This month just happened to be on my mom's birthday weekend, but instead of some big birthday shindig, she just wanted to have "Girl's Day". We took her out to lunch on a beautiful sunny day and sat outside in the sun. We walked thru some antique stores, consignment shops, and book stores. Who can't get lost in a book store? After generous helpings of frozen yogurt we waddled our way home and had birthday cupcakes and coffee...how fun is that!
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| Carrot Cake Cupcakes |
Carrot Cake Cupcake Recipe
Cake from Essential Baker
1 pound coarsely grated carrots (I actually made mine finely grated)4 extra large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/4 cup canola oil
2/3 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmegs
1 1/4 cups toasted walnuts (I used shredded coconut instead, which was one of the options Bloom suggested as well)
1 cup raisins (I substituted chopped dried cherries)
Cream cheese frosting from Essential Baker
(I doubled this recipe to make sure I would have enough. Now I spread the leftovers on EVERYTHING!)12 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 ounces unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons pure vanilla
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
Mix all ingredients together
Prepare muffin tins with papers (about 60 mini or 48 regular cupcakes) or two 9″ cake pans with parchment and oil. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
I coarsely grated the carrots in a food processor using the grater attachment.
I then chopped them into finer pieces with the medal blade attachment in the food processor so that the texture of the cake would be a little bit finer.
Mix together the eggs, sugar, oil, brown sugar, vanilla extract and orange zest. Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a bowl with a whisk. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture. Add the finely chopped carrots, coconut, and dried cherries.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans or scoop into cupcake papers (fill 3/4 full).
Bake cupcakes for about 18-25 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.
Bake 9″ cakes for about 35-40 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.
To assemble the cake. Remove from pan and peel off the parchment paper from the bottom, place on a cardboard round. Put the cake on a cake turn table.
With a Wüsthof Superslicer or other thin serrated knife slice off the very top of the cake. Do this by using a sawing motion.Then cut the cake in 2 or 3 equal layers. Slide the layers onto a cardboard round or any other flat surface. The false bottom of a tart pan works perfectly.Put about 1 1/2 cups of the cream cheese icing.Using an offset spatula spread the frosting evenly over the surface of the first layer. Repeat for the rest of the layers.Place about 2 cups of the icing on the top of the cake and spread evenly.Spread the icing onto the sides of the cake.Lift the cake off the turn table and place on the serving platter.Using the spatula spread the frosting and create swirls on the cake. This cream cheese frosting is very soft so you won’t want to try for anything too exacting.I pressed coconut onto the sides and sprinkled the top.
Recipe adapted by Zoe Francois from Carole Bloom's book The Essential Baker
