¡Fiesta de Cuatro de Mayo!

As I’m sure you know, today is Cinco de Mayo. In the U.S., that translates to the perfect excuse to go to your favorite Mexican restaurant for margaritas and guacamole. In Mexico, however, September 16th is the bigger holiday (Mexican Independence Day), but some states, especially Puebla, will celebrate today with parades and festivals.

Cinco de Mayo commemorates the highly unlikely victory of the Mexican army over the much bigger/better equipped French army in 1862. Under the guise of collecting war debts and the leadership of Napoleon III, France had previously occupied Mexico, in hopes of creating an empire in the New World. Although the battle didn’t eradicate French forces from the area (that didn’t happen until 1867), it still stands as a symbol of the Mexican resistance movement and desire for independence.

With the exception of the state of Puebla, Mexico doesn't really celebrate May 5^th. My family, on the other hand, chose to celebrate a day early with tacos, margarita cupcakes, and strawberry margarita jell-o shots. Stereotypes abound!

Confession: I’m not a baker. In fact, I suck at all things culinary. So, when I decided to make these margarita cupcakes with tequila-lime buttercream frosting, I knew I was in for quite a struggle.

Fortunately, I had some help from Mommles and Wheat. It took two hours to make these bad boys, but I was happy with the end result. They were really light and refreshing, perfect for spring or summer. They were also super limey and the tequila was understated. I frosted them before the cupcakes cooled – OOPS! – and though they weren’t pretty, they were pretty tasty.

Hooray for making something in the kitchen other than cereal!