Grand Cayman Rum Cupcakes!

When my husband and I went to Grand Cayman several years ago, the thing we loved the most was the Tortuga Rum Cake. This recipe is inspired by those cakes and when I opened the vanilla rum today to make them, I felt for just a second, like I was back there.

                                                                                     Grand Caymen Rum Cupcakes

This recipe makes 30 cupcakes

350 degree oven for 20 minutes

Cupcakes

1/2 cup butter (room temp)

1 1/2 cups of sugar

1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 cups of cake flour

4 teaspoons of baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1  5.9oz package of instant chocolate pudding

1/2 cup milk

4 eggs (beaten)

1 cup vanilla rum

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Beat butter until creamy, add sugar and beat until fluffy (about 3 minutes) set aside

Combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl and whisk them together, set aside

Add dry mix to butter and sugar mixture in thirds. Mix well between each third added and add the 3 tablespoons of oil one at a time in between mixing.

Combine rum, milk , and vanilla extract in a bowl set aside

add eggs and milk to mixture, blend well

add instant pudding and 1/2 cup of oil, blend until smooth.

spoon in to baking cups and bake for 20 minutes

Rum soak

1/2 cup of butter

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup vanilla rum

1 cup sugar

Melt butter in a sauce pan, add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil

Simmer until sugar is dissolved.

Set 1/2 cup of soak aside for frosting.

As the cupcakes cool you can drizzle them with the soak or dip them. It is a bit messy and I found dipping them to be the most effective.

you can wait several minutes and dip them multiple times while the rum soaks in if you wish. I dipped them once and found them to be perfect for the texture and flavor I was going for.

Rum Buttercream frosting

2 sticks of butter

1/2 cup of reserved rum soak

4 cups of powdered sugar.

Blend butter until creamy, add 1 cup of sugar and blend. Add rum soak and blend, add remaining sugar and pipe on to your cooled cupcakes