Luscious Cupcakes for a Lovely Lush

I was recently introduced to the growing trend of modeling cupcakes after cocktails and decided to try my hand at it today.  My roommate was all too eager to email me a recipe for margarita cupcakes with the subject line reading, "PLEASE MAKE THESE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE."  I myself hate margaritas or anything else containing tequila for that matter.  I casually broached the subject of turning a different beverage into a baked good only to hear an emphatic, "WHY???"  I should note that I have never actually seen this girl drink a margarita so I'm not quite sure from where this sudden fascination came.  Perhaps it was because her typical drink of choice, blue frost Gatorade with one (or seven) shots of vodka, wouldn't make the most appetizing of cupcakes.  With that in mind, I more than happily obliged to give in to her newfound tequila fixation.


So peruse through the liquor aisle in Albertson's I did, not realizing until later that there is a distinct difference between a bottle of margarita mix and a bottle of pre-made margarita (strong little cupcakes they were).  Then I recalled the book I've been reading off and on for the past year: The Manual.  It really is an easy (and hilarious) read, so I am not completely sure what is taking me so long to get through it.  Anyway, I just finished a chapter on grocery shopping (yes, there is an ENTIRE chapter devoted to the "art" of buying tomatoes) in which the author informed me that men go to grocery stores to pick up women.  That guy in aisle four buying a lone pack of Trident is in fact NOT there for the gum.  It doesn't stop there though.  According to this book, guys are checking out not only the girl herself, but they are also observing the contents of her basket (Is she buying all the ingredients for a meal at once?  That tells him she doesn't cook very often...frown).  Anyway, this little nugget of information that had recently nestled itself into my mind was at the forefront of my thoughts as I pushed a cart filled with sixty dollars worth of liquor and three bags of confectioner's sugar.  I don't think I even want to know what analysis gum whore over there was making about me.  Oh well.  


Anyway, the cupcakes were disgustingly easy to make and turned out marvelously.  Even I, the girl who gagged when measuring out the José, considered going back for a second cupcake.  Needless to say, my roommates and I all highly recommend them.  You can find the recipe here.


As with the denouement of most of my baking endeavors, I opted for my signature chaser: chocolate chip cookies.  I'm still trying to create the perfect chocolate chip cookie and have been toying with different variations on a base recipe I'm quite fond of.  Tonight I completely threw out vanilla in favor of almond extract.  Not my wisest decision.  Perhaps I sampled a little too much margarita batter.  However, not all is lost.  It added an interesting flavor and I think I'll keep a splash of it in for next time.  So, the reject cookies were packed up and sent to work with my roommate - sustenance for her grave shift - and I will soon drift off to sleep with a clear mind, thinking simply of what to bake tomorrow.  Perfect chaser and perfect night cap, if I do say so myself.