She sows seeds

Carrot and Walnut Muffins (For Those Who Don’t Like Carrot Cake)

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Last week our little kinder committee fronted up to a local clearing sale to provide the tea, coffee, sausages in bread and rissoles with onion and coleslaw. Standard country catering caper. Events like these are hard to cater for at the best of times – you don’t know how many people will be there, how busy you will be, what will sell well or not so well… but I got my bake on nonetheless, because: if all else fails I have some hungry tummies at home who would be more than pleased to help with any surplus stock! Rather than my brownie which I usually trot out (here is the recipe for that bad boy, should you require it, which you most definitely do), I instead went for some carrot and walnut muffins. Controversial, seeing as though I don’t really like carrot cake. I mean, it’s nice enough…but I just wouldn’t pick it to make or eat, if you know what I mean. There’s far superior cakes to be made and eaten in my opinion. Until that is, I perfected this recipe! A few trial runs, tweaks and adjustments, and my goooooodness! I think I may be a carrot cake convert. It’s sweet and moist and scrummy! (As Eleanor would say).

Below I have shared the recipe in both Thermomix format and regular old school method. I am never sure which way to go, as obviously not everyone has a Thermie, but that’s how I cook most of my cakes (although not all, often I’ll bust out my handy Kmart $10 hand beaters, one extreme to the other!) Let me know if you prefer Thermomix recipes, or not, or both like I’ve done here – which is obviously more work to figure out/write etc. but well worth it I think if I’m pleasing all parties. The ingredients is the trickiest beast, as Thermie recipes are always in weights and if you’re used to working in cup measurements this can be annoying…hmmm. Get those scales out and let me know how you go…

Carrot and Walnut Muffins with Cream Cheese Topping

Ingredients
100 grams walnuts, roughly chopped (I prefer to do by hand quickly with a large knife, rough and ready, rather than in Thermie)
400 grams (about 3 medium) carrots 
2 eggs
220 grams raw sugar (I actually use coconut sugar instead of raw)
160 grams EVOO (olive oil)
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1/4 tsp salt
200 grams plain flour
1 tsp bicarb soda
220 grams raw sugar (for Thermomix) or 220 grams icing sugar (non-Thermomix)
90 grams cream cheese
45 grams Butter, at room temperature
1/2 tsp lemon juice

Thermomix Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and grease a 12x muffin tin. Chop carrots for 4 seconds on speed 5. Set aside with the chopped walnuts. 
Mix the eggs, sugar and oil together for 5 seconds on speed 5. Add in the vanilla, mixed spice, salt, flour and bicarb soda and mix for 10 seconds on speed 5.
Add in the carrots and walnuts to the bowl (reserve some walnuts for the muffin tops), mix on reverse for 15 seconds on speed 2.
Scoop mixture into muffin pans to 3/4 full, bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
For topping, mill the raw sugar for 10 seconds on speed 10 to make icing sugar. Add in the cream cheese, butter and lemon juice, mix for 20 seconds on speed 6 or until combined and smooth.
Let the muffins cool before spooning on 1-2 teaspoons of the topping and a few walnuts.

Non-Thermomix Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and grease a 12x muffin tin. Grate the carrots and set aside with the chopped walnuts. Using a mixer on medium speed, beat together the eggs, sugar and oil until combined.
Fold through the vanilla, mixed spice, salt, flour and bicarb soda. Add in the carrots and walnut (reserve some walnuts for the muffin tops).
Scoop mixture into muffins to 3/4 full, bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
For topping, beat together the icing sugar, cream cheese, butter and lemon juice until combined and smooth.
Let the muffins cool before spooning on 1-2 teaspoons of the topping and a few walnuts. 

There you go Janelle! (A fellow kinder mum who is quite the carrot cake fan and asked me for the recipe.) This can also be made as a whole cake, you will just have to bake for up to 75 minutes in a 20cm cake tin – as this is quite a wet mixture, keep an eye on it in the oven and test with a skewer. The result is a beautifully moist cake though, turning even the most skeptical non-carrot cake eater into a fan. I’ve called it a cream cheese ‘topping’, rather than ‘icing’, because I feel a thicker mixture like cream cheese isn’t quite an icing? And I think a ‘frosting’ is quite an American thing to say? Thoughts? An ‘icing’ I see as more of a thinner, runnier situation, like on a slice…or have I just completely lost the plot and looking far too much into my baking terminology?! Probably. Just enjoy the scrummy carrot muffins and be done with it.

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Comments

  1. Mmm, they sound yummy. I do like a good carrot cake. I have a trusty old fashioned mix master, and although I prefer cup measurements, I have no problem with weight measurements either. For me, I think if it has some sort of dairy and icing sugar in it it’s icing (although if I think about it long enough I can probably contradict myself haha). I always consider something drier, like a macaroon mix, or coconut, or nuts as topping.

  2. As a non-Thermomix baker I prefer the traditional recipes. But don’t get into a twist converting weights to cup measures because for reliable baking you would (or, should!) weigh ingredients anyway.

  3. Mmmm will have to give it a go. I have to say I am a cheapie beater user who is happy to weigh or measure if it’s a good recipe. We always called it cream cheese icing … I like think icing lol if it tops a cake/slice it’s icing … well except things that aren’t icing. The only cake really made here is choc because that’s what the Mr likes and I need more people to bake for.