I just love carrot cake! It’s one of those amazing desserts that allows me to convince myself that cake can be nutritious; after all, each serving is filled with veggies and instead of the icing being made from just butter & sugar, it’s mostly made from cream cheese that is full of calcium (see where I’m going here?). After many years of trying different ingredients, this recipe is my favorite. In it I use Chinese 5 Spice, which gives it a really nice spicy hit; as well light brown sugar that compliments the carrots perfectly (notice I also cut the all purpose flour with a bit of whole wheat to make it a little healthier–and you won’t know the difference!). The icing has ginger and lemon, which are both best friends with carrots. It all comes together for a wonderfully balanced confection (and I won’t tell if you want to have them for breakfast!).
Ingredients (for the cake):
– 2 c all purpose flour
– 1 c whole wheat flour (you can just use a total of 3 c AP flour, if you wish)
– 1 Tbsp baking powder
– 1 tsp baking soda
– 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
– 1 Tbsp Chinese 5 Spice powder
– 1 c canola oil (or any neutral oil)
– 6 large eggs
– 1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
– 4 c shredded Carrots (about 10 medium carrots)
– 2 c light brown sugar
How I make it:
– Preheat oven to 350
– In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, & 5 spice
– In a mixer with paddle attachment, blend oil, eggs, vanilla, and carrots
– slowly add dry ingredients until combined
– Pour into cupcake liners until 3/4 full
– bake until cupcakes are set and inserted toothpick comes out clean (20-25 minutes)
– remove from tins and allow to cool completely on rack before frosting.
Ingredients (for the icing):
– 1/2 c butter, softened
– 8 oz regular cream cheese, softened (icing is not the time to go low fat, besides it won’t set properly)
– Zest of 1 lemon (approximately 1 Tbsp)
– 3 c Confectioner’s Sugar
– 1 Tbsp ground ginger
Icing directions:
– In a large bowl, whisk together sugar and ground ginger & set aside
– In a mixer with whisk attachment, combine butter, cream cheese, and lemon zest until well combined and fluffy.
– slowly add sugar mixture and mix until thoroughly combined
This recipe will yield about 30 cupcakes, with 2 1/2-3 Tbsp of icing for each. I like to finish each by topping with a small piece of crystalized ginger.
