Strawberry Mousse Cinnamon Cupcakes

1/3 cup freshly squeezed mandarin (or orange) juice
2 eggs
125g unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup caster sugar
225g self-raising flour
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C and line a cupcake tray with paper cases. Cream butter and sugar together using an electric beater until light and smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and beat in well. Add the juice, cinnamon and flour and beat until combined and smooth, avoid overbeating the flour.

Spoon mixture into paper cases, filling them about half to two-thirds full. It will take 15-20 minutes to bake. The top should be golden brown and slightly crunchy after it has cooled for a few minutes out of the oven. A cake tester inserted into the centre of a cake should come out clean.
Place cupcakes on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

Strawberry Mousse Icing (should be started the night before assembling your cakes)
(makes enough for 24 cupcakes, halve the measurements if you are only making one batch of cupcakes)
2 1/2 cups chopped strawberries
1/3 cup caster sugar
1/2 tbsp powdered gelatin
2 cups fresh cream (I used 35% fat)
3 tbsp icing sugar

Place caster sugar and chopped strawberries in a small saucepan and slowly bring to the boil on the stovetop. Lower the heat and allow fruit to simmer until the fruit disintergrates and the liquid is a deep red syrup. Sift in the powdered gelatin and stir over heat until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Pour into a large bowl, cool and then cover with cling film and refrigerate overnight.

After your cupcakes have cooled the day after, remove the strawberry mixture from the fridge. If it is too solid to be mixed directly into your icing mixture, place the fruit in a food processor and pulse until smooth.

Place your cream and sugar into a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add 1/3 of the cream to your strawberries. Continue beating the other 2/3 of the cream until stiff peaks form. Beat with your strawberries and cream mixture separately until well combined and stiff peaks have formed. Take care not to overbeat or the mixture will be too buttery in texture. Fold the remaining 2/3 of cream into the strawberry cream. Pipe the mixture over your cupcakes.

*Courtesy of:  http://www.raspberricupcakes.com/2009/06/strawberry-mousse-cinnamon-cupcakes.html