A light and moist carrot cake cupcake topped with cream cheese frosting and finely chopped walnuts is perfect alongside a hot cup of tea.
Celebrate National Carrot Cake Day on Friday 3rd February by baking these tasty carrot cake cupcakes.

Bake in: 55 mins

Makes: 12 cupcakes

Ingredients 

175g light muscovado sugar

100g wholemeal self-raising flour

100g self-raising flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tsp mixed spice

1 orange, zested

2 eggs

150ml sunflower oil

200g carrots, grated

Finely chopped walnuts, to decorate

For the icing

100g butter, softened

300g soft cheese

100g icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp vanilla extract

Method 

Pre-heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and line a 12-hole muffin tin with cases. In a large mixing bowl, add the sugar, flours, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice and orange zest and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and oil, then stir into the dry ingredients with the grated carrot. Divide the mixture between the 12 muffin cases and bake for 20-22 mins until a skewer poked in comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack before icing.

For the icing, beat the butter until really soft, then beat in the soft cheese, icing sugar and vanilla. Use a cutlery knife to swirl the icing on top of the cakes, then decorate with the finely chopped walnuts.