Happy Belated Easter to All !!!

This was actually due for posting last Thurs before Easter but I was rushing to KL and delayed posting till now. Though Easter is already over, I would still like to wish all Happy Belated Easter !!! (^.^)

Carrot cake somehow doesn't seem to be as naughty as other cakes and since carrot reminds me of rabbit, it fits the theme of Easter - a holiday usually associated with bunnies & eggs. So I decided to make these Carrot & Walnut cupcakes with cream cheese icing to give to my neighbours during Easter. As for decoration, I topped the cupcakes with M&M's bunnies mix chocolate eggs and also sprinkled some chopped walnuts round the eggs to make it look like a nest. Err ... guess that wasn't too successful as it look more like a mess ...

The M&M's chocolate eggs were really cute and instantly light up the cupcakes with its colorful candy coating of pink, yellow, blue, green & purple. This is an Easter edition that I accidentally chanced upon while shopping at Cold Storage. The moment I saw it, I knew I had to get it! Not only were the colors bright & cheerful, each chocolate egg has little prints of chick, bunny or sheep on it! But too bad, my photography skills are lousy as usual & I couldn't really capture the image clearly. Moreover, I made a mistake of keeping the M&M's chocolate eggs in the fridge the night before I use it. The moment I took it out for decoration, those little prints on the eggs start to smudge ... (-_-!)

All in all, the cupcakes looked good & tasted great too. The cream cheese icing really complemented the cake well. I hope my neighbours enjoy the cake as much as I do.

Carrot & Walnut Cupcakes
Ingredients (Yields 18 cupcakes)

for the cupcake
225g (8oz) unsalted butter, softened
225g (8oz) castor sugar
225g (8oz) self-raising flour
4 eggs
1 teaspoon mixed spice (I used cinnamon instead)
100g (3 and 1/2oz) walnuts, chopped
150g (5oz) freshly grated carrots
2 tablespoons sultanas

for the icing
200g (7oz) cream cheese, softened
175g (6oz) icing sugar, sieved
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
3 tablespoons walnuts, chopped

for Easter decoration
some chocolate eggs, bunnies or carrots jelly sweets

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 175degC. Place 18 baking cases in muffin tins.
2. Combine the butter, sugar, flour & eggs in a large mixing bowl & beat with an electric whisk until smooth, about 2 -3 mins.
3. Stir in the rest of the ingredients & mix well. Spoon the batter into the cases.
4. Bake for approx. 20 mins or until golden brown & a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
5. Remove tins from the oven & cool for 5 mins. Then remove the cupcakes & cool on a rack.
6. To make the icing, slowly beat the cream cheese & icing sugar in a large bowl with an electric whisk until creamy & soft.
7. Add the lemon juice & vanilla essence & beat briskly until well combined. Spread the icing using a spoon or pipe using a piping bag onto the cooled cupcakes.
8. Garnish with chopped walnuts and/or decorate as desired.

Note: Store without icing for up to 3 days in an airtight container, or freeze up to 3 months.

Recipe from: 500 Cupcakes & Muffinsby Fergal Connolly