Mixed Berry Cider Cupcakes

My study abroad program officially ended on Saturday :(
The only good thing was that my mom came over to Great Britain to visit, and we're spending the week touring various parts of the country. I think this softens the blow a little bit- I'm not in London anymore, but at least I'm still in England!
I still have several posts to put up from when I was in London, they'll be going up throughout this week, since I won't exactly have any opportunities to bake while we're on the road.
First up, my last baking hurrah during the program: Mixed Berry Cider Cupcakes

We recently found out that our favorite cider- Rekorderlig- isn't sold in the U.S. The only option we have (other than to wait for it to get to our side of the pond) is to spend $80+ on a case of 15. Yeah, not happening.
I figured a good way to wrap up our program (and to bid a fond farewell to the cider we've loved so much) would be another cupcake adaptation of a delicious Rekorderlig flavour combination, as a follow-up to the Strawberry-Lime Cider cupcakes I made to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. 

The blueberry "cupcakes" I made turned out more like muffins, and the original plan to fill them with raspberry jam didn't work that well, but overall these were delicious!
Mixed Berry Cider Cupcakes
Blueberry Cupcakes
Adapted from Laura's Recipe Collection
Yield: ~18 cupcakes (12 regular-sized, I'm guessing)
Ingredients:
Unsalted butter- 1/2 c, room temp
Sugar- 2/3 c
Eggs- 3, large
Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste- 1 tsp
Rekorderlig Mixed Berry Cider- 1 tsp, optional
Zest of 1 medium lemon
Flour- 1 1/2 c
Baking powder- 1 1/2 tsp
Salt- 1/4 tsp
Milk- 1/4 c
Fresh or frozen (thawed) blueberries- 1 c
Directions:
1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, ~2 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating to combine after each. Beat in vanilla, cider and lemon zest.
2. In a medium bowl, stir flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk to butter mixture, mixer speed low.
4. Gently fold in blueberries.
5. Bake in lined muffin pan at 350 degrees F for ~17 minutes, or until tester comes out clean. Cool completely.
Mixed Berry Cider Buttercream
Ingredients:
Butter- 1 c (2 sticks), softened
Powdered sugar- 3-4 c
Rekorderlig Mixed Berry Cider- 2-4 tbsp (depending on taste)
Red food colouring, optional
Directions:
Beat butter until creamy, ~1 minute. Slowly add powdered sugar. Once it's all added, beat an additional 30 seconds, then add cider and beat for ~1 minute. Add red food colouring if you'd like.

Here's the link to the Rekorderlig website, just for fun :) http://www.rekorderlig.com/
Enjoy!!!