Margarita Cupcakes...Happy Taco Tuesday!

Its Tuesday, if you know me at all you know that I'm one happy camper because Tuesday is my favorite day of the week. Why you might ask is a midweek day so special to you, and my response is TACO TUESDAY obviously!!Back in my college days in San Diego, it meant hitting up local restaurants deals for 1$ tacos and drinking more often than not way too many Coronas and cheap tequila shots. The whole new problem of reality and adulthood has been limiting my celebrations lately, but I still celebrate Tuesdays and the memory of those careless college days by cooking up some sort of Mexican dish.

This Tuesday I will be sharing a recipe for Margarita Cupcakes. Its two of my favorite things wrapped in one little package: cupcakes and tequila! You just can't go wrong with a combination like that.



First, I measured out all my ingredients and got to mixing.



The batter was nice and thick-just how a homemade cupcake batter should be-and had a great tang from the tequila and lime.



Once the cupcakes were baked and slightly cooled, the fun part began…brushing the tops with Tequila. And yes I used Patron, and yes the cook needed to have a sip (or two) just to make sure all my ingredients were in top form ;)


Finally, I iced the cupcakes with the delicious Tequila-Lime Frosting and decorated with lime zest and a few lime slices.



And yes you had that right, there is Tequila in the batter, glaze, and frosting so I wouldn't recommend serving this for a children's birthday party but for an adult party I highly highly recommend!





Its also a great way to convert the men in your life into cupcake fans-no reason to feel un-masculine eating a cake with 3 doses of tequila!



Happy Taco Tuesday
xox
Bri

I found this recipe from one of my favorite blogs, Brown Eyed Baker. You can find her fabulous Margarita cupcakes here

Margarita Cupcakes:


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
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup buttermilk

To Brush the Cupcakes:
1 to 2 tablespoons tequila

For the Tequila-Lime Frosting:
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
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).
4. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and add the eggs one at at 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.
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.
8. Allow cupcakes to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and then remove to a cooling rack. Brush the tops of the cupcakes with the 1 to 2 tablespoons of tequila. Set the cupcakes aside to cool completely before frosting them.
9. 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 with lime zest and lime slices.