Foolproof Carrot Cupcakes

One of my favorite cupcakes from Cedar Run Bakery & Market in Keene is their carrot cupcake, which is perfectly moist with a silken cream cheese frosting that’s sweet but also has some tang. (It’s also prettier than the one I made shown here; baking and decorating is not my strong suit.)

Kristy Farrell, the owner of Cedar Run, does not give out her recipes. But her cupcake reminded me very much of a no-fail carrot cake I’ve been making for years. It’s based on a recipe that first ran in the beloved but now defunct Fine Cooking magazine where I was a senior editor. I say no-fail because over the years I have messed it up royally - adding ingredients at the wrong time, shredding the carrots instead of chopping them - and it always turns out great.

The recipe also has some good tips in it that you can use in other baking recipes, such as replacing raisins with smaller currants for better distribution, and tossing the currants and the nuts with a little flour to keep them from sinking.

Finally, the toasted walnut oil was in the original recipe, but since I almost never have that on hand, I use toasted sesame oil to give the cake a toasty flavor. If you have neither, toast the walnuts before adding them to the batter and then just use a total of 1¼ cup plain vegetable oil.

Carrot Cake

The recipe looks long, but many of the ingredients are just spices you spoon into the batter. You can also make the cake on one day and the frosting on the next.

Yields 24 cupcakes or one 9x13 sheet cake or two 9-inch round cakes for layer cake

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE:

½ cup dried currants

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

10 ounces (2¼ cups) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon table salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon each: nutmeg, allspice, cloves, mace

3 ounces (1 cup) walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped

4 large eggs at room temperature

1½ cups granulated sugar

½ cup dark brown sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

¼ cup toasted walnut oil (or sub toasted sesame oil)

FOR THE FROSTING:

8 ounces unsalted butter cut into pieces and softened at room temperature

2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, cut into pieces and softened at room temperature

4½ ounces (1 cup) powdered sugar

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Chopped nuts for garnish (optional)

Directions

MAKE THE CAKE

Line a 24-muffin cups with liners. (Alternatively, if baking the cake in a pan or pans, butter and flour pans.) Heat the oven to 350F.

Soak the currants in hot water for 10 to 15 minutes to soften them, then drain. 

Meanwhile, use a food processor to chop the carrots until about the consistency of couscous. (This makes the cake fine textured and super moist.) Transfer to a small bowl and wipe the food processor bowl clean as you’ll need it again.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and all the spices. Transfer about a quarter cup of the flour mixture to a small bowl and toss with the drained currants and the 3 ounces of nuts. This keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the cake. 

Chopped carrots make a finely textured cake.

Add the eggs and sugar to the food processor and mix until blended. With the machine running, slowly add the vegetable and walnut oils in a steady stream until combined. Scrape this mixture into the flour mixture and stir well to combine. Add the carrots and the raisin-nut mixture and stir to combine. 

Divide the batter among the cupcake liners or scrape into the prepared pan(s). Bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. About 18 minutes for cupcakes and 45 to 50 minutes for pans.

Cool on a rack before removing from pan and let cool completely before frosting. (The cake can be baked a day ahead of frosting. You can even freeze the unfrosted cakes.) 

MAKE THE FROSTING

Using the paddle attachment on a mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. One piece at a time, add the cream cheese beating well after each addition. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the sugar and vanilla, scraping the bowl as needed and mixing just enough to remove any lumps. 

If the frosting feels a bit loose, refrigerate it briefly before frosting the cupcakes or cake(s). If you like, garnish the frosted caked with finely chopped nuts.

The cake will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 2 days.