Cherry filled cupcakes

In honor of George Washington and because of his penchant for cherries, I'm suggesting an easy and pretty dessert for today, President's Day.

You may make your cupcakes from scratch or use a chocolate cake mix....whichever you prefer.

It's the cherry compote filling and the icing that make these cupcakes special.  You can make filling these cupcakes really easy to fill by investing in an apple corer.  As you punch down 3/4 of the way into the cupcake, you'll pull out a small plug of baked cupcake.  Don't go all the way to the bottom because you need a base to contain the filling.

What you do with these chocolate plugs is up to you...I've never had a problem making good use of them.



Cherry Compote

2 cups pitted Bing Cherries
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup  Joe and Son's Black Cherry Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 teaspoon Almond extract

In a small saucepan, stir together the cherries, sugar and balsamic vinegar.  Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes and begin gently mashing the cherries.  Continue to cook until the balsamic has reduced and become thick and the cherries are clumpy in appearance. Add the almond extract, stir and set aside.

When the cupcakes are done and cooled.  Use the apple corer to remove a center plug and fill the space with the cherry compote.

Ice the cupcakes with your favorite vanilla or chocolate icing and drizzle with additional cherry compote.