Hello! Coming at you from my new apartment 
The move actually went quite smoothly… Yes, it took 6.5 hours, but our movers were fabulous (Bee’s Moving for any Bostonians in need of super nice, normal, hard-working, non-creepy movers) and we got it all done. The apartment is still a bit of a mess (boxes everywhere!), so I’m not going to show you much yet
But I do have to say, I LOVE my new kitchen. Let’s be honest- the kitchens in Boston apartments are often not much to look at (or cook in). Sometimes I look at food bloggers’ kitchens in other parts of the country and swoon. But for the price and from what else I’ve seen in the city, I have to say my new kitchen is quite nice and a definite upgrade for me. The best part about it? Space! When I’m low on space, I tend to freak out. And if I’m in a rush and low on space? Disaster.
So, what’s the first thing I made in my new kitchen? Cupcakes, obviously! My sister invited Chris and me over for dinner and the Bachelorette finale, so I offered to bring dessert, knowing I’d want to make some cupcakes. After checking out some recipes, I settled on margarita cupcakes! Perfect for summer, right?
Chels stopped by this afternoon and if you know ANYTHING about me and Chels, it’s that there is no such thing as “stopping by.” We aren’t capable of just saying “hi” and leaving it at that. There’s no such thing as “just dropping something off.” And it’s not odd for 3 hours to go by of us just chatting when we meant to just stop by. Anyway, when she left this afternoon, I realized I only had 1.5 hours to run across the street for some eggs and get baking.
I cut the original recipe I followed in half, since I didn’t really need 24 cupcakes ( I KNOW, but really). So, I’m giving you the recipe for 12 below.
Margarita Cupcakes (makes 12 cupcakes):
Cake:
- 1.5 C all-purpose flour
- 1/2 T baking powder
- 1/4 t salt
- 1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 C sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 limes, zested and juiced
- 1/4 t vanilla extract
- 1/2 C buttermilk
- Tequila for brushing
Frosting:
- 1 C sugar
- 4 large egg whites
- Pinch coarse salt
- 3/4 C (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/4 T freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 T tequila
Another thing I LOVE about my new kitchen? Room on the counter to keep my KitchenAid mixer! Sure I kept it on a shelf nearby before, but the thing is so freaking heavy, it’s nice I won’t have to lug it to the counter anymore.
First, preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
Then, in a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt together.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes.
Blend eggs in one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Beat in lime juice, lime zest, and vanilla.
With mixer on low speed, mix in dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk. Beat each addition until just incorporated.
Divide batter into cupcake papers. Fill about 3/4 full and bake for 20-24 minutes.
While the cupcakes are baking, prepare the frosting. Combine sugar, egg whites, and salt in a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisk frequently until sugar has dissolved and mixture reaches about 160 degree F.
Put mixture in bowl of stand mixture with whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and mixture is cooled. This should take about 8 minutes.
Now, reduce the mixer speed to medium and add butter, 2 T at a time, waiting to add another until the precious has been incorporated. If it gets soupy or curdled, beat on medium-high again until it thickens up.
Stir in lime juice and tequila. My frosting ended up being a little bit too liquidy, which means I probably could have beat it a bit more.
When my cupcakes were done, I took them out of the oven and let them cool a bit.
Then I put them on a baking rack. The recipe said brushing the cupcakes with tequila was optional. But it wasn’t optional in my book. Hello?!
I frosted the cupcakes using a pastry bag, but since the frosting was kind so soft, it wasn’t totally necessary.
After frosting the cupcakes, I sprinkled some lime zest on all of them.
And put lime wedges on top, too.
I loved how these turned out! They were super light, moist, and fluffy. Everything about them was summery from their lightness in both cake and frosting to their citrus taste. To the, uh, tequila? I don’t know, but tequila reminds me of summer and beaches.
These would be lovely at a summer pool party. Or perhaps a Cinco de Mayo party. Of course, you can drink margaritas any time of the year (and should), so let’s not relegate these to summer.
Though I was totally low on time while making these, my more spacious kitchen actually allowed me to feel more relaxed with everything and I couldn’t believe how smoothly everything went.
We definitely enjoyed the margarita cupcakes with a little bit of Bachelorette tonight…
But not before my sister served warm beet soup in a squash. This was awesome! I loved that you could get a bit filled with beet soup AND squash. You all know how I feel about edible bowls… And this was the perfect example.
Adam also made his version of the Sassy Co-Worker, one of our favorite drinks from Coolidge Corner’s Regal Beagle.
And a lovely night was had by all
Oh, and the reason Chels “stopped by” earlier today? To drop of some super sweet little gifts for me and Chris. Her favorite Anthropologie mugs (with beautiful flowers inside)… I’ve always admired hers and am so excited we have a pair of our own now (Chris and I take our coffee and tea drinking very seriously)!
And her favorite kitchen towels! Call me crazy, but I have a thing for cute kitchen towels, and they’re pink too, so i’m obviously obsessed.
Thank you SO much, Chels! You know these gifts will be getting tons and tons of use
If you watch the Bachelorette, what did you think of the finale? I was really rooting for Chris (he’s from Cape Cod! And a total sweetie) and wasn’t a fan of Roberto at all… But in the end, Ali and Roberto did seem incredibly in love, so I guess I can’t complain…
Hope you all had awesome Mondays!
