Eggnog Cupcakes

What better time of year to post  then Christmas! And what better recipe to share then eggnog cupcakes!

I love Christmas and all the holiday spirit swooshing around(do spirits swoosh?). As tempting as the presents are under the tree I'm trying not to rush to Dec 25 and just enjoy the journey. Soaking it all up, planning on the many things to bake!  The list is ever changing, the number one things are the brownies, nanaimo bars and gingersnaps and then after well...I'm hoping over my holiday break from work to try and develope a Dorito cupcuke. So stay tuned.

Back to the eggnog cupakes! These were pretty delicious. The frosting came out light and creamy  and the cake was very tastey. It wasn't light nor too heavy. A little like a lemon poppy seen cake or a little lighter then pineapple. Plus if you choose you can have rum in it!

Now before I tried this recipe I checked out a few different blogs. I found two where the recipes were very similar but had different yields. One showed 12 cupcakes and the one I used 18-20 cupcakes. I doubled the recipe cause I was going to a party and much cupcakes would be needed. I got exactly 24 regular sized cupcakes. So in my post this will be for exactly 12 cupcakes incase you look elsewhere and get all head scratchy like me.  Now I also doubled the frosting recipe and ended up with quite a bit left over so just so you know.

Eggnog Cupcakes (makes 12 cupcakes)
From Annie's Eats

For the cupcakes:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
¼ cup dark rum or bourbon (optional)
1 cup eggnog
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sugar

- Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners. 

- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; whisk to combine.  

- In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the rum, eggnog, vegetable oil, vinegar, and sugar.  Beat on medium-low speed until well blended.  

- Add in the dry ingredients and mix on low speed just until incorporated

- Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling the cups 2/3 full.  Bake 20-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the frosting:
20 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
Pinch of salt
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
2½ tbsp. eggnog
1 tbsp. dark rum (0ptional)

For garnish:
Ground cinnamon or grated nutmeg
Cinnamon sticks

 - Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or using a hand held work too!  Beat on medium-high speed until smooth, 20-30 seconds.  

- Add in the powdered sugar, salt and nutmeg, and mix on medium-high speed until incorporated and smooth, about 1 minute.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl.  

- Add in the eggnog and  whip on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 4 minutes.  With the mixer on medium-low speed, blend in the rum.

Fill a pastry bag with the frosting and decorate the cooled cupcakes as desired. (I used a my M1 star tip from Wilton). Sprinkle with ground cinnamon or grated nutmeg, and garnish with cinnamon sticks if you have'em.