teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened but still cold

Directions
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cupcake pan with liners or grease two 8-inch cake pans.

Make sure milk and eggs are room temperature. Pour milk, egg whites, and extracts into medium bowl and mix with fork until blended.

Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter, cut into cubes and continue beating on low for about 1-2 minutes.

Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to flour mixture and beat at medium speed for 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat for about 1 minute. Pour batter evenly between two prepared cake pans.

Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. It will depend on if you filled the cupcake liners half way or 2/3 or 3/4 of the way, start out with 15-20 minutes and then check on them with a toothpick. 27 to 30 minutes for cake pans.

Allow cake to cool to room temperature.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Buttercream

1 stick butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
pinch of salt
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup strawberries, blended to make about 1/2 cup puree

Directions
To make the frosting, beat the butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add the salt and powdered sugar, until combined. Add the vanilla and strawberry puree and beat until light and fluffy.