Carrot Cake Muffin Bites
Now I confess that when someone tries to offer me something that has in a vegetable where a vegetable doesn’t need to go, I want to respond by telling them where to put their vegetables…Hey I’m health conscious like the next person but some things are sacred.
That however is not the case when it comes to carrot cake, which has been a childhood favourite of mine since I can remember. Carrot cake is a soft cake, sometimes dense depending on how you like it, filled with grated carrots, almost always pineapple, and in the Caribbean, we tend to love a bit of coconut for some added texture. It’s easy to make – liquids – dries – combine – okay! (imagine me saying this on a beat in a repetitive step while leading an 80s jazzercise class) and very easy to eat too much.
From the time I got an interest in baking, the recipe that always pulled me in was Sam’s Famous Carrot Cake but seeing as how I can’t follow a recipe to save my life now as an adult, I’ve tweaked and added to it over the years. Spices like five spice, and cardamom add an extra note of snuggly warmth to this spiced cake and a tangy cream cheese frosting on top is certainly a crowd pleaser. It’s an easy way to add in a serving of vegetables for picky little eaters, and makes an even greater coffee cake.
My hope is that in sharing my take with you, you’ll eventually add to it here in the comments…you know how us Caribbean people do!
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup pineapple puree
- 2 tablespoons rum
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon five spice
- 1 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- a pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups shredded carrots
- 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 365°.
Grease a 12 muffin tin.
In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, oil, puree, rum, extract and sugar. Set aside.
In another bowl, sift the spices, flour, baking soda and salt. Incorporate very well. Baking soda tends to have a reaction with the acidity in these muffins, which might leave you with green spots.
Add the flour mix into the liquid and mixed until just combined.
Add the grated carrots and coconut flakes and mix to incorporate.
Divide evenly into containers.
Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown on the top.
Serve warm or with cream cheese frosting.
