Today was a lot of fun as it was the day of my cupcake class at Prep Kitchen Essentials. We had 13 ladies ready to bake, decorate, and eat their way through tons of yummy cupcakes. It was a tight schedule with lots of things to bake, many cupcakes to frost, and lots of decorations to make. I taught them how to make Vanilla, Chocolate, and Carrot Cake Cupcakes. They also learned how to make Vanilla Buttercream, Swiss Meringue Buttercream, Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting, Chocolate Ganache Filling, and Peanut Butter Filling….like I said, it was busy. In addition to cupcakes and frostings, I showed them how to make modeling chocolate roses, use chocolate transfer sheets, texture fondant accents, and pipe flowers. Here are some photos from the fun day!
One of the recipes that we made today was from Sweet Melissa’s Baking Book…it was the delicious carrot cake! I had made this recipe before and loved it and thought I’d share my new found joy with my others. Instead of using the cream cheese frosting that it calls for I opted to use one of Chockylit’s recipes for her Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting since I thought it would pipe better. It was a fantastic recipe and I highly recommend it!
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
adapted from Sweet Melissa’s Baking Book
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound carrots, grated medium fine
3/4 cup walnut pieces, coarsely choppe
Before you start
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line two cupcake pans with cupcake liners.
To make the cake
1. in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the eggs at high speed until light and frothy, about 1 minute. Decrease the speed to medium and add the oil, sugar, and salt, and mix until just combined. Decrease the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
3. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the carrots and walnuts.
4. Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners.
5. Bake 20-24 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
