[ please forgive the mediocre photo, it was taken with my computer :> ]

normally i don't post these kinds of things, but these were just too yummy to pass up. my auntie's father gave us a whole boatload of HUGE zucchini from his garden, most of which i grilled up.. the remainder i used to make zucchini-chai cupcakes with rum frosting. there are three sizes here: normal cupcake size, mini cupcake, and tartlet. of course i can't eat all of these so almost all of them will be given away to friends and family :)

please note that my icing job is sub-par. i'm hardly a baker by any standard and this was my first venture into cupcakeland. however, don't let the occasional sloppyness deter you; these guys are delicious.

for those of you interested, here is the recipe:

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Zucchini-Chai Cupcakes with Rum Frosting

For the batter you will need:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon powdered chai mix
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated or puree'd zucchini, drained
brown sugar (optional)
honey (optional)

muffin, mini muffin, or tart pans

begin by preheating your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit and greasing up your muffin tins. mix flour, salt, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, and chai mix together in a bowl.

in a seperate bowl beat the eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together. gradually stir in your dry mixture, followed by your zucchini. add water if the moisture is too thick. remember to taste as you go! add honey and brown sugar to your liking (i like using a fair amount of honey). you can also adjust the amount of chai mixture to your liking.

pour your batter into muffin tins and bake until puffy on top. to test the inside of the muffin, stick a butter knife or wooden skewer through the center of the muffin. if it exits clean, they are done. let them cool at least 30 minutes to an hour before frosting.

Frosting:

1/3 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
lots of confectioner's sugar (at least 2 cups)
1 teaspoon rum extract or rum (go easy at first! it's pretty strong)
splash of vanilla extract
piping bags or ziplock baggies (optional)
food dye (optional)

melt the butter in a saucepan and gradually stir in the milk. once melted, transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and gradually whisk in the confectioner's sugar. keep adding sugar until the consistency is where you want it (i'd recommend pretty thick; imagine how it will pour out from the piping bag). as the mixture cools, it will thicken slightly. you can easily thin your mixture with hot water if needed.

once you've got the right consistency, add in a splash of the vanilla extract and the rum, tasting as you go. if you want a stronger flavor add in more rum a drop at a time. feel free to add dye whenever, if you choose.

Icing the Cupcakes
i started by separating the frosting into four bowls because i had four colors. i began dying each with a drop or two of food coloring until they were pastelly in color. from here is the messy part: carefully spoon our pour each bowl into individual piping or ziplock bags. if you're using ziplock bags like i did, squeeze the air our and press the frosting into one corner of the bag. carefully cut a SMALL hole in the corner of the bag (i found the smaller hole worked much easier) and, holding the bag in your hand, start frosting your cupcakes!

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NOTE: this recipe will not make NEARLY this many cupcakes. to make this many (and more not shown) i had to almost quadruple the recipe. i had that much zucchini.
also the things under the cloth in the background are zucchini bread loaves and a zucchini bundt cake. holy balls.
enjoy!