Carrotcake Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

I made these cupcakes a couple of years ago for my birthday and they were SO good. The frosting alone is amazing...I think I could just eat the frosting on its own. It is cream cheesey, orangey, and sweet. So delicious.
I think the Carrotcake Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting came out much better this time. I added more spices, added raisins, and used more butter than oil (I ran out of oil so had to improvise). I also used a larger shredder for the carrots so the pieces were larger and more noticeable in the finished cupcake. I really liked the addition of the raisins, and more butter was nice too. I think using more melted butter versus all oil made the batter thicker, more like a cake batter, instead of thinner like it was last time. The cupcakes lasted almost a week (unfrosted), covered on the kitchen counter. I kept the frosting in the fridge and scooped a bit out as needed, letting it warm to room temperature before using.

The recipe is 24-Karat Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Icing from Flo Braker's Baking for All Occasions (page 239).

mise en place for the cupcakes

the smell of the orange zest (for the frosting) was divine

a food processor made grating the carrots a breeze

the cupcake batter: adding the melted butter

nearly there...you can see all of the spices...yum!

the carrots, raisins, and walnuts get added last

beautiful!

I like to use a scoop so the batter is evenly distributed

ready to bake

done! They smell so delicious.

making the cream cheese frosting

for flavoring the frosting: I used orange zest, freshly squeezed
orange juice, and a few drops of pure orange oil

the softened cream cheese, butter and powdered sugar are beaten

the orange juice and vanilla are added...so smooth and silky!

finally the orange zest is added...so delicious!

cooled and frosted

I'd better just try one before serving them

ready for company...yum!

Bye for now...

Avid Baker's Challenge: Cupid's Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Buttercream

The second Avid Baker's Challenge September cake is Cupid's Strawberry Cake with Cream Cheese Buttercream on page 314 of Flo Braker's Baking for All Occasions. I actually made this cake a few months ago for a party but saved the photos for this month. This is going to be a quick post with just the pictures as I'm so overdue in getting this posted.

I made the cake on a hot and humid June day so the cream cheese buttercream frosting didn't participate too well - even after chilling in the fridge. However, this is partly my fault because I refuse to use gelatin, so I'm sure it would have set up better with the called-for gelatin. In the end though, the super soft buttercream didn't really matter because the overall cake was absolutely delicious! I made the cake for a wine and cheese party (aka my bookclub) along with the HCB Mud Turtle Cupcakes and both were a hit. I loved the yellow cake - moist and light but sturdy - perfect for filling with jam. And the other flavors - the cream cheese frosting with a hint of lemon, jam and strawberries - all went together really well. Another hit from Flo!

mise en place for the cake

creaming the butter and sugar until very pale

in go the eggs then the rest of the ingredients

into the oven

out of the oven...golden brown

mise en place for the buttercream

cream cheese and butter, whipped

whipping the egg yolks

water-sugar mixture is boiled to soft-ball stage and added, then whipped some more

the cream cheese mixture is added

fresh strawberries and jam

ready to slice - with my new 18" long cake knife - and assemble

first layer, sliced in half, waiting for a layer of jam

in the middle of the cake, strawberries get sandwiched  between buttercream

the finished cake

seems a shame to cut it!

but I've got to have a taste...delicious!

Bye for now...

Happy Birthday to me!

It was my birthday earlier this month and I felt like baking for it (what else is new?!) so we had a small family dinner party which turned into a bit of a potluck/takeout party because the heat was just too much to have the oven on all day. I did, however, manage to make a few things and of course a birthday cake (well, cupcakes)...24-Karat Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Icing from Flo Braker's Baking for All Occasions (page 239). These cupcakes were wonderful! They were moist and flavorful and topped with a delicious citrusy cream cheese frosting.

The roasted carrots pictures are actually from a few months ago but I stumbled on them when sorting through some pictures and thought they were so pretty that I wanted to share. I get a vegetable/fruit delivery from Boston Organics every other week but for a while was doing all vegetables on a weekly basis and was getting a TON of carrots, so roasted carrots and onions became my "thing." I love Boston Organics - a shot of the inside of my 2/3 vegetable, 1/3 fruit box is below. They deliver right to my door and I can even add on items like organic strawberries (fav!), other fruit/veg, fresh bread, coffee beans or chocolate bars. Love!

my cats showing their party spirit...I guess it's too hot for them too.

my delivery...oh, yum

carrots and rosemary

chopped and into the pan

salt, pepper, olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar go over the top and get stirred in

I roast them at a pretty high temp to get some good caramelizing action going on

yum!

this is my new favorite rice - 6 different grains! I get it from the Japanese grocery store

all the different grains

I usually mix in some white sushi rice (1/4-1/3 of the total amount)

my wonderful rice cooker - perfect rice every time!

rinse, add water to the line corresponding to the number of cups of rice, let soak for several hours...
and then the rice cooker does the rest

now on to my birthday cupcakes!

everything mixed together except the carrots and nuts

fold in the carrots and nuts

into their little paper cups and...

...voila, cute little carrot cupcakes

the cream cheese frosting has both lemon and orange zest...it was amazing!

frosted and ready to enjoy

moist and delicious!

Bye for now...