Red, White, and Blue Cupcakes

Ingredients:     White Cake:     1/2 cup butter, softened     1 cup shortening     2 cups sugar $     4 large eggs $     2 3/4 cups all-purpose soft-wheat flour     2 teaspoons baking powder     1/2 teaspoon salt     1 cup buttermilk     1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract     1 1/2 tablespoons almond extract     Paper baking cups     Vegetable cooking spray $     1 1/2 cups strawberry or blueberry jam     Vanilla Frosting:     1/2 cup butter, softened $$     3 to 4 tablespoons whipping cream     1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract     1/8 teaspoon salt     1 (16 oz.) package powdered sugar     Toppings:     Red jumbo sprinkles, edible glitter stars, red candies, star picks (optional) Preparation     To prepare White Cake, Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition.     Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed until blended after each addition. Stir in extracts.     Place paper baking cups in 2 (12-cup) muffin pans, and coat with cooking spray; spoon batter into cups, filling two-thirds full.     Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely.     Fill each cupcake with strawberry or blueberry jam. To fill cupcakes, insert the end of a wooden spoon or dowel into the center of the cupcake to make a hole. Fill a zip-top plastic freezer bag with filling. Use scissors or kitchen shears to snip about 1/4 inch from one corner of the bag; insert bag into the hole in the cupcake. Squeeze gently until filling comes to the top of each cupcake.     To prepare Vanilla Frosting, beat first 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended. Beat at high speed 2 minutes or until creamy. Make 3 cups. Divide frosting into three bowls. Tinet1 bowl of frosting with desired amount of red food coloring and 1 bowl of frosting with desired amount of blue food coloring.     Insert a metal tip into a large decorating bag; spoon 1/4 cup each of red, white, and blue frosting into bag. Pipe a generous peak of frosting onto each cupcake. Top each with sprinkles, glitter stars, 1 red candy, and, if desired, 1 star pick.