That pretty much sums up my relationship with one kind of cake - carrot cake. The first time I tried carrot cake, it was a piece of hard, dry cake with an overpowering taste of cinnamon and nutmeg. You can guess why I have stayed far far away from ANY carrot cakes since. BUT, this is different:
I made these Carrot Cupcakes after a good friend of mine treated me to a piece of her birthday cake which is Cedele's Carrot Walnut Cake. It completely changed my mind about carrot cakes, and being me, I wanted to try and re-create this at home.
I searched the internet for some recipes, and finally decided on this recipe from FoodNetwork. According to some of the reviewers, this cake has the problem of difficulty in unmoulding. To avoid this, I made them into cupcakes and had no problem at all.
These cakes turned out really well I must say. It's very moist and soft, with a right hint of spices. They are not very sweet on their own, but when topped with the cream cheese frosting, the sweetness is just nice. The chopped walnuts also added a nice crunch to the soft texture.
By the way, can someone tell me why carrot cakes are almost always frosted with cream cheese? Every recipe I've searched pairs these two together. Not that I'm complaining though.
23 comments:
Angie,
Your carrot cakes look so yummy. :)
I guess it is a classic combination now: carrot cake and cream cheese icing! :)
Hmm I never really thought about that. I guess in one way it sort of prevents the top from drying out? Then again I like to think of it as a way of balancing out things. Healthy carrot cake has to go hand-in-hand with something sinfully creamy =D
Angie, these look awesome. Yeap I do agree with Anh, perhaps it is a classic combination.
So pretty and cute! I love carrot cake :D
Almost bought 1 pc from Cedele yesterday (got cranberry almond scone instead) after procrastinating to make them for almost a week now. Been feeling too huge to bake anything last week.. :P
After seeing your carrot cupcakes, i really cannot tahan anymore lol. Hope i'll be better this week to bake again ;)
Angie,
you brought up a good question which so happens in my mind for long too. I don't know either... maybe one day some western bloggers also want to know: why garlic + fermented black beans; or red bean "tong shui" + dried fruit skin... It's really intersting to think about how different food combined, and how people from different countries put it to their own perspective :D
And you know how to tempt me, I just can't resist any cutie-cup-size cakes! Yours cream cheese so scumptious while the cake so golden! I know what you meant of refusing to try again after the first bite! Mine was (home-made) banana cake, later I found out the reason was too much nutmag (my limit is no more than 1/8 tsp per cake), hehee...
Angie,
you brought up a good question which so happens in my mind for long too. I don't know either... maybe one day some western bloggers also want to know: why garlic + fermented black beans; or red bean "tong shui" + dried fruit skin... It's really intersting to think about how different food combined, and how people from different countries put it to their own perspective :D
And you know how to tempt me, I just can't resist any cutie-cup-size cakes! Yours cream cheese so scumptious while the cake so golden! I know what you meant of refusing to try again after the first bite! Mine was (home-made) banana cake, later I found out the reason was too much nutmag (my limit is no more than 1/8 tsp per cake), hehee...
Wah Angie! those carrot cupcakes r looking good! I've been wanting to try good carrot cake for awhile now. I've read tt Room for Desser's carrot cakes r good but yet try them though. guess I'll be making me own this weekend! Angel Carrot cake maybe? lol
Nice cupcakes :)
Anh, Edith, thank you for your kind words :). Yeah, guess this classic comb has worked so well that when we think carrot cakes, cream cheese come to mind and vice versa.
D, other than healthy carrots, these cakes are equally sinful from the amount of butter to keep it moist, but I guess it's a good way to indulge :p
Sherie, aiyo, must rest more leh, now that you're so heavily pregnant. I like Cedele's muffins too.
Gattina,
Guess all these combinations have been passed down from our grand-, great-grand- or great-grand-grand mothers, and they have worked so well that we never ask why :)
Yeah, I didn't dare add in too much nutmeg for these cakes too, cinnamon I'm quite okay though.
YD, thank you too! Room for Desserts? Is it a cafe or something? Wah, angel carrot cake, you are so adventurous :p
Anne, thanks!
My Aunt makes an amazing carrot cake. I definitely know the disappointment of one that's not moist though, other peoples cakes just haven't compared to the one my aunt makes.
Angie, yr carrot cake looks so good. *Thumbs Up*
Heyo Angie, Room for Dessert is a cake shop just like Choc-a-bloc. They have a store front too! There's a link to their website on my blog's side bar :)
WOW! The photos are super pro! I like them!! and u're getting better n better in baking n photography! :)
Brilynn, I understand too, sometimes we just cannot achieve the same taste as those made by our loved ones.
Jolene, thaanks :)
Kwong and Foo, 1 stick of butter = 113grams, so 3 sticks is abt 340grams. BTW, I halved this recipe and made 12 cupcakes. There's quite a few reviews on this recipe of Foodnetwork which are useful, do check it out. HTHs.
YD, thanks, I'll hop over to check it out.
Grace, *wave wave*, long time didn't 'see' you leh. Thanks for your kind words, I'm still learning too.
Hi Angie, your carrot cake entry came at the right time! My friend and I want to bake a carrot cake and are in the midst of comparing recipes. After looking at yours, I'm so going to do this asap.
As for your question: it's a case of savoury complementing the sweet. A party favourite in these parts is dates stuffed with goat's cheese. Sounds horrid but tastes heavenly.
now you've made me want to buy some carrots just to make carrot cake! great job!
Usually carrot cake's important thing is the frosting but I never tried using cream cheese frosting. Might try out your frosting recipe the next time I bake carrot cake. Have you ever tried to make Bob's carrot cake soup from Surreal Gourmet? Tastes very nice. Definitely a must try if you want to experiment more.
oh these look so goood!
I had the same thing with a plain, normal cake...until last post! =)
glad you tried it anyway - it looks absolutely mouth-watering...well done!
Dutchess, do give it a try, it's really good in my and my friends' opinions, hee.. and dates with goats' cheese?
Diddy, thanks! Go get some carrots :)
Thanis, carrot cake soup?? I defintely haven't even heard about it. Let me go search for it. Thanks for the info.
Julia, thank you too! I'm glad I tried it too.
They look so delicious! I would really like to bite one of them... or two.
Ciao.
carrot cakes sounds yucky to me.. but i know carrot bits in fried eggs is uber delicious!
i think ill give carrot cake a try after this post though! ;p
i dont quite aggress with never trying something again... i give most things at least 3 tries... and after that, i dont touch much. but i complete agree with you on carrot cake. i've always wondered who the genius is that decided to make cake out of carrots!
but i am always willing to try, anything can be cooked to taste good, it just a matter of figuring out how to do it
I have tried unsalted butter and it can compliment too. But I dun eat the frosting mostly. I guess the ladies would know why. :)
Angie, I like the shape of your cupcakes and your blog too, inspiring.
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