Monday 15 April 2013

Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

















That's it. The search for the ultimate carrot cake recipe ends here. I can't imagine I'll ever want to make any other. No more leafing through cookbooks or trawling food blogs looking for the carrot cake that would define carrot cake for me. This is IT.  But I have mixed feelings about finding THE ONE.  In fact, when I realised this one was indeed THE ONE, I laughed, then I cried, then I ate another cupcake.



Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
from Smitten Kitchen
(quantities adapted to make 12 cupcakes, but once I'd tasted them I wished I'd made 24)
Or a *two layer 23cm cake - see instructions below
If you want to make 24 cupcakes, just use the quantities as for the layer cake
I hope that's all clear... now on with the cake making.


For the Cupcakes:
1 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup caster sugar
150ml canola oil
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated peeled carrots (I used the fine blade of a box grater to give a finer texture)

For the Frosting:
225g cream cheese, room temperature
75g unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup icing sugar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Make the Cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Line the holes of a 12-hole muffin pan with paper liners.

Place the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.

In a large bowl, whisk the sugar and oil and until well mixed. Whisk the eggs in one at a time.. Stir in the carrots and divide the batter among the muffin holes, filling each to 3/4 full.

Bake for 14-18 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of a cupcake comes out clean. Let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool before icing them.

Make the Frosting:
Using an electric mixer, beat all the ingredients until fluffy. Refrigerate it until it is a spreadable consistency.

Assembly:
Using a medium star tip and a piping bag, pipe a small star in the middle of each cupcake then a circle of small stars around it.

Instructions for a Two layer 23cm Cake:


For the Cakes:
2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cup caster sugar
310ml canola oil
4 eggs
3 cups grated peeled carrots

For the Frosting:
500g cream cheese, room temperature
150g unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cup icing sugar
1/4 cup tablespoons pure maple syrup

Make the Cakes:
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Line the bases of 2 x 23cm round cake tins with baking paper.

Place the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.

In a large bowl, whisk the sugar and oil and until well mixed. Whisk the eggs in one at a time.. Stir in the carrots and pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake tins.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let them cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool before icing them.

Make the Frosting:
Using an electric mixer, beat all the ingredients until fluffy. Refrigerate it until it is a spreadable consistency.

Assembly:
Spread some of the frosting generously on top of one cake. Place the other cake on top and frost the sides and top of the two layers. You can pipe smalls stars all over the top/sides of the cake as for the cupcakes if you like.




16 comments:

  1. Early Monday morning and already I want to eat cake:) Looks sooo delicious!

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  2. I like the idea of jazzing up the frosting with the flavor of maple syrup. Great combo.

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  3. How perfect do these look? And "healthy" because of the carrot, right? If not, don't tell me ;)

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  4. These look so delicious, I absolutely love the sound of your maple frosting too!

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  5. Hey Patty. That frosting is a winner.

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  6. Hey Jessica. Exactly, health food :)

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  7. Thanks Rosie. You must try this frosting... on anything.

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  8. I made your carrot cake a few weeks ago but I'm going to have to give these bad boys a go too!
    Thanks for the offer, I had a look at your sourdough starter recipe and I think that I'll start it today so that it is ready by Sunday (hopefully). Is the flour that you refer to plain or S\R?

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  9. Hey Sam. You are going to love these little cakes. Did I mention they are the BEST?

    I use "00" flour which is fine milled Italian flour. You can get in the supermarket where all the other flours are. Or bread flour, often called baker's flour for all the bread I make.

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  10. Eating another cupcake to celebrate finding that amazing cupcake is totally appropriate. And how fantastic is Smitten Kitchen anyway??

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  11. Thanks Pink Patisserie. Smitten Kitchen - one of my very favourite food blogs. Just love it.

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  12. This carrot cake was absolutely PERFECT! I loved it and now it's going straight into my recipe book :) Thank you so much for sharing! xx

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  13. I'm so glad you like it Anon. It's a keeper.

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