[Sues]
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SO glad to hear the move went well! The cupcakes are a perfect little celebration. I have never really gotten into the Bachelor/bachelorette but glad to hear the finale went well.
Congrats on the move! I think maybe some photos of the new kitchen are in order once you’re all settled in!
Those cupcakes are precious – so impressed. Yum! Congrats on your new apartment! We’re thinking of moving to a nicer place, and I just can’t get up the energy to do the actual move. Hopefully soon though!
Laura
Glad the move went well. These cupcakes sound fabulous. I think they’d be perfect for a girly night in… hopefully Chris enjoyed them too
Guess what I am eating right now!?!? (sorry Sues, I couldn’t wait until lunch)
Glad your move went well!! And those cupcakes look delicious.
I was rooting for Chris too, but there is something so genuine and sweet about Ali, so it’s hard to go against anything she wants and she does seem happy!
love your blog! and those cupcakes look amazing!
Love the housewarming gifts. I agree with you on kitchens in Boston, although I think that is also the reality of apartment kitchens in general (vs. places you own). Places in Chicago definitely are bigger but I still struggled to find a kitchen that meets my standards even though I am paying a lot in rent, by Chicago standards. I finally settled for one that had potential to customize (I bought an ikea kitchen island (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00116996) to make better use of the space). No glam appliances and an oven that definitely runs hot, but tons of cabinet space and natural light.
Now that is my kind of cupcake! I have a feeling my husband would love it too.
The cupcakes look scrumptious.. I always say I should do a bachelor finale party but I never follow thru.. maybe a bachelor pad finale party… I wanted Chris to end up with Ali but now I am hoping he is the next bachelor. What a cutie!
I truly love Chelsee’s housewarming gifts, practical and cute!
I will be making these, for sure! My roommate is going to swoon.
These cupcakes look delicious! I love the idea of cocktail cupcakes (cosmopolitan cupcakes, etc.)
I was really rooting for Chris because he seems so sweet, genuine and committed, but I think Roberto is ultimately better suited to her personality. And hey, if he can’t find a good girl in his area…he can always hop on a plane to Toronto!
What a great idea for a house-warming gift! These cupcakes also look amazing, I think I’ll make them for a trip to an outdoor concert next week. Also, I totally wanted Ali to choose Chris. I can’t believe she didn’t. I don’t think she and Roberto will last
Wow I want one of those now!
The cupcakes look fabulous and the beet soup in squash bowls looks quite interesting…I will definitely be trying that recipe soon… Chels is such a dear friend and so thoughtful…her apartment-warming gifts are very sweet…you are lucky to have each other as such good friends!
PS Your new kitchen looks like a place you will enjoy cooking in…so much space and storage room…ENJOY!!
moves can be quite traumatic, I’m happy to hear yours went well! those margarita cupcakes look delicious!! the frosting so inviting with that zest and lime, my girls would love these, I would just have to leave off the brush of tequila!
I love that you made these to eat while watching The Bachelorette! I was hoping she’d pick Chris too, but I guess if you really think about it, she and Roberto were really pretty much in love the whole time. I wonder if Chris will be the next bachelor… guessing we have to get through Bachelor Pad first. I’m not so sure I’m going to watch that… I’ll probably get sucked into the drama though. Anyways, I really stopped here to tell you how fabulous those cupcakes look and sound, especially with that extra tequila brushed on!
Congratulations on your new kitchen! I can’t think of anything more perfect to make in it than these cupcakes to celebrate. Beautiful with the frosting and slice of lime. My 20-something daughters watch Bachelorette, me,,,not so much
These are very original Sues. I’ve never heard of a margarita cupcake!
Chelsee super cute housewarming gift FTW!!! And those cupcakes look amazing… congrats on the move! Living with the boy is AWESOME and you’ll never have to worry about hanging up a picture frame by yourself ever again! (but don’t let him teach you how to do it. its a trick!!!)
I love the idea of limes on or in cupcakes. Nice work!
So delicious looking!!! Love the idea
I have the same Anthro mug!! The idea of gifting it with a plant is absolutely adorable and I’m totally stealing the idea haha! I’m also a sucker for pink dish towels, I love mine from Williams Sonoma but I want to check out those ones from Rest. hardware too!
The frosting alone looks amazing.
Have fun unpacking and organizing!
I’m making the cupcakes tonight and noticed that in the “prepare the frosting” section, it says to “combine sugar, egg yolks and salt” … but I think that’s supposed to be egg whites instead of egg yolks. Just thought you might want to fix it. Thanks for the recipe!
@Kim Yes, you’re totally right! Thank you; I fixed it… That would be a really bad error
Also … my frosting was soupy as well, even though I had beaten it for about 20 minutes. So, I put my mixing bowl (with the egg white mixture in it) into another bowl with some ice water. After just a few minutes more of mixing, the frosting really came together nicely. Thanks for the recipe again — I’m taking them to a Mexican-themed party tonight, and I think they will be a hit!
These were AWE-SOME. Loved ‘em. Definite keeper of a recipe. Thanks!
We had the hardest time with the frosting. It never peaked! But we let it cool in the fridge until it was a bit thicker and then frosted the cupcakes. Still yummy!
I recently made some margarita cupcakes too! My pictures are at baymacae.blogspot.com
I made mine with chocolate cake and straws for decoration.