Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cinnamon and Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Icing

It's not that I've run out of ideas by December, it's just that I feel compelled to Chrismas-ify all my old recipes. 

So, I'll add a bit of spice here, and a few festive fruits there. And, seeing as salted caramel is just so darn delicious, I threw some of that in too, this time. 

(While I'm thinking of it: salted caramel in a pretty jar - it makes a great hostess gift!) 

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cinnamon and Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Icing

Recipe by Tea, Cake and Create

Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 175'C
Line 2x 12-hole muffin pans with cupcake cases.

Ingredients:

2 cups cake flour
2 tsp bicarb. of soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon, or 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp mixed spice
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecan nuts
1 can crushed pineapple, discard excess juice
(...and why not add some dates? 1/2 cup of chopped pitted dates will do). 


In a large bowl:
Sift together flour, bicarb, baking powder and spices.
Mix in sugar.
Make a well; pour in the oil, lightly beaten eggs, and vanilla.
Mix together.
Add in pineapple, carrots, coconut and nuts (...and dates!) 
Mix until smooth. 

Spoon batter into cupcake cases - about 2/3 full. 
Bake for +/- 20-25min, until a skewer comes out clean.
Take cupcakes out of the muffin pans, and allow to cool.

Salted Caramel

1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup fresh cream
Sea salt crystals.

Place the sugar and water in a medium sized heavy-bottomed saucepan.
Stir over medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved.
Brush the side of the saucepan with a damp brush often to remove any sugar crystals clinging there.

Bring the mixture to the boil. Leave to boil on medium-high heat until it is a rich amber colour. Don't stir - just swirl the saucepan occasionally.

Once the sugar has turned amber, add the butter and stir until it has melted completely.
(The mixture will froth up dramatically!)
Remove from the heat, wait a few seconds then add the cream. The mixture will froth up again.
Mix until smooth.

Grind in the sea salt - how much depends on personal taste. 

Allow to cool.

Cinnamon and Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Icing:
Recipe by Tea, Cake and Create 

1/3 cup + 2tbs butter, at room temp 
1/3 cup sifted icing sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g Low fat plain cream cheese - use the denser kind (Woolworths, Lancewood, Philadelphia) - chilled
1/4 cup chilled salted caramel 

Beat together  the icing sugar, butter, vanilla and cinnamon until smooth. 
Add the cream cheese and salted caramel. Beat on low speed until they are mixed in. 

Pipe onto the cooled cupcakes. 
Garnish with chopped walnuts/ pecans if desired. 
. 

Happy (Christmas) baking!

xxM