Carrot Cupcakes

My sister and I like carrot cakes, she said carrot cupcake would be the first thing she would like to have during her visit in London, no doubt I would make her some as they are so easy to make anyway :-P

Recipe adapted from BBCGoodFood

Carrot Cupcakes

Ingredients

300g plain flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
200g soft brown sugar
4 eggs
250ml oil
1 orange , zested
1 lemon , zested
200g carrots , finely grated
150g walnuts , chopped
227g tin pineapple pieces, well drained and chopped (optional)

Equipment

15-16 muffins trays lined with cupcake cases / 6-7 inches cake baking tin

For the cream chesse frosting

125g unsalted butter at room temperature
50g icing sugar
250g cream cheese

Method

1. Heat the oven to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2. Line a 20cm, 10cm deep cake tin. Sift the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda together and stir in the sugar. Beat the eggs with the oil and citrus zests. Stir in the carrots and fold everything into the flour mixture. Fold in the walnuts and pineapple if using. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 1 hour 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool.

2. For the frosting, beat the butter and icing sugar together until soft and then beat in the cream cheese. Chill the mixture until it's thick but spreadable. Spread a thick layer on top of the cake, making sure the side of the icing is flat and continues upwards from the side of the cake.