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Strawberry and Black Pepper Frozen Margarita

A summery twist on the classic frozen margarita with a black pepper kick – the perfect drink to enjoy all summer long! So easy to make too, all you need is a blender!

Strawberry Black Pepper Frozen Margarita - a summery frozen margarita with a black pepper kick, the perfect drink for all summer long! So easy to make too, all you need is a blender!

Happy Friday guys! It’s the weekend, yay, party time! I’ve been a bit absent this last week, I apologise for that – life got in the way a bit, as it tends to do. But I’m making it up to you by bringing alcohol. And not just any alcohol, alcohol in the form of a Strawberry and Black Pepper Frozen Margarita – am I forgiven? I’m going to take that drooling as a yes 😉

Strawberry Black Pepper Frozen Margarita - a summery frozen margarita with a black pepper kick, the perfect drink for all summer long! So easy to make too, all you need is a blender!

 

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Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

Strawberries. Lime. Tequila. Cheesecake. Perfect!

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

Cinco De Mayo is almost upon us and what better way to enjoy your celebratory margarita than in cheesecake form! I’m a huge fan of tequila, put it in a cocktail and I’ll be sure to love it, nothing beats a good frozen margarita though. Good margaritas are hard to find in the UK so I decided to make my own and put it in a cheesecake!

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

These are so creamy, so tasty and so good you’ll never want to drink a margarita again (but you definitely should, preferably while eating one of these bars!). They have a digestive biscuit crust with a hint of lime in it, a creamy lime and tequila cheesecake filling and a strawberry tequila mix swirled into it!

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

The best part about this strawberry margarita cheesecake bars recipe is they’re so simple to make, much easier than a whole cheesecake and you don’t have to worry about any cracking. The hardest part is probably making up the fresh strawberry mix, which is really quite simple it just takes the longest. You bake them for about 45 minutes until puffy and lightly browned at the edges, you don’t want to over bake this! Actually, the hardest part is probably waiting for them to chill and then stopping yourself eating up the whole pan (I won’t judge you if you do, ’tis the season!).

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

 

Why not make up a batch of these this weekend and then take them into work on Monday. Your coworkers will love you and you’ll get to enjoy a cheeky margarita during the work day! Of course, if you live in the UK you’ll just have to eat them all up yourself (shame) since Monday is a bank holiday! These aren’t just great for Cinco De Mayo, they’re a great summery dessert all round!

[recipe title=”Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars”]
Ingredients

For the crust:

  • 300g digestive biscuits
  • 180g unsalted butter, melted
  • 135g caster sugar
  • 1/2 tbsp grated lime zest

For the strawberry mix:

  • 450g fresh strawberries, hulled and roughly chopped
  • 2 tsp cornflour
  • 1 tbsp caster sugar
  • 3 tbsp tequila

For the cheesecake filling:

  • 900g full fat cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 eggs
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp tequila
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • 2 tbsp grated lime zest

Method

  • Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line a 13×9″ brownie pan with foil so there’s plenty of foil overhang.
  • Make the strawberry mix first so it has plenty of time to cool. Toss the chopped strawberries in the cornflour and then place in a small saucepan. Add the tequila and sugar and heat on medium, stirring frequently. Heat for about 20 minutes. The juice in the strawberries should make enough liquid, but if it starts to get dry and stick to the pan too much add 1 or 2 tbsp of water. Remove from heat and leave to cool.
  • To make the crust, put the digestives in a food processor and make into fine crumbs. Add to a bowl with the melted butter, sugar and lime zest and stir to combine. Press crust mix into the pan, bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and leave to cool.
  • To make the cheesecake filling, beat all the filling ingredients using a hand or stand mixer until smooth and creamy. Spoon the filling onto the cooled crust and spread out evenly.
  • Spoon big dollops of the cooled strawberry mix on top of the filling and then swirl into the cheesecake using a knife.
  • Bake for 45 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned
  • Cool in the pan on wire rack for about 30 minutes then move to the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours.
  • Remove the cheesecake from the pan using the foil and cut into squares.

