Carrot Raisin Cupcakes Recipe

[Laura]

See the Duncan Hines Spring Baking Basket Giveaway in the thread for cupcake contests and Giveaways.
Duncan Hines Carrot Raisin Cupcakes Recipe from Baby Loving Mama: http://www.babylovingmama.com/2010/05/duncan-hines-carrot-raisin-cupcakes-recipe-review-giveaway.html
Duncan Hines Carrot Raisin Cupcakes Recipe {Spring Event Review & Giveaway #29}
With all the wonderful recipes available at Duncan Hines, it wasn’t hard to find one to want make myself. I love carrot cake with cream cheese frosting so the Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Decadent Carrot Cake mix really jumped out at me. Since I’d never made anything like this myself before I couldn’t wait to try these gorgeous Carrot Raisin Cupcakes out.
http://www.babylovingmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Duncan-Hines-carrot-raisin-cupcakes.jpg

Ingredients

1 box Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Decadent Carrot Cake
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup hot water (add carrot/raisin pouch and allow to stand 5 minutes)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup drained crushed pineapple (variation: 1/2 c. white chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips)
* 1 16oz container Duncan Hines® Creamy Home-Style Cream Cheese Frosting

Add carrot/raisin pouch to the 1 cup of water and allow to stand for a minimum of 5 minutes. In a mixing bowl, add cake mix, flour, baking powder, eggs, oil, drained pineapple, and carrot/raisin/water mixture.
http://www.babylovingmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Duncan-Hines-Carrot-Raisin-Cupcakes-1.jpg
Mix by hand until completely blended, approximately 50 strokes.
http://www.babylovingmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Duncan-Hines-Carrot-Raisin-Cupcakes-2.jpg
Pour batter into paper-lined cupcake pans 2/3 full. Bake cupcakes for 20 – 22 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pans for 15 minute on wire rack, then remove from pans and cool completely on rack before frosting.
http://www.babylovingmama.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Duncan-Hines-Carrot-Raisin-Cupcakes-3.jpg
My entire family went nuts for these cupcakes! I love the cake and cream cheese frosting combination but most of all I love the moist and flavorful carrot cake. Is it wrong that I think it feels a bit healthier than the usual cake? So much so I ate them two mornings in a row with my morning coffee. It was so scrumptious and they reminded me a bit of a a wonderful muffin and I used that excuse to justify eating them so early. They do have pineapple, raisins and carrots in them after all. How healthy, right?

They went so fast that I HAVE to make these again, and soon. They were all gone within 3 days, as scary as that is to admit.

[Laura]

from bon appetit.com : http://www.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/2010/05/primrose-cupcakes-giveaway.html
Win a Cookbook: "Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery"
9:00 AM / May 3, 2010 / Posted by Julia Bainbridge
Filed Under:giveaways
In our new series, "Win a Cookbook," we'll give you a preview of a cookbook we love, then let you vote for the recipe you most want us a reveal. By voting, you enter to win a free copy of the cookbook.

Londonners Martha Swift and Lisa Thomas started baking out of Lisa's home kitchen. "Our idea was very simple," says Martha. "We wanted to produce cupcakes from natural ingredients, using no preservatives and no artificial colors, ingredients, or flavors. And, just as importantly, we wanted them to look amazing and totally distinctive." Soon after word got out that some of the best cupcakes on this planet were coming out of Lisa's oven, the duo was approached to supply their goodies to Selfridges, a high-end department store in the U.K. They opened their first bakery (and finally had access to a professional kitchen) in Primrose Hill in 2006 and branched out to a second bakery two years later in Covent Garden. (Jude Law is a fan: "I defy anyone to find a better cupcake," he said.)

Years of testing and tasting have been put into their new cookbook, Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery. These are simple, classic cakes, expertly executed and presented with Primrose's own quirky sensibility. The coffee and walnut cake--yes, they go beyond cupcakes--comes with icing only on top and between layers, leaving the sides rough and doughy. The peppermint cupcakes, dolloped with spearmint-colored buttercream and red-and-white-swirled candies, look straight out of Whoville. And we might just take to topping our cream cheese icing with grated orange zest after seeing how beautifully the authors dusted their carrot cupcakes with citrus-y flecks.

So now, you decide: Which recipe should we reveal to our readers? Click after the jump to see some delectable photos from the book that will help guide your decision (or, more likely, will make it harder to choose).

WIN IT!

In the comments section, vote for the recipe you want us to post from Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery and you could win a free copy of the book! NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Click here for full rules

The contest ends at 11:59 PM May 6, 2010, when all entries/comments must be received. When we reveal the cookbook winners, we will also reveal the winning recipe, and some cupcake tips from Swift and Thomas.
http://blog.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/honey_granola_cupcakes.jpg#1 Honey Granola Cupcakes

http://blog.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/strawberry_cream_cupcakes.jpg#2 Strawberry Cream Cupcakes

http://blog.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/peanut_butter_cupcakes.jpg#3 Peanut Butter Cupcakes

http://blog.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/badaily/earl_grey_cupcakes.jpg

#4 Earl Grey Cupcakes


Reprinted with permission from Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery by Martha Swift and Lisa Thomas, copyright 2010. Published by Kyle Books

Photos by Yuki Sugiura