Carrot Cupcakes with a Cream Cheese frosting

We came back from a short relaxing weekend, and what better way to spend an anniversary than sharing some cupcakes with friends and family. I have been raving about Dorie Greenspan’s Carrot cake and it translates really well to little cupcakes. I tweaked the recipe a little and cut down on the sugar. This time the frosting was perfect as I did not use a frozen block of cream cheese like the last time. I just noticed that there was a label on the packaging that says “do not freeze”. I’m just bad at using dairy products before the expiry date so I tend to store it in the freezer. Very bad idea especially for cream, whipping cream (the non dairy pour and whip is fine though) or cream cheese! What happens is that the fat gobules come together when u use it after freezing resulting in a lumpy, grainy mess.

 

Carrot Cupcakes

Adapted from Dorie’s Baking from My Home to Yours

Makes about 18 cupcakes

2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (Bake King from Phoon Huat is really good, pure and strongly fragrant)

3 cups grated carrots (2-3 large carrots or about 9 small ones)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1 cup oil

1 cup sugar (the original recipe called for 2 cups, u can use 1 1/4 if u want it a little sweeter. I found that one cup worked well for a pleasantly sweet cake which paired well with the sweet frosting)

4eggs

Method

Preheat oven to 170C. The original recipe says 325F which translates to 165C but my oven bakes only at 160 or 170C.

Beat sugar and oil for 3 mins, add egg one at a time till smooth batter forms. Add in flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon,baking soda till flour just disappers. Fold in carrot, cranberries and nuts.

Scoop 2 tablespoons of mixture into each cupcake cup, till slightly less than half full for the flat topped cupcakes in the photo. Fill up to 3/4 for domed cakes. Bake 30-35 mins till a skewer comes out clean.

Beat 250g butter and 250g cream cheese till fluffy and gradually add 2 cups (original recipe used a pound of sugar)  of icing sugar. Add juice of half a lemon. Beat till light and fluffy and frost cakes when cool.