Thursday, August 14, 2008

Thai Mojito Cupcakes

ICEarth_badge copy.jpg
You've heard of Iron Chef well this is my entry for Iron Cupcake. The secret ingredient this month is chili. I wasn't sure what I was going to make until Matt & I went out for Asian food the other night & he ordered a Thai Mojito. I took one sip of it & a lightbulb went off in my head, there's my cupcake flavor!
Thai Mojito Cupcake
The cake is flavored with lime, rum, ginger, fresh mint, fresh basil & cayenne pepper. It has a nice warm at the back of the throat heat, not a hot burn your lips kind of heat. The cupcakes are really pretty flecked with the fresh herbs & lime zest.
Thai Mojito Cupcake
The icing is made from lime & coconut milk. For a little decoration I made candied chili lime peel, once again using cayenne pepper.

Matt was very skeptical about how these flavors were going to work together in a cupcake. I was a little unsure about amounts since I was making it up as I went along. The finished product though was definitely a taste success. The flavors all blend together really well & the sweetness of the icing balances the heat of the cayenne. I also like the tartness of the lime with all the other flavors. I think it mimics its namesake drink quite well. Allez Cuisine!

Thai Mojito Cupcakes


6 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c + 1 T sugar
1/2 t rum
1 t lime juice
1/8 t freshly grated ginger
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 t cayenne pepper
3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c coconut milk
2 large egg whites
1/4 c loosely packed fresh basil, finely chopped
1/4 c loosely packed fresh mint, finely chopped
zest of 1/2 lime

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare 6 muffin tins.

Cream together the butter & 1/2 c sugar until light & fluffy. Mix in the rum, ginger & lime juice. Add the baking powder, salt, cayenne & 1/2 of the flour, mix until just combined. Mix in the coconut milk. Mix in the remaining flour until just combined.

In a small bowl beat the egg whites until foamy. With the beater still running slowly add the 1 T sugar. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the flour mixture. Once completely incorporated, fold in the remaining egg whites. Add the mint, basil & lime zest, fold to combine.

Divide the batter equally among 6 muffin tins. Bake for 18 - 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely on a rack before icing.

Makes 6 cupcakes

Lime Coconut Milk Icing

1/2 c powdered sugar
1 t lime juice
coconut milk

Stir together sugar, lime juice & 1 t coconut milk. Continue at add coconut milk 1/2 t at a time until the desired consistency is reached. Allow cupcakes to stand for about 15 - 30 minutes after icing to set.

Ices 6 cupcakes

Candied Chili Lime Peel

1/2 lime
1/3 c water
1/3 c sugar
1/4 t cayenne pepper

Using a peeler or knife carefully remove only the green peel from the lime. Slice into strips.

Bring the water to a boil. Add the lime peels & boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the water with a slotted spoon.

Add the sugar & cayenne to the water (you may need to add little more water if its boiled down to far). Bring back to a boil. Return the peels to the saucepan & boil until transparent.

Using tongs remove the peels to a silicone mat or other non-stick surface. Allow to dry completely.

Makes about 10 small pieces of peel depending on how good you are at removing it from the lime.

10 comments:

Thistlemoon said...

WOW Kat! What a cool cupcake! I love it! I think this is so creative.

Maria said...

That is a cupcake! The icing alone sounds amazing! Nice work!

Nikki @ NikSnacks said...

I love the basil part in this. I need to learn how to make candied peels. Good luck in the competition. I'm going to enter a cupcake too (when I find some time...)

Beth (jamandcream) said...

Fantastic combination. Would love to try one of these!

Stacey Snacks said...

Wow, now this is an original and delicious sounding cupcake.
I love mojitos and mint is so wonderful.......you will win the iron chef with this one!
Stacey Snacks

Anonymous said...

What a creative flavor combination. I like the use of coconut, lime and herbs. Very Thai and no doubt delicious.

MrOrph said...

Nicely done. This is a clever cupcake.

alyshalynn said...

i like this idea, i think the next iron cupcake challenge should be to create a cupcake based on a cocktail.

the one with all the problems. said...

I've made these twice now, once without herbs (because I got in a hurry and forgot them in the fridge) and once with.

Both were AMAZING but the herbs really do balance out the cayenne.

Ty so much for this recipe!

My friend Miriam and I have decided to attempt to make all of your cupcake recipes! Well except for "the poopcake". Though, I have a great recipe for a black cherry choc cupcake you might like.

kat said...

problems - I'd love to hear your results if you try them all!

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t = teaspoon
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