Bourbon Peach Cupcakes

I never was one to enjoy hard liquor or beers, back in my early days of being a social drinker. If it didn't taste like fruit and ten different kinds of sugar, I was not interested. Bring on the Pina Coladas and Kamikaze shots! And bring me ALL YOUR SMIRNOFF ICES, STAT.

College. Amirite?

Not surprisingly, this led to many a hangover and a rainbow of different colors of vomit. (Sorry, that probably doesn't get you excited for food, does it?) Thankfully, these days not only is my regular intake of liquor at least half what it used to be, but my palate has evolved.

Recently, I've been kind of into bourbon. Nothing too fancy, just what I can afford on sale at Specs, the best liquor superstore I've ever encountered THANK YOU TEXAS, but still. I drink it on the rocks with a bit of ice and sip it on my porch while facing the Texas heat at the end of a long day.


However, sugar tooths die hard. And that's why I decided bourbon cupcakes would be pretty dang amazing. And peach, because Texas peaches are some of the best.

Vanilla Bourbon Cupcakes with Peach Buttercream
(cupcake recipe adapted from Wonky Wonderful)
For the Cupcakes

  • 11/2 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 stick butter
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract (vanilla bourbon if you have it!)
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup bourbon
For the Glaze
  • 1/2 cup each flavored bourbon (OR 1/4 cup bourbon + 1/4 cup peach nectar)
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup agave nectar
For the Frosting
(note: there will be a LOT, reserve the extra to put on fruit)
  • 1 stick butter, room temp
  • 1/2 ripe peach
  • 2 tsp peach vodka
  • 2-4 cups confectioner's sugar

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

-In a medium bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients for cupcakes. Set aside.

I-n the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Once light and fluffy, add the rest of the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.

-Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix together until there are no lumps. Fill cupcake wells (lined with liners or greased) 2/3 full.

-Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place on a cooling rack.

-While cupcakes are baking, prepare glaze: mix together all glaze ingredients and simmer over high heat until reduced by half and syrupy.

-Use a fork to prick holes in the top of each cupcake. Pour glaze over warm cupcakes, about a tablespoon each. Let cool before frosting.

-While cupcakes are cooling, prepare frosting. In a stand mixer on high, mix the peach until it is pureed. Add butter and vodka, then slowly add the confectioner's sugar until desired consistency is reached.

Note: I ran out of sugar before the frosting was stiff enough to pipe, but the drippy frosting ended up looking fun and rustic and worked just fine.

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