Someone asked me last week why there was no tequila in my house. And gosh darn it, I couldn’t think of a single reason why there wasn’t any (the man candy suggested that it was because I drank it all. Gee thanks, dear.). Given that Feb. 22 is National Margarita Day, I knew that I needed to get some tequila STAT because how else was I supposed to celebrate properly?
(Are y'all catching on to what one of my favorite movies just might be? I also put a GIF of it in last week's blog post, too.)
Since my first job out of pastry school, I’ve had the idea for making “Happy Hour Cupcakes” for my mythical bakery. Like a true Happy Hour, I’d probably serve them at an inconvenient time, like 3pm to 5pm weekdays ONLY, but I did come up with a pretty cool list of boozy flavors: Screwdriver, Strawberry Daiquiri, Mai Tai, Mint Julep, Sidecar, Chocolate Martini, and of course Margarita.
I am actually really excited to get to try out one of these boozy cupcake flavors for the very first time. Let's be honest, I've been thinking about them for years! To start with, I used my extremely delicious vanilla cake recipe and added lime juice into the batter. Because that’s the main ingredient that you absolutely must have to start a margarita, whether in drink or cake form. Once the cupcakes cooled, I poked holes in each cupcake with my scribe tool (a cross between a pin and a pen traditionally used for cookie decoration but I decided it worked really well for poking holes, too) and brushed tequila on the cupcakes so they would absorb more of the flavor.
But the real magic is happening in the frosting. As usual I started with European butter to make buttercream, and then I added premixed margarita (don't judge. That's how I always drink margaritas at home, so it's what I had available.) into the frosting to give it that boozy flavor that margarita cupcakes require, et voila! Margarita cupcakes. I like my margaritas with a little salt, so I sprinkled some margarita salt on it.
But if you know me (and if you’re reading this blog, it’s a solid chance that you do) you know that I just can’t leave well enough alone. So, it should be no surprise that I made bonus cupcakes! (I know you can see them in the photos already, so I guess it's not really that much of a surprise.)
Have any of you ever tried Tequila Rose? It’s a sugary sweet sort of alcohol that I drank by the gallon in my 20s before I discovered more sophisticated things like wine. Or hot toddys ;) Tequila Rose is a strawberries and cream tequila liqueur that lends itself really well to a strawberry margarita cupcake because of the built in strawberries and cream flavor. It honestly tastes like candy. So again I started with my European butter base for my buttercream and once it was almost ready, I beat in some Tequila Rose (I say some because I absolutely did not measure. I just poured it in until it looked/smelled/tasted good :D ), and I have to say this may be my new favorite way to have a margarita!
And I'm sure you noticed from earlier photos, but to add just a little more flair to my festivities, I threw some sprinkles into my batter to make this a homemade funfetti margarita cupcake (I also didn't measure these either).
I think the regular and strawberry margarita cupcakes look so pretty together, don't you?
How are you celebrating National Margarita Day this year (I know it was yesterday, but better late than never!)? Drop me a line, or if you’re in my neighborhood, stop by for a cupcake!
Happy eating, y'all!
If you tried this dessert, or any other desserts in my blog, please share my Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram posts about them and let people know what you think! Mahalo!