Begin by making the strawberry filling. Heat the strawberries in a heavy saucepan over medium heat for 4 - 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add in the sugar and cornstarch, and stir for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool.

While the filling cools, make the cupcakes. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl mix together all dry cupcake ingredients.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the egg mixture. Add the buttermilk, and mix until well combined.

Fill 12 greased or paper lined muffin cups about 3/4 from the top. Bake for 18-24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let cupcakes cool on a wire rack. Remove the center of each cupcake with a small round cookie cutter or corer, saving the removed piece.

Fill each cupcake with strawberry filling and replace the piece of cupcake that was removed.

To make the whipped cream frosting, simply beat all ingredients together until stiff peaks form. It helps to put your mixing bowl and whisk in the freezer for 15 to 30 minutes before using. This way, all ingredients stay cold. Refrigerate the whipped cream if not using immediately.

Using a knife, frost the cupcakes with whipped cream, and garnish with a slice of fresh strawberry.

Serve immediately, or store in refrigerator until ready to eat.