CARROT CAKE CUPCAKES

I love carrot cake, and I love spices, and I combined them into these easy-to-make carrot cake cupcakes. Enjoy these single-serving carrot cakes with fantastic flavor, soft, moist crumbs, moist texture, and smooth cream cheese frosting with a secret or two of its own.

FOR THE CARROT CUPCAKES – 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour – 1 teaspoon of baking powder – 1 teaspoon of cinnamon powder – ¼ teaspoon freshly-ground nutmeg  – ½ of ground cloves – ¼ teaspoon salt – 1 cup of very finely grated carrots – 1 teaspoon of freshly-grated ginger – ¼ cup of raisins or sultanas  – ½ teaspoon orange zest – ½ cup of minced walnuts  – 3 large eggs – ¼ cup of coconut oil or vegetable oil – 1 ½ cup brown sugar

Ingredients:

FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING – ½ cup of cream cheese – 2 tablespoons of heavy cream (or more, see notes) – ½ cup of white granulated sugar – 1 teaspoon of lime juice – ¼ teaspoon of lime zest – 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 350 ºF [175 ºC]. Line a muffin pan with 8 cupcake liners. Scoop equal amounts of batter into each of the eight paper liners.

Step 1:

In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, cinnamon powder, nutmeg, clove powder, and salt). Stir to mix them well. Combine carrot, ginger, raisins, orange zest, and walnuts in a separate mixing bowl, and mix well.

Step 2:

In the electric mixer bowl, combine wet ingredients (eggs, coconut oil) and add the sugar. Whisk over medium speed until the egg mix has turned a very light color and the sugar has dissolved. Slowly add the dry ingredient mix and beat until the batter is fluffy and smooth.

Step 3:

Stop the mixer, add the carrot mix, and combine with a spatula in a folding motion.

Step 4:

Pour equal amount of batter into the paper muffin liners (an ice cream scoop – if you have one – makes it easier to do that). Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven, and cool to room temperature.

Step 5:

In the meantime, make the cream cheese icing by combining the cheese, cream, and sugar. Beat until it turns into a smooth mixture with no clumps. Add the lime juice, zest, and vanilla extract, and beat until they are all incorporated into the icing.

Step 6:

Cover the carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

Step 7:

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