Key Lime Cupcakes

Oh hello!!

Things have been super hectic with the end of school, but now that summer is here I will be blogging lots of delish treats for you! Today I have a recipe for a very summery cupcake that is a family fave! During the summer, I get many requests for Key Lime Pie. It is super easy to make (I will post my recipe soon!) and tastes like summer! Last summer, I thought of translating the flavor into a cupcake for the farmers market I was selling at. I found this recipe over at the very cute "elly says opa!" and made a few tweaks. They were a big hit, so I thought they would be perfect to bring to the cookout with a few teacher friends we attended this weekend!

In my opinion, the best part of these cupcakes is the filling. I could eat it by the spoonful! You will want to make the filling first because it has to chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours. I prefer to use fresh key lime juice, but key limes can be hard to find. I have used "Nellie and Joe's Famous Key West Lime Juice" and I love the flavor! The recipe calls for lime zest in the batter. I found that the zest took away from the key lime flavor, so I decided to omit it.

Key Lime Filling   

8 oz. mascarpone or cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup key lime juice

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix on low for 30 seconds with a hand mixer.  Increase the speed to medium and blend for 2 minutes.

Refrigerate {uncovered} for at least 2 hours.

Vanilla Cupcakes

Makes 2 dozen cupcakes

2 1/4  cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 egg whites
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; set aside.

Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Add egg whites, beating well after each addition.  Add eggs, beating well after each addition.

Combine milk, vanilla, and sour cream in a bowl, whisking until incorporated.

With electric mixer at low speed, add flour mixture alternately with milk mixture, beating well after each addition.

Fill paper-lined muffin cups 3/4 of the way with batter. This batter will be a little on the thicker side, so an ice cream scoop will come in handy!

Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.


Once the cupcakes have cooled completely and the filling has chilled for at least two hours, you can fill the cupcakes! Remove the centers with an apple corer. Put the filling in a pastry bag and fill the cupcakes. I prefer using a round tip, but if you don't have one, you can just cut the bottom off of the bag and fill that way. Be generous because you are going to have extra filling. 


Key Lime Buttercream
Makes enough to frost two dozen cupcakes


1 1/4  cups  unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 cups powdered sugar
6 TBSP key lime juice
splash of vanilla


Cream together the butter, 4 cups of the sugar, key lime juice, and vanilla on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes.


Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. I added a few extra squirts of key lime juice because it was looking a little thick and I piped my frosting. I also wanted a nice tart flavor to the buttercream, so this extra juice gave it that kick!


You could garnish with some graham cracker crumbs if you'd like!
{Recipe slightly adapted from elly says opa!}

I hope that everyone is enjoying their summer! I will be back soon with some blueberry recipes for you!