Summertime Cupcakes

These were also offered up to the kids after our morning at the amusement park. Fun with little candy ladybugs from Sweetart Supplies. The cupcake liners are also from them. They have loads of great baking supplies to make any event extra special. Go on over to check them out at www.sweetartsupplies.ca They also have all the beautiful colored twines that I use from time to time. Great ideas!!

I have been craving a good carrot cake for so long. I came up with this recipe using apple sauce and increased the amount over the oil to lessen the fat but still give you an incredibly moist cake. I added coconut and pineapple flavour to the cupcake and paired it with a traditional cream cheese frosting that also had the addition of pineapple and coconut. With this icing you don’t pipe it but just spread it on. Delicious dessert for the summer months!!

4 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
3/4 cup apple sauce (2 x 111 gm. cups)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1- 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, well drained but saving the juice
2 tsp. coconut extract
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp. cloves
3 cups grated carrot
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Icing

1/2 cup butter, softened
3 cups icing sugar
6 oz. of light cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. coconut extract
4 Tbsp. pineapple juice
Flaked coconut, optional

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix the flour, baking soda and powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves together and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand-up mixer add the eggs, oil, apple sauce, sugars, pineapple and coconut extract. Beat together. Then add the flour slowly until incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the carrots and the nuts.

Line a muffin tin with paper liners and pour the batter into each filling about 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 min. until they bounce back when lightly touched. Let cupcakes cool completely.

Make the icing by adding butter and cream cheese into a medium bowl and whip together. Slowly add the icing sugar alternating with the extract and juice. Beat until smooth.

Spread the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes and decorate as you like or serve with flaked coconut on top.