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Description
Moist and spiced Carrot Cake Cupcakes topped with creamy, smooth cream cheese frosting. These cupcakes offer a delightful balance of sweet and spice, making them a comforting homemade treat for any occasion.
Ingredients
Scale
For piping green leaves:
- Wilton 32
For piping carrot:
- Wilton 2A frosting piping tip
- Wilton 1M gel colors – great starter set
- Box grater – you’ll need the small holes
Ingredients:
- 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour (*measured correctly)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2/3 cup vegetable oil or extra light olive oil
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 1 1/2 cups finely grated and peeled carrots (from 2 medium carrots)
- 1 cup pecans or walnuts (finely chopped, optional)
- 1/2 cup golden raisins (or regular raisins, optional)
Instructions
To Make Carrot Cake Cupcakes:
- Begin by preheating the oven to 350°F and lining muffin tins with 18 liners. Allow your frosting ingredients to reach room temperature.
- In a spacious mixing bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and salt. Whisk until well combined.
- Incorporate the vegetable oil, eggs, and applesauce, stirring until the mixture is thoroughly blended.
- With a spatula, gently fold in the grated carrots, chopped nuts, and raisins, mixing just until everything is combined into the batter.
- Evenly distribute the batter among the 18 cupcake liners, filling each about two-thirds full. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let them cool in the pans for 3-5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting with Cream Cheese Frosting.
Notes
TECHNIQUE TIP: Use cream cheese frosting for decoration. Add orange and green food coloring to separate portions for a vibrant finish.
STORAGE: Store the cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days to keep them fresh and moist.
SUBSTITUTION: Replace vegetable oil with extra light olive oil for a slightly different flavor profile.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Calories: 217 kcal
- Sugar: 15 g
- Sodium: 175 mg
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10 g
- Trans Fat: 1 g
- Carbohydrates: 24 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 27 mg
