Five Spice Pineapple Carrot Cupcakes

By SewingDragonfly

From www.foodnetwork.com. My Note: I have not made these cupcakes yet (4/3/11). The original frosting ingredients called for “Chinese ginger” instead of five-spice powder. I changed it to five-spice powder.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup crushed pineapple
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups shredded carrots (about 3-4 medium sized carrots)
• Frosting, recipe follows
• Crystallized ginger, as garnish

Details

Servings 12

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and Chinese five-spice powder.

In another large bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and carrots. Then slowly add the flour mixture and beat with an electric hand mixer until just combined, about 2 minutes.

Fill the cups ¾ full with batter. Bake until the cupcakes are set, about 20-22 minutes. When they can be handled safely, remove them from the muffin tins and let cool completely on wire racks before frosting. Garnish with crystallized ginger.

Frosting
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
½ cup butter, softened
2 teaspoons Madagascar vanilla extract
2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
3 cups powdered sugar

In a large bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and five-spice powder. Blend the ingredients with an electric hand mixer until a creamy consistency is reached, while slowly adding the powdered sugar.