Coconut & Lime Cupcakes

Sat, 3 May 2025

Coconut & Lime Cupcakes

 

Yield: 12 big cupcakes

 

Ingredients:

• 340g butter, room temperature
• 400g caster sugar
• 5 free range eggs
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ½ tsp almond extract
• 220ml whole milk
• 20ml fresh lime juice
• 450g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 400g shredded coconut (half will be for the cupcake, the other half will be for garnish)

 

For the frosting:

• 450g cream cheese
• 340g butter, room temperature
• zest of 2 limes
• 675g icing sugar, sifted

 

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 160°C. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar on high speed until light in color and fluffy in texture, approximately 5 minutes. Ensure you scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl a couple of times during this process to ensure even mixing.

3. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each egg before adding the next. Scrape down the bowl after each addition to ensure all ingredients are evenly combined.

4. Stir in the vanilla and almond extracts and mix until just combined.

5. In a separate medium bowl, mix the milk and lime juice. As it sits, the mixture will get thicker and sour - don’t panic! That’s the plan.

6. In a separate medium bowl, sift together the plain flour, baking powder and baking soda.

7. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet batter in three additions, alternating with the milky mixture in two additions. Begin and end with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.

8. Gently fold in 200g of shredded coconut using a spatula until evenly distributed throughout the batter.

9. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin liners.

10. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the muffin pan for 15 minutes.

11. Carefully remove the cupcakes from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before icing. This is crucial to prevent the icing from melting.

Prepare Cream Cheese Frosting:

12. In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and butter on low speed until smooth and well combined. Stir in the lime zest. Gradually add the icing sugar, mixing on low speed initially to prevent a cloud of sugar, then increase the speed to medium and beat until the frosting is smooth and creamy.

13. Once the cupcakes are completely cool, generously ice them using a spatula or piping bag. Sprinkle the remaining shredded coconut evenly over the top of the iced cupcakes. You can even add more lime zest for a pop of colour if you wish.