This is my first new recipe of 2022 and I really wasn’t sure what to make as it’s January it’s cold but we are probably all fed up of heavy fruit cakes so I decided on Carrot Cake as it’s tasty but not too heavy and my eldest son who is back from University wanted me to make some!!!! So that gave me a good reason to do this recipe as a treat for him before he goes back.
They are delicious carrot cake muffins topped with orange blossom water cream cheese icing but as they are so light and moist cakes they taste great with or without the icing!
Pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees centigrade (150 fan) and put 12 muffin cases in a muffin tin.
Put the vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla extract in the bowl of a standmixer and whisk together.
Add the soft light brown sugar, flour, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice, ginger, cinnamon, orange zest, carrots and pecans to the egg mixture.
Mix until fully incorporated.
Divide the mixture equally between the muffin cases.
Place in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin.
Next to make the icing, cream the butter and icing sugar with the orange blossom water until light and fluffy.
Finally add the cream cheese so it is just incorporated- do not over mix or the icing will become too wet.
Put the icing in an icing bag fitted with a 1M nozzle and starting at the outside and working your way to the middle pipe a swirl on top of each cake.
Decorate with crushed pecans, carrot shapes or leave plain.
Carrot Cake Muffins
Sarah’s servings: 12
Sarah's skill: Easy
Baking time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
Cake
185g Vegetable Oil
2 Large eggs
1tsp Vanilla extract
185g Soft light brown sugar
185g Self raising flour
1/2 tsp Ground Mixed spice
1/2 tsp Ground ginger
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp Bicarbonate of soda
Zest of an orange
200g Grated carrot
50g Chopped pecan nuts
Icing
150g Soft unsalted butter
150g Sieved Icing sugar
320g Cream cheese
1 tsp Orange blossom water
Crushed pecans/ 12 Sugar carrots to decorate (optional)
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees centigrade (150 fan).
Place 12 muffin tin liners in a muffin tin.
Put the vegetable oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla extract in the bowl of a standmixer and whisk together.
Add the flour, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice, ginger, cinnamon, orange zest, carrots and pecans and mix until fully incorporated.
Divide the mixture equally between the 12 muffin cases and place in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin.
Next to make the icing cream the butter and icing sugar with the orange blossom water until light and fluffy.
Finally add the cream cheese so it is just incorporated.
Put the icing in an icing bag fitted with a 1M nozzle.
Pipe a swirl on top of each cake.
Decorate with crushed pecans, carrot shapes or leave plain.
Equipment Used
Sarah’s extra slice……
You could use walnuts instead of pecan nuts if you prefer.
You can buy ready made carrot shapes in most supermarkets to decorate if required.
I used Orange blossom water in my icing but you could use vanilla extract if you don’t have any.
I used a Wilton 1M icing nozzle.
I was looking for a recipe for carrot cake muffins, rather than making a full carrot cake, and came across this one. The muffins were absolutely delicious! The perfect amount and selection of spices such as ginger and mixed spice were used. I loved the addition of nuts in the muffins, which I didnt see in other recipes. The cream cheese icing was the best way to top off these delicious muffins. My family ate these within 2 days!