Carrot Cupcakes
Pureed prunes stand in for some of the fat in these carrot cupcakes.
From EatingWell:
Yield: 12 cupcakes
Active Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup pitted prunes
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 1 8-ounce caj crushed pineapple
- 1 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 large large egg white
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 1 cup grated carrots
Cream-cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese
- 1/2 cup marshmallow creme, such as Fluff
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped toasted pecans, (optional)
Preparation
- To make cupcakes: Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or coat with cooking spray.
- Combine prunes with hot water in a food processor and process until smooth; set aside. Drain pineapple in a strainer set over a small bowl, pressing firmly to extract most of the juice. Set the pineapple aside and reserve the juice for another use.
- Whisk flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Whisk egg, egg white, sugar, oil and the reserved prune puree in a mixing bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until blended. Stir in carrots and the reserved pineapple.
- Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups, filling them about two-thirds full. Bake the cupcakes until they spring back when lightly pressed in the center, 25 to 30 minutes. Let the cupcakes sit in the pan for about 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool before frosting.
- To make cream-cheese frosting: Beat cream cheese, marshmallow creme and lemon juice in a bowl with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Spread each cupcake with frosting and sprinkle with pecans (if using).
Nutrition Per cupcake:
216 calories; 7 g fat (2 g sat, 3 g mono); 23 mg cholesterol; 36 g carbohydrates; 3 g protein; 1 g fiber; 244 mg sodium; 145 mg potassium.
Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (35% daily value).
2 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 1/2 fruit, 1 other carbohydrate, 1 1/2 fat
