Lemon - Limoncello cupcakes

I have seen lots of lemon cupcake recipes, but I never tried one.
I think that this kind of cupcake is perfect for summer. Just imagine yourself laying in the sun with a  glass of iced tea or a cold lemonade and enjoying a lemon cupcake... hmm...I crave for this imagine! I can't wait for summer to be here!

I always liked how lemon cupcakes look, that bright yellow color of the frosting or even the batter, topped with a fresh slice of lemon. And I decided to go for it :)

The recipe that I have tried sounded sooo delicious that instantly made  me wanna do it. Also seemed very simple to make.
Luckily for me I had a bottle of limoncello bought long time ago and I thought that it's time to use it. Perfect timing ;)

And here is it! 3 levels of lemon flavor combine to create the perfect taste.
We have lemon zest, lemon juice and limoncello in the batter, a delicious homemade filling of lemon curd, and the final touch, a cream cheese frosting with a slight touch of limoncello.
Imagine all that together! It's like a little piece of heaven in your mouth! ;)

Next time I think I'm gonna try this recipe with orange instead of lemon, just to see the difference between them. This is my little curiosity :D

My little surprise is... that I have made bite sized cupcakes and they looked so adorable! The problem with them was that I didn't have any special tin and the paper got wider with the batter inside. But they looked good after all ;)

The recipe is for 12 cupcakes.

INGREDIENTS:

For the cupcakes:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 ounces (½ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons limoncello
½ cup buttermilk
¼ cup lemon juice
zest of one lemon
optional lemon essence

For the lemon curd:
Zest of 2 lemons
½ cup lemon juice
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk

For the cream cheese limoncello frosting:
2 ounces (½ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tablespoon limoncello
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare the cupcakes

 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/ 180 degrees C

 In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

 In the bowl of an electric mixer beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until light and creamy, 2-3 minutes.

 Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

 Add the limoncello and beat an additional minute.

 On low speed, add flour mixture and buttermilk alternatively, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. 

Add the lemon juice and zest and mix on low speed just until incorporated.

 Divide the batter  in the cupcake tins.

The cupcakes before going into the oven

 Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the middle comes out clean. 

And out of the oven

Let cool completely.

2. Prepare the lemon curd.

 In a heavy medium saucepan, stir together the lemon zest, juice and sugar and bring to a simmer over medium heat. My advice here is to use less sugar, preferable half of the needed quantity.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and egg yolk for 2-3 minutes with a fork. 

Whisk the lemon mixture into the eggs to temper them. 

Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan and place over medium heat, whisking constantly until it thickens, about 5 minutes. 

Remove from the heat, and let cool completely.

3. Prepare the cream cheese limoncello frosting.

 In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until light and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. 

Add the limoncello and beat for an additional minute.

 Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until fully incorporated and smooth.

To assemble the cupcakes you'll need to cut a hole into each cupcake and fill each cavity with the lemon curd. 

To decorate them pipe cream cheese limoncello frosting onto each cupcake. You can also add a slice of

lemon, if  desired. 
I used different kinds of  citrus, such as lime, lemon and Kumquats ( teeny-tiny oranges) that were just perfect for my teeny-tiny cupcakes.

Envoy! :) 

The citrus that I used to decorate the cupcakes