Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cupcakes

The Mr. and I don't really celebrate Valentine's day. We did when we first started dating and got married but now it's just one of those white noise holidays for us. I refuse to go out to eat, I don't want him buying me chocolates or flowers, and I'm not talking about that thing us ladies do where we say we don't want something but we really do, it's just a typical day for us. This year I didn't even make a fancy dinner; I made pizza. However, what we did do was make cupcakes and drink a bottle of champagne that a friend got me for Christmas that had been sitting in the back of the fridge begging to be opened. So I guess in our own crazy way we celebrated by drinking mimosas, eating pizza (not at the same time because that would be gross), and baking cupcakes while slightly intoxicated.

Initially I wanted to make the white chocolate coconut cupcakes I made about 5 years ago but those were a bit of work and I have been pretty lazy lately. It could have something to do with the 80° weather we've been having here. Plus, I had bought this big bottle of Trader Vic's macadamia nut liqueur last year when I had planned on making lava cakes for me and a couple of friends for a girls-night Valentine's day thing. That never happened because by the time we all got off of work, we were done for the day and nobody wanted to do anything, let alone bake cake. So here I am with this bottle just collecting dust when I found this recipe for amaretto cupcakes. Almonds... macadamias... they're kind of the same thing, right? This was probably the most perfect recipe to have made that night because it was super simple and a breeze to whip up. I even brushed off my piping equipment that I bought for those Wilton cake decorating classes I took way back when. Oh and if you have a dairy allergy or you're vegan these will be right up your alley. It wasn't until I was stuffing my face with cupcakes that I realize these had no eggs in them. Although, I did end up using real butter for the frosting so mine weren't vegan in the end.

 recipe adapted from Love & Olive Oil

• 1 cup coconut milk (I used cashew milk since I had it on hand)
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp macadamia nut liqueur
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

For Frosting:

• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, room temperature
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 - 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1-2 Tbsp macadamia nut liqueur
• 2 Tbsp coconut milk or other non-dairy milk (again, I used cashew milk)

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line muffin pan with paper liners.
2. Whisk together the coconut milk, sugar, oil, macadamia nut liqueur, and vanilla extract and beat till foamy (Mine never really got foamy so after about 5 minutes I moved on). In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, almond meal, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add in two batches to wet ingredients and mix until no lumps remain (or very few remain).
3. Pour into liners, filling each with about 3 tablespoons of batter. Bake 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
4. For frosting, cream butter/margarine until smooth and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add in cocoa powder, along with 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar. Beat until combined. Beat in macadamia nut liqueur to taste. Continue adding sugar 1/2 cup at a time, adding cream as necessary, until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes. Store cupcakes in the refrigerator.