Carrot Cake Cupcakes, A Picture Tour

Yesterday my friend Duvi and I




baked vegan carrot cake cupcakes for the celebration of the birth of this fine gentleman (who is looking very pleased in this pic, quite possibly because he's SURROUNDED BY SOME OF THE FINEST, MOST DELICIOUS WOMEN IN CLEVELAND--just sayin'):




We grated and spooned...




and baked and frosted...




And sweat our asses off with our efforts.

And the end result was these little beauties:




Which were taken to a very drunken karaoke night. The cupcakes impressed many, especially when folks found out they were vegan. The birthday boy had at least three, and one of his friends very sheepishly but voraciously also came back for thirds.

Eaters of the cupcakes:





In total, 11 were consumed and the twelfth actually knocked my friend Duvi over in her chair, SPLITTING THE BACK OF THE CHAIR IN TWO.

Broken chair:




Them's some fucking POWERFUL cupcakes is what I'm saying.

Try them. Just buckle yourself in first.




Carrot Cake Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS:

• 2/3 c. all-purpose flour


• 3/4 t. baking soda


• 1/4 t. baking powder


• 1/4 t. pinch of salt


• 1/4 t. ground cinnamon


• 1/4 t. ground ginger


• 2/3 c. sugar


• 1/3 c. vegetable oil


• 1/3 c. soy yogurt (plain or vanilla)


• 1 t. vanilla


• 1 c. finely grated carrots


• 1/4 c. of chopped walnuts


• 1/4 c. raisins

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°. Line muffin tin with cupcake liners (preferably the kickass ones you found at Heinen that have piratey skulls & crossbones all over them).

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together sugar, vegetable oil, yogurt, and vanilla. Sift in the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices) and mix until smooth. Fold in carrots , walnuts, and raisins.

Spray the cupcake liners with nonstick baking spray. Fill the liners two-thirds full (don’t overfill! See photos above). Bake for 26 to 28 minutes (for full size) or 20 minutes (for mini), until a toothpick inserted through the center of one comes out clean.

Once fully cooled, top generously with cream cheese frosting.



Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 c. margarine, softened


• 1/4 c. vegan cream cheese, softened


• 2 c. confectioners sugar


• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Cream together margarine and cream cheese until just combined. Use a handheld mixer to whip while adding the confectioners sugar in 1/2 cup batches. Mix until smooth and creamy, then mix in vanilla. Keep tightly covered and refrigerated until ready to use.

(Recipes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule, reposted at Simply Sifted)