Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Cupcake style!

Slowly, this is becoming my signature style.  I seem to want to take every cake recipe, and, turn it into a cupcake somehow.  Every slice, I want to turn into a mini cup.  Its an odd obsession, but one that quells the rage inside of me nicely.  Like today.  I realised I put the $700 odd dollar electricity bill in a pile of papers that were of little or no importance about two weeks ago.  And just forgot about it.  I think its self-preservation just quietly, but instead of getting uppity at myself (and with the lack of someone else to shift said blame to!) I decided to retreat to the kitchen for awhile to find some sort of treat to lust after.

The last time I made this recipe, it stuffed up a treat on me.  No, again, that is not true.  In my infinite wisdom I added twice the amount of required flour, as after mixing it up the last time, I swore to myself black and blue that it looked far too runny.  I assumed I'd missed the flour stage completely, but lesson learned - and let this be a warning to the rest of you - the batter is not supposed to be as thick as a cake batter for this one, runny is the desired consistency!!

Without any further rambling, todays recipe...

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes 24 Cupcake sized treats, or two round cakes, if you're that way inclined


Ingredients
Cake
1 & 1/2 Cups Plain Flour
1 & 1/2 Cups White Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Bicarb Soda
200g Butter, melted
2 Eggs
1 Cup Grated Carrot (1 large carrot is usually about right)
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1/2 cup Crushed tinned Pineapple, including the juice (don't omit, you'll regret it....)


Frosting
250g Cream Cheese, softened
1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
2 Tablespoons softened Butter
3 Cups Icing Mixture

I didn't make my first Carrot Cake until I was in my late 20's.  My inferior skills of logic and deduction led me to believe that something that tasted so damn good had to be really difficult to make, so I just never bothered.  Until I came across this recipe that is. After an initial failure (you need that crushed Pineapple, you really do, I speak from painful experience!) that required a full clean of my oven, I tried again, and was so blown away by the results that it is now a well used recipe from my book.

First step, is throw all the ingredients for the cake into the bowl.  Yes, really and truly that simple.  Oh, and, you should probably preheat the oven in advance for this one, 180 degrees, if you're working with fan forced.  Slightly higher for electric ovens!

Mix on low speed initially, until you've gotten the ingredients combined,

then mix at medium speed for 2 minutes, at which point your mixture should look like this.

Not pretty, fairly runny, but, don't panic.

Spoon into your cupcake liners, making sure you don't fill past the halfway point, this mixture has a lot of rise in it, surprisingly!

Then into the oven for approximately 20 minutes, turning at the halfway point. The cooked cupcake/muffin/cake should spring back when touched lightly in the centre, just like a 'normal' cake.

Leave to cool completely, you don't want to pipe or ice these while still hot, it will turn your Cream Cheese frosting into a delicious glaze.  Mmmm, glaze.

The Cream Cheese frosting is again ridiculously easy.  Simply chop up the softened Cream Cheese and place into your mixing bowl.  Add the butter and vanilla and whip until soft and fluffy.

Add the Icing Mixture, whip slowly until combined, then at higher speed until again thick and fluffy.  Stop the mixer, scrape down the bowl then whip again.  Repeat once more, then you are ready to go!

I opted for Homer, and a large plain round nozzle to pipe with today.  The mixture was roughly the consistency of the Italian Meringue Buttercream, it looks sloppier than it actually is, but if you feel yours is too runny for you to comfortably pipe with, simply add more Icing Mixture, 1/4 of a cup at a time until you have reached the consistency that is right for you.

Then, pipe away!!

The smell through the house while these are baking is so pleasing to the senses!  I found keeping the kids away from them the most difficult part of the afternoon, lol.  While waiting for the cupcakes to cool enough to pipe on, several went AWOL, despite the noticeable carrot in these, you just don't taste it.

 

 Fussiest eater in the house, again a happy camper!!