Cupcake anyone?

Like most people (except Duff), I love a sweet cupcake every now and then.  Have you ever watched the show on Food Network, Ace of Cake?  I would love to make those type of cakes, but really making cupcakes is ok right now.  So when in Calgary I stopped into Crate & Barrel and wanted to get some of the cute things they have.  We don't have this store here so I was having fun just looking around.  I got my first Kitchen Aid stand mixer for Christmas and when I saw this cute recipe box called The Cupcake Deck I knew I had to have it!

There are 25 cupcake & frosting recipes with beautiful pictures!  So I hope to go through each one and take a picture and share here on my blog.  I am also going to share the cupcakes with my husbands co-workers after taste testing with him at home!

The first cupcake that I wanted to make is the Carrot Orange and Golden Raisin Cupcakes  They were a success!!  The frosting has cream cheese and grated orange peel! 

Ooops!!!  Did I say that this was my first time using my mixer?!  I paid a little more attention when switching it on!

Recipe:

1 Cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

2 lg eggs

3/4 cup sugar

2/3 cup canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp grated orange zest

1 cup finely chopped or grated carrots (about 2 carrots)

3/4 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325*F  Line 12 muffin tin cups with paper liners.  Spray the paper liners with nonstick spray.

Make the Cupcakes

Sift the flour, baking soda, salt, & cinnamon into a med bowl & set aside.  In a large bowl, with mixer on med speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and thick, about 1 minute.  Scrape the bowl as needed.  On low speed, mix in the oil, vanilla, and orange zest until blended.  Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it.  Mix in the carrots, raisins and walnuts.

Fill each paper liner with 1/4 cup of batter to about 1/2 inch below the top of the liner.  Bake just until the top is firm and a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 28 minutes.  Cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then move to a rack to cool completely. 

Make the Frosting

In a large bowl, using a mixer on low beat the butter, cream cheese and vanilla until smooth and thoroughly blended, about 1 minute.  Scrap the bowl as needed.  Add the powdered sugar, mixing until smooth, about 1 minute, then beat on medium speed for 1 minute to lighten the frosting further.

Use a large spoon to mix in the orange zest into the frosting.  Spread onto cupcakes with spatula or piping bag as desired.  Top with a walnut half and orange zest!

They were yummy!!  And a hit with my husbands co-workers :)  So much so that they are requesting more!!