Triple Lime Cupcakes

Hello everyone! Today's sweet treat was planned for a very special occasion: six years ago today, I married my best friend. It has been a very busy six years, with so many changes in our lives. Six years ago I had no idea that we would be where we are today... I feel so truly blessed to have my amazing husband by my side through thick and thin. 

Us on our wedding day - first dance!

To celebrate this occasion, I knew I wanted to make cupcakes, but I just had to figure out the flavor. He has been asking for something citrus-y for a little while, so I gave him the option of either lemon or lime. He chose lime! I think he would have preferred key lime, but in good ol' Indiana I haven't found a reliable fresh key lime source yet (if you know of any, please let me know!)
So I came across this recipe from She Makes and Bakes for a key lime cupcake, so I just adapted for regular limes. The cupcake itself though I used my recipe from Lime Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting recipe since I love it so much! The lime curd came out very creamy and with the right amount of tangy-ness. Since I didn't want a regular cream cheese frosting, I added 1 Tbsp of the curd that I made to it to give it just a hint of lime too. All in all, a very successful recipe, if I may say so myself!

 Look who I had eyeing my cupcake while I took pictures!

Now the recipe below made 24 cupcakes, plus an 8-inch cake (just a little on the thin side). I doubled the original recipe for the curd, and I still wish there was a little more. I may increase it a little more next time, and if I have extra I can always save it for some yummy toast! I also wish I had more frosting... so therefore the little cake I made especially for my husband and I to share is not covered completely in frosting (like I would want it to be). I filled it with half curd and half frosting.

Triple Lime Cupcakes
~makes 2-3 dozen cupcakes~


Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
Same cupcakes from my Lime Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting recipe

For the lime Curd:
1/2 cup lime juice (about 2-3 limes)
1 Tbsp lime zest
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened and cut into 4 pieces

For the cream cheese frosting:1 package cream cheese (8 ounces)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter1/8 teaspoon salt
1 Tbsp of lime curd
3 cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Bake the cupcakes according to the directions in my  Lime Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting recipe. Let cupcakes cool completely to room temperature before cupcake assembly.

To make the curd, whisk together the lime juice, zest, eggs, and sugar in a mixing bowl set on top of a saucepan with simmering water (this is the double boiler method). Add butter and whisk until thickened and smooth (a thermometer would read 160-170 degrees). Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap to chill. It will pipe into your cupcakes much easier if it's chilled. Once chilled, set aside 1 Tbsp of the curd for the frosting.

To make the cream cheese frosting, in your mixing bowl fitted with the whisk attachment, cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the lime curd and salt and mix until incorporated. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and mix until smooth.

To assemble the cupcakes, use an apple corer or a knife to cut a hole in the center of your cupcakes (cone method - for directions, check out this link). Fill the hole with the chilled lime curd. You can do this with a spoon, a pastry bag, or a sandwich bag with the corner snipped off. You don't need to place cake over the hole as the frosting will cover it (I'm sure you can find plenty of mouths to eat those cones!). Pipe frosting on top of the cupcake. 


Lime curd and frosting recipes adapted from She Makes and Bakes