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Part of the journey is making your best judgement calls. Some times those calls make wonderful discoveries, and from my experience, they can also turn around and bite you in the butt or turn into a fail. I have done quite a bit of baking in the last few weeks. I have tried new recipes and worked on perfecting old recipes. I have said it before, but when learning, or self-teaching, there are going to be fails. Without those fails, would you even be learning?
A few things I have baked in the past weeks are a new apple crisp pie mash-up, some carrot cake cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting and I had an order for my lemon sugar cookies, which I could not pass up. I spent the most time on the cookies. Although it wasn’t a new recipe, I had to make it in large quantities which took time. It was my very own glimpse into what it would be like to own a bakery that takes orders for bigger events. Exciting stuff!
As I am sure you have already guessed, I did have a “fail”. I was trying out this apple pie/apple crisp mash-up with some apples I got when my husband and I went apple picking at a local orchard. I was rushing and didn’t take the time to apply what I already knew about baking pies. It did come out delicious but, it did not come out pretty- which is alright. Not everything you make needs to look like it came out of a magazine. The mistakes I made are things I am able to improve on the next time I make it. My first mistake was not properly using the crust protector. For some reason I told myself, “it will be fine, not that much crust is showing.” Well, I was wrong. The crust got a little crispy. The oat streusel topping also got a little crispy. It all around turned out darker than I would have liked. Not to say that it was a complete fail, because it actually tasted really good. I would say it wasn’t presentable (to put in a bakery setting) but, it gave me some things to do differently next time. I will include the recipe with the tweaks I have learned for the next time I make it (on the recipes page). I have included pictures to prove we are all human and mistakes happen and that’s ok when you are on a journey of learning.
On a second baking adventure, a special occasion inspired my new carrot cake recipe. With a little guidance from my tasting palette, this combination turned out as a huge success. Carrot cake is typically a classic with its rich cream cheese frosting. Being my Dad’s favorite cake, he told me carrot cake was his choice for his birthday celebration. So I started dreaming up how I could put my own twist on this classic. What I ended with was a carrot cake cupcake with a maple cream cheese frosting (heavy on the maple because it’s my Dad’s favorite). After these were baked and frosted, I had another last minute idea to add a little something extra. Maple candied pecans for a little flavor and a little decor.
Needless to say, I will be making these again since they were such a big hit, not only with my family, but at work as well. I hope you also enjoy these amazing, fall inspired cupcakes and know that just because something doesn’t turn out the way you envisioned it would, that’s ok. It can be frustrating in the moment, and I know we all are too hard on ourselves. Take 5 minutes to step away, re-group and reflect on what you can do differently the next time. Giving up is not an answer or proof that you are learning. I can’t wait to show you what I have coming up next week!
Carrot Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- 1 cup AP Flour
- 3/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Sea salt
- 1/3 cup Canola oil
- 1/3 cup Unsweetened applesauce
- 1/3 cup Light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup Sugar, granulated
- 2 Eggs
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups Grated carrots I bought matchsticks carrots and chopped them up even more.
- 1 – 2 cups Chopped pecans
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup Butter ,softened, room temp.
- 8 oz Cream cheese ,softened, room temp.
- 4 cups Powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1-2 tsp Vanilla extract , to taste
- 2-4 tsp Maple extract , to taste
Maple Candied Pecans
- 1 1/2 cups Pecans , chopped or whole, depending on the look you want. I did whole.
- 1/3 cup Pure maple syrup
- 1 pinch Sea Salt
Instructions
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Pre-heat your oven to 350°. Line your cupcake tray with paper liners.
- Combine all your dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl; AP flour, baking soda and powder, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a separate mixer bowl, combine wet ingredients; canola oil, applesauce, brown and white sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
- On low mixer speed, add your combined dry ingredients to your combined wet ingredients.
- Once dry and wet ingredients are combined, fold in pecans and carrots with a spatula or spoon. Just enough to be mixed in.
- Distribute batter evenly to your lined cupcake pan.
- Baked for 20-25 minutes. Check using a cake tester or toothpick in the center of the cupcake. Once it comes out clean, it is done.
- Set aside to cool completely.
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
- Beat the butter and cream cheese together on med-high until it becomes light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add in the maple extract, vanilla extract and salt. Beat for another minute.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low, add in the powdered sugar, a little at a time. Beat until well combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula to make sure it is well incorporated.
Maple Candied Pecans
- Add your pecans and maple syrup to a small non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
- When the maple syrup starts to bubble, reduce the heat to low.
- Simmer on low heat for 5-10 minutes, stirring often.
- Once you notice the liquid is mostly gone, stir continuously until the pecans start to clump together then remove them.
- Transfer them into a single layer onto parchment paper using a rubber spatula. You can use the spatula to break up the clumps into single pecans. Sprinkle salt on top of the pecans while they are still hot.
- Let cool, roughly about 5-10 minutes.
Assemble
- Frost each cupcake with an appropriate amount of icing (which is what ever your heart desires).
- Top the cupcake with some candied pecans.
Notes
Links to some of the ingredients I used:
7 responses to “The Best Fall Cupcake – Carrot Cake with Maple Frosting”
Love anything fall related as the weather gets cooler. Will need to try this once I get a chance!
This maple frosting sounds divine😋
This looks amazing! I can’t wait to try it!
Oh my goodness! These look great!!
I absolutely love cupcakes. This one looks super delish. Got to try it for sure. Soo enticing!
These look so incredible!
These were amazing. Best cupcakes I’ve ever had.