Key Lime Cupcakes

• servings: 12 servings
• active time: 30 minutes
• total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

1 ½ cups (188 grams) all-purpose/plain flour, sifted

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons/½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

½ cup (118ml) whole milk, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 tablespoons key lime zest (about 8 small limes)

⅓ cup (78 ml) tablespoons key lime juice

For the frosting:

8 ounces (226 grams) cream cheese, softened at room temperature

8 tablespoons (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

2 cups (240 grams) powdered/confectioners/icing sugar

2 tablespoons key lime zest

1 tablespoon key lime juice

Green and yellow food coloring (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F (178°C) and place a rack in the center of the oven.

Line a 12-muffin tin with greaseproof liners (these are best so the cupcakes don’t stick).To a bowl, add the flour, baking powder and salt, mix well.

To a large mixing bowl add the butter and sugar and beat until light and pale using an electric mixer until the butter is lighter in color and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes), scrape the sides down as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until mixed. Add the ½ the milk and vanilla, mix well. Add the key lime juice and zest, beat until well mixed. Scrape the sides of the bowl to incorporate into the batter.

Add ½ of the flour mix and mix on slow speed until just mixed (scraping the sides of the bowl). Add the rest of the milk and mix. Add the rest of the flour and mix just until the flour is incorporated. Switch to using a spatula and gently fold until all the flour is all mixed, do not over mix.Use an ice cream scoop to add divide the batter between all the cups, just over ½ full.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top does not look wet (the time will depend on how your oven is calibrated). Gently press the top of a cupcake — if it springs back, they’re done. When a toothpick inserted in the center it should come out clean.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan until you can handle them (they will be soft), then remove and cool fully on a wire rack.

Beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer. Slowly add powdered sugar while beating. Add lime juice zest. Don’t over mix or it will be too soft to pipe.

To get the two-tone piping, transfer 2 tablespoons of the frosting to a separate bowl and mix with the green and yellow coloring until it is lime green.

Refrigerate the frosting for 30 minutes to make it firm for piping

Add the piping tip of choice to a piping bag (I used a 1M star tip). Hold the tip and turn the bag inside out over your hand, add the green frosting to one side of the bag, close to the tip. Use a separate spoon to add the white frosting to the other side of the bag. Whatever ratio you use, you want more white than green. Pipe onto the cupcakes.

More cupcake baking tips.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1
• Calories: 401
• Total Fat: 23 g
• Saturated Fat: 14 g
• Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 92 mg
• Sodium: 248 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 46 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1 g
• Total Sugars: 32 g
• Protein: 4 g