Eggnog Cupcakes

Last night we had a baked goods exchange with our Cookin' Minnesota group. Matt took a variety of the cookies I've been baking the last couple of weeks but I decided to go another route. I've been wanting to make an eggnog flavored cupcake every since Matt had one from Sprinkles that didn't taste like eggnog at all & this was the perfect opportunity.

I looked at a few different eggnog recipes & came to the decision that the two ingredients I needed to get the flavor right were rum & nutmeg. I used eggnog in the cake batter instead of milk to up the flavor even more. The cupcake itself came out really tasty with a great texture but its really the frosting that makes this taste & smell like eggnog to me. These are quite rich so I'm glad I made mini cupcakes this time around, just the perfect little bite. They certainly seemed to be a big hit last night.


Eggnog Cupcakes

1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/3 c + 3 T sugar
2 t rum
1/8 t vanilla
1 1/3 t baking powder
2/3 t salt
2 c all-purpose flour
2/3 c eggnog
5 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare 48 mini cupcake tins or 18 regular.

In a mixing bowl cream the butter & 1 1/3 cups of sugar together until light & fluffy. Beat in the rum & vanilla. Add the baking powder, salt & 2/3 cup flour, beat until combined. Beat in 1/3 cup eggnog. Then beat in another 2/3 cup flour, followed by the rest of the eggnog & then the rest of the flour.

In another bowl beat the egg whites until foamy. Add in the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently fold 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter until completely combined then fold in the remaining egg whites.

Divide the batter between the cupcake tins, filling each one 2/3 full. Bake 15 minutes for mini cupcakes or 22 for regular. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.

Cool completely on a rack.

Spiced Rum Buttercream

1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 c powdered sugar
pinch of salt
1/8 t cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 T rum

In a mixing bowl beat the butter until soft & creamy. Add in the powdered sugar a little at a time until all the sugar is absorbed. Beat in the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg & rum. Frost cupcakes & sprinkle with more nutmeg.

Makes 48 mini cupcakes or 18 regular

You can substitute run extract for the rum but I think it has a stronger flavor.

Update 12/28/08: There was originally a typo in this recipe & I wrote baking soda instead of powder. Powder is correct. Thanks to Danya for catching it.

I also had the wrong amount of sugar (I must have been drinking the rum when I wrote this!). Its correct now.