Raspberry Lime Mint Mojito Cupcakes

I never thought I was the kind of girl that would enjoy a bike tour but I've got to say - after my first tour through Watskinville, Georgia - I'm hooked.  When Ben and I signed up for a very easy "mild" Agro bike tour last month I was a little apprehensive because I hadn't been on my bike since last summer.  (I was even more hesitant when I woke up to 40 degree temperatures the morning of the ride.) 

Since I had no idea what an Agro Bike Tour was until I signed up for one, I'm assuming that there are blog followers who have never heard of an Agro tour either.  In essence, it's a bike ride with stops at local farms along the way.  Ben and I opted for the shortened bike ride and we stopped at Three Porch Farms in the middle of our bike ride.

The farm was hosting an open house the day that we were there so we sat outside and rested our legs while we ate  pork sliders and listened to the swing band.  We also took a tour of the farm before getting back on our bikes to finish the rest of our ride. 

We passed the cutest pigs (and piglets!!) on our ride back that I just had to stop and snap a few pictures with my phone.  I fell in love with these pigs - they were sooo cute.   

The lunch at the farm was delicious but I was craving something sweet after my first bike ride of the season.  A raspberry lime mint mojito cupcake seemed like the perfect sweet treat to replenish the calories burned on my bike.

Raspberry Lime Mint Mojito Cupcakes
Lime Cupcakes
    1¾ cup cake flour
    ½ tsp baking powder
    ½ tsp baking soda
    ½ tsp salt
    1¼ cup sugar
    zest of 2 limes
    ½ cup butter
    2 large eggs, room temperature
    3 Tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
    ¾ cup buttermilk
    Wilton Leaf Green Gel Food Coloring

Raspberry Filling
   1 (12 oz.) bag frozen raspberries, thawed
   ¼ cup sugar
   1 tbsp. cornstarch

Mint Buttercream
   6 egg whites
   1 1/2 cups sugar
   1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
   2 cups butter

Preheat your oven to 350F degrees and line your cupcake pan with liners.
Zest the 2 limes into a small prep bowl and pour the sugar over it. Using the back of a rubber spatula, press the sugar into the lime zest.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on high until smooth.

Add the lime sugar and beat until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes.   

One at a time, add the eggs and mix on medium-high for 30 seconds after each addition making sure to scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is incorporated.
Add the lime juice .
Add a small dollop of the gel coloring and mix until the color is uniform. Scape the bowl down to make sure all the batter has been dyed.

In three parts, add the flour with the mixer on low speed. Between each addition of flour, add half the buttermilk. After the last amount of flour has been added, turn the mixer off and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and fold in the remaining flour.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool cupcakes in pan for at least 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

While cupcakes cool, prepare raspberry filling.



Puree the raspberries in a blender or food processor.

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Whisk in the sugar and cornstarch, and heat, stirring frequently until the mixture boils.

Once it has thickened, remove the pan from the heat, transfer mixture to a bowl and chill.

Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a saucepan to remove the seeds.

Prepare mint buttercream while filling cools.

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Cut a hole in the center of each cooled cupcake.

Fill each center with a spoonful of raspberry puree.

Top with a swirl of mint buttercream. 

Fill center of buttercream with another dollop of raspberry puree.

This cupcake is all the incentive that I need to spend an afternoon riding my bike.  I love it.

Ciao!

Click here for a printable version of this recipe