Notes

  • If you’re in the US and can’t get your hands on digestives, graham crackers will be just as good
  • If you’d like to make a smaller pan, just halve the recipe and use a 9×9″ square pan
  • You’ll probably have plenty of strawberry mix left over, store this in a tupperware to eat with the cheesecake or it’d be great on ice cream!
  • Store in the fridge, covered for up to 5 days

[/recipe]

Strawberry Margarita Cheesecake Bars

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Margarita Cupcakes

My favourite cocktail in a cupcake!

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If you know only one thing about me, let it be that I love tequila. I don’t drink it by itself anymore (I’ll leave that to my university days), but put in a cocktail and I’m there! Margaritas are my favourite, especially if they’re frozen. Living in the UK though I am horribly deprived of good margaritas, so I just stock up on them when I’m visiting Atlanta! Luckily, I have these yummy cupcakes to keep me happy while I’m at home!

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This recipe is not my own, I found it on the wonderful Sweet Revelations. I changed a few things around (like more tequila!), but at it’s core they’re the same. I didn’t use any lime curd and chose to garnish with a sugar, salt and lime mix. I also made mine full sized instead of mini (it makes about 14 full sized cupcakes)

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I loved these cupcakes so much I made them my banner image!

These cupcakes are flavoured with lime and tequila and topped with a lime and tequila swiss meringue buttercream. These cupcakes were the first time I had ever made SMBC and I was terrified, but it turned out perfect first try (what a great ego boost!) so if you’re feeling hesitant just go for it! I even made mine without a stand mixer (I wouldn’t recommend that though, it’s harsh on the arm muscles).

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Let’s get down to the important part shall we

Lime and Tequila Cupcakes

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2  tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup caster sugar
  • 2 eggs,
  • 2 limes, zested and juiced
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
  • tequila (for brushing)

Preheat the oven to 175C/350F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners

Mix together flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl and set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar together on a medium high speed until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one and at a time and beat until fully combined. Add the lime zest and juice and mix well.

On a low speed, add the dry ingredients in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk. Mix until just incorporated.

Spoon until cake cases, about 2/3 full. Bake for approx 18 mins, until cakes are spongey and a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and turn out on to wire rack to cool. Generously brush tequila over the cakes while they’re still warm. If you want the tequila to get right down in there, poke a few holes with a toothpick before brushing. Leave to cool completely.

Lime & Tequila Swiss Meringue Buttercream

  • 2 cups unsalted butter cubed, at room temperature
  • 5 large egg whites
  • 1 cup + 2 tbsp of caster sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
  • 4 tbsp tequila (or to taste)
  • 1.5 tbsp lime juice

Grab a saucepan that is large enough to fit your mixing bowl in a few inches, fill it with a few inches of water and bring to boil, reduce to simmer.

In your clean mixing bowl (you’ll want to use the same bowl throughout the process) hand whisk the egg whites and sugar until just combined. Place over the simmering pot and whisk for about 4-5 minutes until the egg whites are hot (150F), the sugar should all be dissolved by then too. Place the bowl back on your stand mixer and using the whisk attachment whisk on medium until the whites have increased in volume and and the outside of the bowl is slightly warm to touch. Be patient because this can take 10 minutes!

Change to the paddle attachment (if you don’t have a stand mixer the beaters on your hand mixer will work fine, it’s what i used my first time making it). Beat on a low speed until the mixture is completely cooled. Increase speed to medium and add butter pieces one at a time. Scrape down the side of the bowl and continue to beat the buttercream until it is smooth and glossy. Don’t worry if the mixture starts to separate, just keep beating and it’ll come back together! Add vanilla, tequila, a pinch of salt and lime and beat until just combined. Pipe onto cupcakes immediately.

Lime, Sugar and Salt Garnish

  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp lime zest

Mix all ingredients in a bowl, sprinkle on top of freshly iced cupcakes! Finish it off with lime slices and peel!

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ooh look at those meringues in the background, watch this space for cupcakes involving those!