2 Words...
Mojito
Cupcakes
A few weeks ago, I was
in a baking mood and scrolling through Pinterest and came across this little
gem. While I cannot take credit for coming up with this recipe, which came from
www.browneyedbaker.com back in 2012,
I give her major props! These cupcakes are delicious. I made a few minor
adjustments, mainly adding a bit more rum and vanilla, and some extra lime to
the frosting to hit my taste preferences. Let’s face it, I was daydreaming
about my upcoming wedding in the Caribbean, where the ship has a Mojito bar,
these cupcakes seemed like the perfect thing to bake that day.
And come on, Kendra’s
in a baking mood how is she NOT going to bake some sort of alcoholic cupcake? It’s
kind of my thing according to co-workers. When I bring in baked goods the question
is often asked, “is this a work-safe cupcake? Or an after-work cupcake?”
Honestly, it makes me laugh and I find great satisfaction knowing that my
co-workers know me so well that they need to ask.
Heat ½ cup of buttermilk
and about ½ cup of the muddled mint leaves over medium heat in a small
saucepan. Just as the buttermilk starts to steam (NOT SIMMER) cover and remove
it from the heat. Let that steep for at least 15 minutes, I let it steep for
about 30 and it came out fantastically!
While the buttermilk/mint
mixture is steeping, combine your dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, and
salt go into a medium sized bowl then set aside.
Cream ½ cup of unsalted
butter and 1 cup of white sugar together until it’s light and fluffy. I use an
electric hand mixer, takes a few minutes to get the right consistency, patience
is key when baking. I learned that the hard way…add 2 eggs into the mix,
beating well after each addition, but not over-mixing. Remember, baking is a
very precise science and can easily be…well screwed up. Once the eggs are added
in, mix in your lime zest, lime juice, vanilla extract, and of course your rum.
I may have taken a swig or two out of the bottle
at this point. Hey, I like rum and haven’t had it in a while. There was a time,
before I was 21 and could drink legally, that I drank so much Bacardi and Diet
Coke that drinking regular diet coke tasted weird. I know, that’s probably not
a good thing, but at least it meant I wasn’t drinking a ton of soda?
Anyways…grab
your buttermilk/mint mixture. It probably looks gross, separated, and curdled. That
is OK though. Take a small bowl and a fine mesh sieve/strainer and drain the
mint infused milk into the bowl. Use a spoon to squeeze as much liquid through
the sieve as possible. Burst the little curdled milk bubbles to do so and squish
the hell out of the mint leaves too. Stir the milk in the bowl a bit to smooth
it out and it should all come back together. Discard the mint leaves and any
leftover buttermilk…stuff. It should look like this.
Combine everything together,
alternating adding the dry ingredients and mint buttermilk to the butter/egg/sugar
mix, ending with the mixing in the last of the dry ingredients by hand. Don’t
over mix!!
Separate the batter evening into lined muffin
cups and bake at 325 degrees F for about 25 minutes, until the cupcakes are golden-brown
and a toothpick/cake tester comes out clean.
In your small saucepan,
combined 2-3 tablespoons of your rum and 2 mint sprigs over a medium heat. Heat
the rum just enough so it starts to steam, much like you did with the buttermilk.
Once it starts to steam, remove it from the heat and cover. Do this while your
cupcakes are baking, then let the cupcakes cool for about 5 minutes. The brush
the tops of the cupcakes with the mint infused rum. I like to poke the cupcakes
a few times with a toothpick or cake tester to help the rum soak in more,
without drowning the cupcakes into a mushy mess. Let the cupcakes cool completely
before frosting.
It’s a standard
buttercream frosting, mix it up to your desired consistency, pipe, frost,
decorate your cupcakes however you wish and enjoy!
Ironically, my decision
to bake these cupcakes was perfect timing, the very next day my best friend
calls me…her dogs grabbed the cupcakes she was baking for her husband’s
birthday off the counter. Kendra to the rescue!
Simple Straight
Forward Recipe
Cupcake:
½ Cup buttermilk
½ Cup mint leaves,
muddled/bruised
1 ½ Cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ Cup unsalted butter,
softened
1 Cup sugar
2 eggs
Zest and juice of 1 ½ limes
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Tablespoons good
white rum (divided)
2 sprigs of Fresh Mint
Frosting:
1 Cup Unsalted butter,
softened
4-5 Cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons lime
juice
3-4 tablespoons white
rum
-Combine the buttermilk
and ½ cup muddled mint leaves in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Warm JUST
until the buttermilk starts to steam, do not simmer. Remove the buttermilk and
mint from the heat, cover, and let steep for at least 15 minutes, 30 is better.
-Once the buttermilk
and mint have set for your desired time, strain the milk into a bowl using a
fine mesh sieve. The buttermilk will have separated a bit, and will look clump,
but it’s perfectly OK. Press any of the solid milk bubbles through the sieve getting
as much liquid as possible out. Stir it a bit to smooth out and set aside.
-Preheat the oven to
325 degrees F
-Grab a medium bowl and
combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside
-Use an electric mixer
on a medium-high speed, beat the butter and sugar together until it is light and
fluffy, be patient it can take a few minutes
-Using the electric
mixer, slow the speed down and add the eggs in one at a time, mix in the lime zest,
juice, 2 Tablespoons of Rum, and the vanilla extract.
-Alternate adding in
the dry ingredients and the buttermilk/mint into the egg mixture. Ending with the
dry ingredients – add the last bit in and mix briefly by hand.
-Divide the batter evenly
into lined muffin cups, bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown.
-While you’re baking
the cupcakes, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons (possibly 3 if you’re feeling
daring) of rum and the 2 mint sprigs in a small saucepan, again just until the
rum starts to steam. Cover and let steep until the cupcakes are done.
-Allow the cupcakes to
cool for about 5 minutes, then brush the tops with the rum. Let the cupcakes
completely cool before frosting.
-For the frosting, beat
1 Cup of softened butter and slowly add in the powdered sugar. Add the lime
juice and rum, mixing on a medium speed until you get your desired consistency
and taste. Add additional powdered sugar to help get the right consistency.
-Frost the cupcakes and feel free to garnish
with additional mint or lime wedges!
