Goddess Magazine Stories/Articles

Alcohol Infused Cupcakes (June/July 2012)

One of my fondest childhood memories was baking with my grandmother. Especially when we were baking cupcakes with their gooey, yummy frosting. I think many would agree that whenever anyone sees a cupcake, they too are brought back to their childhood. As adults, we often forget about the days of our innocence and care-free life, so what better way to put a spin on a childhood favorite by mixing it up with a little grown up fun?

One of my closest friends, Amy, used to infuse our favorite alcoholic beverages into fruits, such as strawberries, watermelon and cantaloupe, but who would have thought about infusing cupcakes? That's an awesome way to indulge in your sweet tooth and have a relaxing drink at the same time. They are great for parties too! I took to Google right away to look into this scrumptious idea and found that there are quite a few bakeries using this technique. I found some of the best recipes using some of my favorite alcohol and mixed cocktail flavors.

Now, first things first. Preheat your oven to the temperature that is listed in the recipe you choose. Next, begin making the cupcake batter. Several of the recipes listed below are from scratch, but you can also use the prepackaged mixes. If you are using boxed batter, simply follow the mixing and you can you could pour about one half to a whole shot of your choice liquor to the batter or frosting as you are mixing them. As an alternative, you could also lightly drizzle your choice drink over the cupcake and let it absorb into the cake. Please Note: The latter may make the cupcakes mushy.

Reminder: If you have children, please make sure you carefully keep them separate from their batch of cupcakes.

Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients (Cake):

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® strawberry cake mix

1 1/4 cups champagne, room temperature (You can use a less expensive champagne)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 egg whites

Ingredients (Champagne Frosting):

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup champagne

1 tsp vanilla

4 to 5 drops red food coloring

Garnish

Pink decorator sugar crystals or edible pink pearls

Directions:

In large bowl, combine dry cake mix and champagne. Add oil, eggs. Beat with electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.

In medium bowl, beat, frostingingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Frost cupcakes. Sprinkle with pink sugar or pearls.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake at 350°F degrees for 17 to 22 minutes. Allow 10 minutes cooling time.

Chocolate Jack Daniel’s Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup brewed coffee

1/2 cup Jack Daniel’s Whiskey

1 stick of unsalted butter, cut in to one inch pieces

1 cup sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour