Carrot Cake Cupcakes |Cooking With Amanda

Mother's Day is coming, you guys!

Mother's Day is possibly my favorite holiday of the year. I wake up every Mother's Day morning eager with excitement, soaking up sloppy kiddo kisses and crayon-drawn cards. My husband always picks up donuts for breakfast and after heading to church, we spend the afternoon relaxing while I overdose on toddler snuggles. And maybe indulge in a treat or four.

Does it get any better than a nap with a squishy toddler snuggled on your chest? No, absolutely NEVER.

Sometimes my husband decides to prepare dinner himself and other times he opts for my favorite take-out. One thing we both know though -- he's NOT a baker. And I do love my dessert! I normally prepare a special treat the day before, so I can enjoy it on my big day.

This year I decided work on perfecting a carrot cake cupcake recipe for Mother's Day. I love carrot cake, and making the recipe into cupcakes means that they are perfect for sharing.

This recipe uses a generous helping of carrots, which makes the cupcakes moist, flavorful, and full of bright color. The KitchenIQ 4-in-1 Prep Tool proved especially handy for this process, scrubbing, peeling, and dicing the carrots into chunks with ease. I then placed the prepared chunks in my food processor for quick and easy shredding. If you don't want to wake the toddler, though, I recommend doing it by hand with a container grater. Either way, it's easy peasy!

I love my cupcakes like I love my reality television – chock full of drama and never boring. So I loaded these cupcakes up with chopped pecans, shredded, sweetened coconut, and crushed pineapple. A generous swirl of pineapple cream cheese frosting makes these cupcakes extra special.

I mean…that frosting. I'd eat it with a spoon. Or a shovel. Whichever.

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Carrot Cake Cupcakes Recipe

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Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 1/2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup chopped pecans
8 ounces crushed pineapple, drained thoroughly
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

For the Frosting:

2 sticks salted butter, slightly softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup pineapple juice
7 cups powdered sugar

For Garnish (optional):

sweetened shredded coconut
pecans

Directions

For the Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake tins with liners and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Set aside.
In the bowl of your mixer, beat vegetable oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add flour mixture and beat on medium speed for one minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then fold in carrots, pecans, pineapple, and coconut.
Fill prepared cupcake tins 3/4 full and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched in the center. Remove from cooling rack and let cool completely.

Prepare Frosting:

In the bowl of your mixer, beat butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth.
Slowly add pineapple juice, scraping the sides of the bowl and beating on medium low until smooth.
Slowly add powdered sugar, beating on low until just combined.
Increase speed to high and beat for one minute, until frosting is light and fluffy.
Frost cooled cupcakes generously, then top with coconut and pecans, if desired.