White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F/ 180˚C. Line a 12-muffin pan with paper cupcake cases.
2. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar and vegetable oil until pale and light. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
4. Add 1/2 of the flour mixture to the bowl of wet ingredients and fold it through. Then add in 1/2 of the buttermilk. Continue this, alternating between milk and flour until it's just combined.
5. Last, fold through the raspberries and white chocolate chips.
6. Divide the mixture evenly between 12 cupcake liners.
7. Bake the cupcakes for around 20-24 minutes until golden brown and until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
8. The tops of cupcakes should spring back when lightly pressed.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

1. Bring a pot of water (with 1 inch of water) to a simmer. 
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add egg whites and granulated sugar. Balance the bowl over this simmering water bath. Whisk continuously as the egg whites warm-up and keep whisking until all the sugar has dissolved or the temperature reads 160°F (71°C) on an instant thermometer. Don’t stop stirring or some egg whites may overcook on the edges of the bowl. 
3. Once the sugar has dissolved, place the bowl in your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until a meringue with stiff peaks forms and the meringue has cooled down to room temperature. When you touch the sides of the bowl they shouldn't feel warm. 
4. While the egg whites are beating, place the chocolate in a microwave-proof bowl and melt it in the microwave for 20-30 seconds at a time, stirring after each time.
5. Once about ⅔ of the chocolate has melted, remove it from the microwave and stir it to further melt it and combine it. Let the chocolate cool to room temperature.
6. With the mixer on medium-high speed, feed in a cube of room temperature butter at a time, allowing it to incorporate fully before adding the next cube. At this point, the frosting can suddenly appear split or curdled and look like cottage cheese. Just keep beating the mixture until it comes together into a thick and cohesive buttercream. This can take a lot of beating so don't give up if it doesn't seem to come together - it will. Keep beating it until it no longer looks greasy.
7. Once the mixture is thick and cohesive, add in the melted chocolate and salt and beat until thick and fluffy.
8. Switch to the paddle attachment and beat on low speed for 5-10 minutes to remove some of the larger air bubbles in the buttercream.

Frosting the cupcakes

1. Scoop the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Ensure the cupcakes are completely cooled, then pipe the frosting on top of each cupcake.