Carrot Cupcakes

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 12 cakes

Ingredients

Cake Mix

350 g Self Raising Flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
200 g caster sugar
200 g muscovado sugar
Zest of 1/2 an orange
260 ml vegetable oil
4 large Chicken eggs
350 g carrots – grated
120 g Walnuts or pecans (Chopped or quickly pulesd in a bolender)

Cream cheese frosting

120 g butter (softened and unsalted)
224 g cream cheese
450 g Icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt (optional)

Instructions

Cake Sponge

Pre-heat oven Gas mark 4/180 Degrees C (may need adjusting for fan ovens)
Sift the flour together with the cinnamon and mixed spice.
If using caster sugar also sift that trough.
Just rub the muscovado sugar with your fingers to crumble it up into the flour
mix everything together until roughly combined
Add the orange zest and mix again
Add the vegetable oil and eggs to the dry ingredients then mix again until well combined
Add the carrots and mix until well combined
Add the walnuts and mix until well combined
Then pour into muffin tin, cake tin etc.
Bake for about 25 minutes then check using the toothpick method

Cream Cheese frosting/icing

Sift the icing sugar twice as this ensures little to no clumps in the frosting
Mix the butter until it's soft and creamed
Add the cheese a bit at a time and mix with the butter
Add a heaped (not stupidly heaped, but decent amount) tablespoon of icing sugar to the butter and cheese mix and let this mixer do its job (on a low speed) until the sugar is combined
Keep adding a heaped tablespoon of icing sugar, waiting until it's mixed in and then another spoonful etc.
When almost half the sugar is used up you can:
1 – Add in the vanilla extract and wait about 5 to 10 seconds for that to get mixed in
2 – Then either turn up the speed of the mixer a little or add about 1 1/2 spoons to the mix at a time.
Obviously frost the cakes once the sponge is cooled

Notes

One I’ve made many times and almost perfected it.

For the frosting ensure that the butter and cream cheese are both at room temperature. If not then the butter will solidify in the frosting.
Use a decent butter like “President” and none of this easy spread crap otherwise the frosting will won’t set ad will be very runny.
Ensure icing sugar is properly sifted as otherwise you’ll get sugary clumps.
Use Vanilla Extract, not this Vanilla essence bullshit.

Can decorate with candy carrots.