Margarita Cupcakes

These delicious margarita cupcakes are soft and moist with a wonderful melt-in-your-mouth texture.

This is the perfect party cupcake for adult birthdays and celebrations! These homemade cupcakes (which are based in part on our Lemon Cupcake Recipe), have a light lime flavor and are frosted with a simple tequila cream cheese frosting.

(For more fun cocktail inspired cakes or "boozy cakes" like limoncello cake, Piña Colada Cake, and more, don't miss our collection of Boozy Cake Recipes!)

Ingredients for Margarita Cupcakes

Here are the ingredients for our moist lime cupcakes and tequila cream cheese frosting.

How to Make Margarita Cupcakes

• First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees, add paper cupcake liners to cupcake pan(s)
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds. Set aside

• In another bowl, add the buttermilk, vegetable oil and lime juice & zest. Set aside.

• In the bowl of your mixer, add the butter and mix at medium speed until smooth. (If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment).
• Gradually add the sugar and Lime Jello powder and continue to mix on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes until fluffy. It will become a pretty shade of green thanks to the Jello.

• Add the room temperature eggs one at a time, mixing after each until the yellow of the yolk has blended.

• Next, with the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients (3 additions of dry ingredients and 2 of wet).
• Mix just until incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix.
• Scoop about ¼ cup cake batter into each cupcake liner (in the cupcake pans).

• Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just few crumbs attached.
• We like to remove cupcakes immediately from the pans to prevent over-baking. Baking times can vary depending on pan & oven- check at 15 minutes to be on the safe side, but it may take a few minutes more.
• This recipe makes about 7 ½ cups of cake batter. At approximately ¼ cup of batter per cupcake, you'll have about 30-32 cupcakes.

Tequila Cream Cheese Frosting

The frosting is what turns these fabulous lime cupcakes into margarita cupcakes!

We based our recipe on our favorite Cream Cheese Buttercream recipe. This is a simple recipe with softened butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and a pinch of salt.

We added a bit of tequila and lime zest to the recipe. Using two tablespoons in the recipe, the tequila is not strong. (Adjust to your liking- but keep in mind that additional tequila will soften the consistency of your frosting.)

Softer Consistency

*Since cream cheese frostings are on the softer side, we prefer to decorate with it when it is slightly chilled. So, freshly made cream cheese frosting needs about ten minutes in the refrigerator before decorating with it for best results.

Tequila Lime Buttercream

Tequila Lime Buttercream is another great option for your cupcakes! This is the frosting that we used for our Margarita Cake from Cake Mix, and it always gets great reviews. It is slightly sweeter than cream cheese frosting, and also less perishable.

FAQs

Margarita Cupcakes

BY Melissa and Bebe

These scratch Margarita Cupcakes are incredibly moist and soft, with just the right amount of lime flavor. We topped them with tequila lime cream cheese frosting!

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 16 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Servings: 30

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Ingredients

• ▢ 1 ½ sticks (170g) unsalted butter softened (holds it shape but dents when pressed)
• ▢ 1 ¾ cups (350g) sugar
• ▢ 3 tablespoons Lime Jello Powder
• ▢ 3 eggs room temperature
• ▢ 3 cups (342g) cake flour (spooned into measuring cup and leveled off) If you do not have cake flour see substitution in Notes below.
• ▢ 2 teaspoons (8g) baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon (3g) baking soda
• ▢ ½ teaspoon (3g) salt
• ▢ 1 ¼ cups (296g) buttermilk If you do not have buttermilk, see substitution below
• ▢ ¼ cup (57g) lime juice This is 1-2 limes depending on size.
• ▢ ⅓ cup (68g) vegetable oil We use Canola Oil
• ▢ Zest of two limes

For the Tequila Cream Cheese Frosting

• ▢ 2 sticks (226g) unsalted butter softened but still cool to the touch
• ▢ 16 oz (453g) Cream Cheese, softened (This is two 8 oz packages) Use full fat cream cheese.
• ▢ Zest of one lime
• ▢ 6 to 6 ½ cups 690g - 747g powdered sugar Start with 6 cups, and adjust to your liking
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons Tequila

Instructions

For the Cupcakes

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, add paper cupcake liners to cupcake pan(s)
• In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds. Set aside
• In another bowl, add the buttermilk, oil and lime juice & zest. Set aside.
• In the bowl of your mixer, add the butter and mix at medium speed until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and Lime Jello powder and continue to mix on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes until lightened in color and fluffy.
• Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each until the yellow of the yolk has blended.
• With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients (3 additions of dry ingredients and 2 of liquid).
• Mix just until incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix.
• Scoop about ¼ cup bake batter into each cupcake liner (in the cupcake pans)
• Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just few crumbs attached. We like to remove cupcakes immediately from the pans to prevent over-baking. Baking times can vary depending on pan & oven- check at 15 minutes to be on the safe side, but it may take a few minutes more.
• Makes 30-32 cupcakes (approximately ¼ cup of batter per cupcake)

For the Frosting

• Add the softened butter to the bowl of your mixer, mix until smooth.
• Cut the softened cream cheese into pieces and add to the butter, mixing until blended.
• Add the tequila and lime zest.
• Gradually add powdered sugar and mix until well blended.
• This frosting will pipe best if used while still chilled. You can make it in advance, refrigerate and when ready to use let it soften slightly and remix. Do not microwave to soften. If the frosting becomes too soft while using just refrigerate the piping bag or bowl for a short while to firm it up.

Notes

Substitute for Buttermilk: No Buttermilk? Here is a substitution: To a measuring cup, add 1 Tablespoon plus one teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice. Add milk to the 1 ¼ c. mark, stir. Wait 5 minutes and it is ready to use.

Substitution for Cake Flour: Using all purpose flour (plain in UK) to make Cake Flour: For each cup of flour in a recipe, remove 2 Tablespoons of flour and replace with 2 Tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour in the UK). This recipe has 3 cups of flour so you will measure out 3 cups of all purpose flour, remove 6 Tablespoons and replace with 6 Tablespoons cornstarch, whisk to blend

Refrigeration & Serving: Because of the cream cheese frosting, these cupcakes need refrigeration. Remove two hours before serving to allow for the frosting and cupcakes to warm and soften.

 

Recipe makes approximately 7 ½ cups batter.

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