I was going to name this post “Put-the-lime-in-the-coconut cupcakes” but decided that was most likely way overdone. Somewhere on the web, there are probably like 213,493 posts for cupcakes like these with titles like that. So I didn’t use it. But yes- I thought about it.

If you look closely, you can see they glow with happiness & summertime-yness

….

Anyway, these are de-veganized cupcakes from “Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World” by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. As you know (if you’re a frequent visitor), I am not vegan.  There’s nothing wrong with being vegan, but I myself am not, nor ever will be. I eat lots of cheese and eggs and I like chicken too much.  But luckily, the world is big enough for all types to co-exist together without judgment, right?  Well, not really, it seems there’s always a bit of holier than thou nonsense on either side. But really, who cares? To each his own.

And here we are, I heard good things about these cupcakes, and it’s a very summery taste, so I decided to go for it and make ‘em… but make ‘em my way. Translation: eggs, butter and real milk. I haven’t made cupcakes in so long, I almost felt awkward doing so. I had the awful sinking feeling I was losing my cupcake cred.  I mean, the blog is called Cupcake Rehab for Christs’ sake, and I haven’t made actual cupcakes in months! But it was a beautifully sweet reunion with my KitchenAid. I’ve used it for pizza dough and bagels, but haven’t used it for cupcakes (or, I should say, frosting) since … *gasp* May. I almost cried, it was so touching. No, not really. I never cry. I’m made of nails and steel and M·A·C and buttercream. I have no soul- it’s all make-up and hairspray.

So yeah, on that note, here’s the recipe for lime coconut cupcakes. If you know what you’re doing, it’s easy to make them vegan if you’d like. I made my own frosting for this, the recipe follows the cupcake recipe. I tried to write it out best I could, but I made no clear measurements while making it. However, buttercream is like, one of the easiest things to make. You don’t even need a recipe, a trained monkey could make a decent buttercream just by knowing basic science and milk to sugar ratios. I made these yummy cakes and then ate ‘em while watching ‘Dracula.’ Nope- you’re right, they’re two totally unrelated things. I just like cupcakes and Dracula.

LIME COCONUT CUPCAKES

Cake ingredients:

• 1/3 cup oil
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon lime zest (packed)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp coconut extract
• 1 cup flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup sweetened flaked/shredded coconut, plus extra for topping the cupcakes

Directions:

1. Mix together oil and sugar.
2. Add the coconut milk, egg, vanilla extract, coconut extract, and lime zest.
3. Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and shredded coconut.
4. Fill a muffin tin with cupcake liners, then fill those about ¾ of the way with batter.  Bake for 24 minutes.
5. Let cool before frosting.

COCONUT LIME BUTTERCREAM

Frosting ingredients:

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• ½ cup shortening
• 3-4 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 1 tsp lime zest
• ½ tsp coconut extract
• ¼- ½ cup coconut milk
• flaked coconut and finely grated lime zest for decorating

To make the frosting:

1. Beat the shortening and butter until smooth, then add sugar and beat until mixed thoroughly. Add coconut milk and zest, mix again.
2. Add coconut extract and beat until smooth and fluffy.
3. Frost the cupcakes and top with coconut and zest. Or, those cute little green jelly citrus slices you can buy at candy stores.

One 13.5 oz. can of Goya coconut milk is plenty for both the cakes and the frosting. I got 14 instead of a dozen. *shrugs* I’ve seen on the internet that you can use coconut oil instead of vegetable oil, but it makes the cupcakes really hard after a day. I’d stick with vegetable oil. You can also probably use all butter instead of shortening in the frosting, but in the humidity I find using shortening is helpful to keep the stiffness of it. Especially if you’re piping it out, or if you like thick mounds of frosting that won’t wilt. I used these cupcake liners by Wilton, in case you’re one of those people who likes to copy everything I do.

So the verdict is: these were some bad ass cupcakes. I wasn’t expecting much out of them, truth be told. The batter seemed really wet. But they surprised me. Very light, fluffy and delicious. I would absolutely make these again.