Chai Spiced Carrot Cake
These deliciously moist carrot cupcakes are super easy to make and packed with flavour because we’ve spiked it with our 6 Spice Masala Chai! As an alternative, this mixture can also be baked in two sandwich tins and assembled with cream-cheese frosting like a traditional carrot cake.
Give this one a chai and share your snaps with us on our socials @chhabrachai.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
Zest of one orange, and juice of half of it
400g carrots, grated
125g unsalted melted butter
225g golden caster sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
2 medium eggs
175g plain flour
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 emptied tea bag of the 6 Spice Masala Chai
While I didn’t use them – feel free to add 50g of walnuts/raisins/choc chips
For the cream cheese icing:
250g full fat cream cheese (at room temperature)
400g icing sugar
60g unsalted melted butter
1tsp vanilla extract (or 1/2 vanilla pod if you have this)
Method
Melt the butter and mix with the caster sugar, orange zest and vanilla extract, until light and fluffy.
Gradually beat in the eggs.
Fold in the grated carrots (and walnuts if you’re using them). Don’t worry if the mix looks a little too egg-y, the flour should help balance this out.
Sift in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and an emptied tea bag of our 6 Spice Masala Chai, and fold it all in. Add the juice of half an orange and gently mix.
Pre-heat the oven to 180C/ Gas Mark 4 and line your muffin tin with paper cases.
Evenly divide the mix into 12 cupcake cases and bake for 25 minutes, or until the cupcakes are golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean (see picture).
Leave to cool and make the icing.
For the icing
Melt your butter – but make sure it’s not bubbling or piping hot.
Whisk together the cream cheese, vanilla extract and icing sugar – until no lumps remain and the mixture feels light.
Gradually pour in (little by little) the melted butter and whisk between each addition.
Whisk it all together briefly at a high speed, until it resembled a thicker consistency (see picture).
Place the icing in the fridge for 10-15 minutes, this will make it easier to pipe onto the cupcakes!
Grab the cooled cupcakes and pipe on the icing. If you’re impatient like us, then just dollop a teaspoon’s worth on the top and dig in!