Key Lime Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

I grew up in Miami where Key Lime pie isn’t exotic or hard to find. It’s a staple dessert – on every menu, case at every party and on the table with Cuban coffee after every meal at my uncle’s house. Key Lime pie is his specialty. It’s cool and tangy and graham cracker-y and just about the best thing ever when it’s sweltering outside. In fact, Tom loves to get a frozen, chocolate-dipped key lime pie on a stick every time we go to Key West. I’m a key lime purist – always opting for the regular slice.

But just because I’m a purist when it comes to key lime pie, doesn’t mean I don’t like my key lime other ways. I’ve been dying to try key lime cupcakes all summer, but never got around to it. Then I was going to make a key lime cake for my sister-in-law’s birthday, but she was out of town and I didn’t have a cake pan. Key lime cupcakes it is, then. I made mini ones because I can’t stop at just one and I’ll do less damage this way.

These cupcakes were better than I’d imagined. The citrusy key lime balances out the sweet cream cheese icing perfectly. I will warn you though – the batter is a little scary. When I poured that key lime juice in with the butter and sour cream, I was sure these were destined for the trash can. As you can guess, the batter curdled. But it’s nothing to worry about – it’s just like making your own buttermilk or ricotta cheese. The batter blends perfect once you add the dry ingredients and it tastes great even before you cook it. I may have licked the spatula. Just maybe.

If you want a little taste of Miami without the expensive plane ticket, make these little beauties and then come back and tell me how much you loved them.

Related:
Strawberry Cupcakes with Chocolate Almond Frosting
Guava & Cream Cheese Cupcakes

[print_this text=’Print Recipe’]Key Lime Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

For the cake:
2 sticks (16 tbsp.) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups natural cane sugar
3 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sour cream, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup key lime juice, either from real key limes or bottled. I used Nell & Joe’s brand.

For the icing:
2 sticks (16 tbsp.) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups (16 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line muffin pans with paper liners or mini muffin pans with mini liners.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed, until light and fluffy. On medium speed, add the eggs, 2 at a time, then add the sour cream and vanilla. Scrape down the sides then add the key lime juice. Turn the speed to medium-low and beat for another minute. Stop the mixer.

Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. With the mixer on low speed (stir), add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until just combined. Fill the cupcake liners to the 2/3-level with batter. Bake in the center of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes for full-size or 15 minutes for mini. They’re done when a toothpick comes out clean. Cool to room temperature.

While the cakes cool, make the icing. Mix the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed until the sugar incorporates, then turn it up to high and whip for about 3 minutes. Spread the frosting generously on top of each cupcake.

For fancier frosting, put the icing in a gallon sized ziploc bag and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Cut the bottom corner of the bag and pipe a dot of frosting on, then pull up. Continue until the surface of the cake is covered. This was my first time doing this, so I didn’t take any pictures. The first one came out terrible, but they got better and better the more I made.

Makes 3 dozen full-size cupcakes.[/print_this]