Margarita Cupcakes

Oh My God!

      Okay so, I don't drink much but I love myself a Margarita ... and please, who doesn't love cupcakes? But a MARGARITA CUPCAKE? Get outta here!  I took this recipe from http://www.browneyedbaker.com and I would be lying if I said that I wouldn't be back to try some more stuff. But back to these cupcakes!

Margarita Cupcakes 

Yield: 12 cupcakes
Bake Time: 25 minutes

For the Cupcakes:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
Zest and juice of 1½ limes
2 tablespoons tequila (Or more… if you’re like me)
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup buttermilk 

     (Substitute of 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar to 1 cup of milk, sit for 5 minutes – then use    required amount, also works) 

For the Tequila-Lime Frosting:
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (note, I used ½ cup, and it was just less fluffy but still delicious!)
2¾ cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 tablespoons tequila
Pinch of coarse salt


1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

3. In an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and sugar together until pale, light, and fluffy (about 5 minutes).
* I only did like 2 minutes, then I got bored… it turned out just fine

4. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition.

5. Scrape the sides of the bowl and add the lime zest, lime juice, vanilla extract and tequila. Mix until combined. (The mixture may start to look curdled at this point, but don’t worry, it will all come back together, power on!)
**It really does, so glad I was warned!

6. Reduce the mixer speed low. Add the dry ingredients in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk in two batches. Mix only until just incorporated, using a rubber spatula to give it one last mix by hand.

7. Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until just slightly golden and a skewer shows only moist crumbs attached, rotating the pan at the halfway point.   

**I use a plastic ziplock bag to pipe my batter into the pan, I just put the bag into a pitcher and then put the batter right in, cut off a corner and go - so much easier (see they all flatten out anyway) 

8. Allow cupcakes to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and then remove to a cooling rack. Brush the tops of the cupcakes with 1 to 2 tablespoons of tequila (optional). Set the cupcakes aside to cool completely before frosting them.

To make the frosting: whip the butter on medium-high speed of an electric mixer using the whisk attachment for 5 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium-low, and gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing and scraping the sides of the bowl until all is incorporated. Give it a mix on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Add the lime juice, tequila and salt mix on medium-high speed until incorporated and fluffy. If the frosting appears a bit too soft, add some additional sugar, one spoonful at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Frost cupcakes and garnish, if desired, with lime zest, an additional sprinkling of salt and a lime wedge.
**I added green food coloring to my salt garnish so it stood out – super fun!

Hope you all enjoy these as much as I did! I took them to a team tennis party for my mom, and they were a huge hit!