Rhubarb Filled Cupcakes

Since I'm going to be making the cupcakes for my sister's wedding, she had a request for me. She wanted me to find and make a rhubarb cupcake. I looked around and found a recipe for a rhubarb curd. I thought that would be awesome if I filled a cupcake with it. So I went ahead and made the curd and was disappointing with how it turned out. The rhubarb flavor didn't shine through at all like I was hoping, so it was back to the drawing bored. I talked to my mom about it and she suggested something that I should have thought of from the get go. She has made a rhubarb dessert since before I can remember that tastes like heaven. We decided to try to adapt that dessert into a cupcake and I don't think we could have done a better job.

I used the white cake from my Cotton Candy Cupcakes because it was so delicious. The frosting is a rhubarb meringue. Just a little bit of sweetness while staying light and fluffy. I don't think this cupcake would work with any other kind of frosting. But the star of the show is definitely the filling. It's a little sweet and still slightly tart from the whole pieces of rhubarb. When you taste all of these together, you'll be wishing you'd made more of them.

Here's how to make it:

Please refer to the Cotton Candy Cupcakes for the recipe for the cake portion.

Ingredients:
Filling:
- 5 1/4 cups rhubarb, diced
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup half & half
- 4 1/2 Tbsp flour
- 5 large egg yolks (save 2 whites for meringue)
- 2 - 4 drops of red food coloring

Frosting:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 egg whites
- 1 stalk rhubarb, chopped
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- pinch salt
- Red food coloring.

Directions:
1. Make the cupcakes as directed here.
2. For the filling, in large sauce pan, combine all of the filling ingredients. Mix well.
3. Bring to a low boil over medium heat stirring frequently.
4. Boil the mixture until it becomes thick, could take up to 1/2 hour. Remove from heat.
5. For the Frosting, beat the egg whites and salt to soft peaks using an electric mixer.
6. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring the sugar, rhubarb, and water to a boil, stirring occasionally. Continue to boil until it reaches "soft ball" stage (when a drop of the syrup forms a soft ball when dropped in cool water).
7. Strain and discard the rhubarb.
8. Keep the mixer running while you pour a continuous stream of molten syrup into the egg whites. A stand mixer or a friend is helpful to complete this step.
9. Continue to beat for about 5 minutes, adding the vanilla after about 2 minutes. Add a few drops of red food coloring if your rhubarb isn't very red. The frosting should from stiff peaks.
10. When the cupcakes have cooled, remove the center of your cupcakes with a fork or a spoon.
11. Spoon in enough filling into the center of the each cupcake to fill the hole.
12. Spread the frosting on each cupcake using an icing knife or spatula. To get the peaks on the cupcakes, take your icing spreading instrument and place it on the frosting and simply lift upward.
13. Enjoy!

This recipe should make around 30 cupcakes. You might end up with a little extra filling, but you can always put it over ice cream... Or just eat it out of the bowl... It's up to you.