Carrot muffins with cream cheese frosting

I read a number of food blogs, and when all of them post up a recipe, there is always a story behind the creation - let it be a memory that particular recipe reminds them of, or it's the first recipe they've been successful at, what inspired them to make it that day ... etc.  Unfortunately, if I were to do that - it would be very boring indeed.  I bake for a couple of reasons - because I'm bored, stressed, wanting to try out a new recipe, have things to use up in my pantry ... and at any one time it would be all of them, or just one of them.

For the carrot muffins I made the other day, I really wanted to test out a much-raved about recipe, and the half jar of applesauce sitting in the fridge needed to be used up before mould started growing.  They turned out amazing!  I got a lot of comments about how delicious they were from unexpected people, and even person telling me that I had gotten into the wrong career.  In case this blog somehow finds its way in the prying eyes of my parents, I assure you (and them) I have no intentions of quitting med as yet - to bake on a commercial scale seems to defeat the purpose of home-based baking.

Carrot muffins with cream cheese frosting

Makes 18 muffins or 1 cake




Ingredients

Carrot muffins

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup unsweetend applesauce
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups plain flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups shredded carrots (3-4 medium carrots)
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans, and extra to top

Cream cheese frosting

• 115g unsalted butter, softened
• 225g light cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted

Method

For the carrot muffins

1. Preheat oven to 175oC.  Grease and flour muffin pan and line with muffin papers (if preferred)
   
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, applesauce, brown and white sugars and vanilla until well combined.
   
3. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon in another bowl.  Stir in carrots and pecans.  All the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.  Pour into muffin tins - filling them to about 3/4 full.
   
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into comes out clean.  Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.  Alternatively bake in a cake tin for 50-55 minutes. 

For the cream cheese frosting

1. Beat butter and cream cheese on low speed for 5-7 minutes or until there are no lumps.  With mixer still running, slowly add sifted icing sugar and beat until mixture is light and creamy.  
2. Pipe or spread onto cooled muffins and top with the extra chopped toasted pecans.