Easy Easter Eats! | Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Spring is finally upon us! With Easter right around the corner and Passover in full swing I thought, what else than to do an adorable, springy recipe that can be shared with family and friends! Whether they be a holiday favorite around your dinner table or simply a midnight snack- these spring chick cupcakes are sure to be a hit, as they definitely were in my house! I wish you the best of luck on your dessert endeavor (you won’t even need luck-this recipe is seriously so simple.) Enjoy!

For these scrumptious treats you will need…

Carrot Cake cupcakes:

• 1 1/3 cups (175 grams) of all-purposeflour
• 1 teaspoonbaking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (120 ml)walnuts, chopped
• 2 largeeggs
• 2/3 cup (135 grams) granulated whitesugar
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) vegetable, safflower, corn, or canola oil
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) unsweetened applesauce (or grated apple or crushed pineapple)
• 1 1/3 cups (320 ml) finely grated raw carrots

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 1/4 cup (55 grams) butter, room temperature
• 4 ounces (115 grams) cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 1/4 cups (250 grams) confectioners’ (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Spring Chick Decorations

• About 24 chocolate chips
• About 1 cup of shredded coconut
• Yellow food coloring
• Carrot or candy corn

To make your cupcakes…

(General recipe courtesy of Joy of Baking)

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Then, grease your muffin pan with a nonstick spray or line it with paper liners (which I prefer because they add an adorable spring touch!)- This recipe makes about 12 cupcakes.

After this, whisk together (in a large bowl) the flour, baking soda, salt, and ground cinnamon. I opted not to, but at this time you could also fold chopped nuts or cranberries into your mix.

In another large bowl, whisk the eggs until lightly beaten. Next, mix in the sugar, oil, and vanilla extract until the batter has thickened slightly. Fold in the applesauce and grated carrots. Then fold this mixture into the dry flour mixture until evenly incorporated. Evenly fill the 12 muffin cups with the batter and bake about 20 – 23 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack, and let cool completely before adding the delicious frosting.

Now onto the frosting!

With an electric or hand mixer- beat the butter and cream cheese until very smooth and creamy. Then, add the powdered sugar and beat until fully incorporated. Next, add the vanilla extract. You can then add more confectioners’ sugar if needed. Keep in mind that after frosting these cupcakes they must be kept in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese!

How to make your treats even more tempting…

To make your delicious cupcakes represent little spring chicks follow these steps! First, I piped the cream cheese frosting onto my treats, gently smoothing the tops with a butter knife to leave a flat surface to decorate on. Next, I took about a cup of shredded coconut and put it in a small ziplock bag along with about 5 drops of yellow food coloring. I zipped up the bag and shook it until the dye was evenly incorporated and the coconut was a lovely shade of spring chick! After this I sprinkled it onto the frosted cakes (gently pressing as I went to ensure each cupcake would remain coated) Following this, I pushed two chocolate chips into each cupcake to represent eyes. My final step was to include the beaks, I used some extra, fresh carrot from the cake recipe and cut it into small triangles but candy corn would work perfectly as well. Finally, admire your adorable cupcakes and pat yourself on the back- you’re basically a professional now! Enjoy (and maybe share) accordingly…

I would definitely recommend making this easy recipe at home! The cupcakes came out adorably and they tasted incredible! If you are a fan of carrot cake, this recipe will delight you! Not only was the cake extremely flavorful and moist but the frosting was light and creamy… quite enjoyable! This treat is fun and simple to bake and will make the perfect addition to any holiday meal or spring afternoon! Enjoy!!!

Thanks so much for reading! If you would like more easy & adorable recipes in the future don’t forget to like, comment & follow! I love reading your lovely feedback!

Wishing you a joyous holiday & wonderful spring!