key lime cupcakes!

So I'm always looking for good citrus recipes in the summer.  There's something about citrus fruit that makes baked good seem healthy and light. 

Stef over at Cupcake Project put a different twist on a key lime pie recipe that called for baking, scooping, and filling cupcakes.  Instead of following a recipe that involved too many steps, I opted for hers.  She simplified the recipe by mixing the filling into the batter and simply baking it.  What a smartie!  She made my life easy, that's for sure.

Key Lime Pie Cupcakes

Makes 24 cupcakes.

CUPCAKE INGREDIENTS
1/2 C butter at room temperature
1 C sugar
3 eggs
1 C milk
1 C flour
1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs (I used 10 graham squares)
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1/8 t salt
5 egg yolks (way easier to separate eggs when they're cold!)
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 C lime or key lime juice

Beat the butter for about 30 seconds until creamed.  Add the sugar and mix for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, allowing 30 seconds of beating for each egg. 

Now, get your graham crackers and put them into a ziploc bag.  I keep bag open a bit, so graham cracker goodness doesn't go flying.  Then I get a rolling pin and obliterate the crackers until they are all very small crumbs.
 
Sift the flour, baking soda and powder, and salt.  Add the graham crackers to the sifted mixture. 

Add about 1/4 of the mixture to the butter mixture.  Then add some of the milk.  Keep adding the ingredients in a dry - wet - dry method, ending with the dry.  Mix until just combined.

In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lime juice.  Dump the key lime mixture into the graham batter and lightly stir. Do NOT fully integrate the key lime and graham batter. You should have clumps of batter in a key lime soup.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full (always my biggest problem!!!). Make sure each liner has a nice distribution of key lime liquid and graham clumps.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until top bounces back when touched.

FROSTING INGREDIENTS
1 8oz package of cream cheese (room temperature)
1/4 C butter (room temperature) -- this is a half a stick of butter
4 C powdered sugar (I recommend that you sift it.)
1 t lime extract -- I used lemon extract because I had no idea where I could get lime extract.  No worries, it tasted just as good!

Mix the cream cheese and butter.  Add the powdered sugar little at a time and lime (lemon) extract.  Voila!

I thought the little lime wedges added a little something.  I'm all about decorating with ingredients that are actually in my desserts, so I was happy with the results.  I hope you guys feel inspired to do some citrus baking!  Off to enjoy my cupcake now.