Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

One of my most used cookbooks is Nigella Lawson's "How to be a Domestic Goddess". It was so lovely to see Nigella as a guest judge this week on Masterchef. I was in the baking mood today and baked up a batch of her Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese icing -they are delicious.

Carrot Cakes with Cream Cheese Icing

For the cupcakes
100g light muscovado Sugar (I used brown sugar0
175 ml of sunflower oil
2 large eggs
225 g plain flour
3/4 tsp bicarb soda
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
zest of 1/2 lemon
zest of 1/2 orange
2 medium carrots grated
scant 1/2 cup walnuts chopped (I omitted the walnuts - my family don't like nuts).
12-cup muffin pan lined with 12 cupcake cases

for the icing
125g cream cheese
250g icing sugar (confectioner's sugar), sieved
1-2 tsp of lime juice 
12 walut halves

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Beat sugar and oil together, then add the eggs one at a time. Add flour, baking bicarb soda, cinnamon, salt and zests, then fold in carrots and chopped walnuts. Spoon into the cupcake cases in the muffin tin and bake for 20 mins. Cool on a rack. 

Beat the cream cheese until soft, then  beat in the icing sugar, then squeeze in the lime juice. Spread on the icing and place a walnut half in the centre of each cupcake.

I love the sweet cupcake liners I used - I bought them in the 100 Yen store in Tokyo. I boxed up a few of the cupcakes for my Mum and Dad. 

Sarah and I have been doing some sewing today - will be back tomorrow to show you what we have been up to!