Recipe | (Accidentally Pepto) Pink Lemonade Cupcakes!

Not that I EVER need an excuse but a birthday is the perfect excuse for cake and all things sugar. I had seen this recipe for pink lemonade cupcakes over at A Beautiful Mess and was determined to whip up my own version. I used this lemon cupcake recipe as it was the only one I could find that didn't involve buying a whole pint to use a couple of tablespoons of milk.

I thought pink lemonade was a nice twist on regular lemon cupcakes but, turns out, a little dye goes a long way...

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

makes 12
125g butter
125g caster sugar
zest of 1/2 large lemon
2 eggs, beaten
150g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder

butter
icing sugar
zest 1/2 large lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 180*C.

2. Cream butter until soft and add caster sugar and grated lemon zest. Beat mixture until light and fluffy.

3. Gradually add beaten eggs.

4. Sift in (although I didn't...but someone more professional than me would) the flour and baking powder and fold into the mixture.

5. Divide mixture into 12 cases and bake until a knife comes out clean (about 18 minutes).

6. Cream the butter for the icing and add icing sugar gradually (I did not. It was...messy). Beat the mixture, adding the lemon zest and lemon juice.

7. Add a drop or two of pink food colouring.

I added a tad too much food colouring and ended up with a slightly pepto bismol concoction...

8. When cupcakes have cooled, smooth on buttercream and decorate!

I added some freeze-dried strawberry-bits to the cupcakes and ta-da! Pink lemonade cupcakes.

It's not happiness in a tin unless it's cupcakes in a happy tin!

I was worried these wouldn't be very lemon-y but the cake and buttercream combo was perfect. I do, however, need to work on my icing and find the right amounts as I kind of completely ignored the original recipe thinking I knew better... I didn't. I can never get it right! Always too buttery or too sugary. Guess I'd better get some more practice...