Fig and Whiskey Cupcakes

Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Servings: 12
Yield: 12 servings

Description

Whiskey provides complex, complementary flavor to fresh figs and spices in these rich, moist cupcakes.

Ingredients

1/2 cup fresh figs, finely chopped
1/2 cup whiskey
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup vegetable shortening (such as Crisco®)
5 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1 Soak figs in whiskey in a bowl for at least 30 minutes.
2 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
3 Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cream of tartar, and cloves in a bowl.
4 Blend white sugar, oil, and brown sugar together in a separate bowl using an electric mixer. Add egg and mix until creamy. Mix in buttermilk and vanilla extract. Reserve 1 tablespoon of fig mixture for frosting, and mix remainder into batter. Beat in flour mixture until just combined.
5 Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.
6 Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to wire racks to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
7 Beat cream cheese and shortening together in a bowl using an electric mixer until creamy. Add powdered sugar slowly, 1 cup at a time, until creamy. Add vanilla extract. Slowly drizzle in reserved fig mixture; mix frosting until combined.
8 Pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes.