Mojito Cupcakes

One night last week, while out for a couple drinks, one of The Spatularettes' friends ordered a mojito.  A classic summer drink, which given the beautiful weather in Philadelphia lately, proved to be quite appropriate.  Mint and lime, the main ingredients (well, besides the rum) in a mojito seem like a bit of an odd pair, but come together beautifully to create a refreshing drink. 

Our friend's cocktail order got us thinking about our next creation for the blog and the idea for mojito cupcakes was born.  We used a simple vanilla cupcake and topped it with swirled mint and lime frosting.  The colors were so festive that we served them for St Patrick's Day, but this cupcake recipe will be a winner all spring and summer long!

The cake recipe we used came from Ming Makes Cupcakes, which happens to be one of the first blogs The Spatularettes followed when we started cooking together.  The frosting recipe was loosely adapted from Tall One's new "Joy Of Cooking" cookbook.

INGREDIENTS:

Cupcakes:

-1 1/2 c flour

-1 1/2 tsp baking powder

-1/4 tsp salt

-1 stick butter, softened

-1 c sugar

-2 eggs

-1/2 tsp vanilla

-1/2 c milk

Frosting:

-1 stick butter, softened

-4 c powdered sugar

-2 tsp vanilla
-4 Tbs milk

-3 tsp lime juice

-1 tsp peppermint extract
-Green food coloring

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line 12 cupcake tins with paper liners and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour baking powder and sugar.  Add butter, about 2 Tbs at a time, and mix until well combined.  Add sugar while continuing to mix.  Once sugar has been incorporated, add the eggs one at a time and beat until a thick batter forms.  Finally add vanilla and milk and beat for another minute or two, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally.  Divide between 12 tins and bake for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Remove to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

While cupcakes cool, work on the frosting.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy.  Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and mix until well combined.  Slowly add vanilla and milk and beat for another minute.  Divide frosting between 2 bowls.  Add peppermint extract to one bowl and the lime juice and green food coloring to the other bowl.  Mix both batches of frosting well.

To frost the cupcakes in the swirl pattern, you will need 3 disposable frosting bags and a large frosting tip.  Lay one of the bags on top of the other and snip equal sized medium segments off the tip of the bags.  Cut a large tip off of the third bag that is large enough to fit the frosting tip. 

Fill the first two bags, each with a different frosting.  Lay the bags side by side, and fit the frosting tip over both bags.  Try to insert them evenly.  Finally, gently slide the 2 bags and the tip into the third bag.  Twist the top of the bag to seal well and begin to apply pressure to frost the cupcakes.  The two colors of frosting should come out in equal stripes, creating the swirl effect.

The technique sounds complicated, but it is really quite easy once you get the hang of it.  This was our first time making swirled cupcakes and we were really happy with the results!

Not a fan of the mint/lime combo?  Try swirling your favorite 2 flavors!

XOXO, 

Tall and Small