Gooey Carrot Cupcakes with Cinnamon Icing

These are made of win. I know that phrase is outdated and stuff, but it's true. I saw the original cake recipe on pinterest and knew I had to veganize it. And possibly make it into cupcakes, because who eats cake these days? Cupcakes are easier to share.

The recipe calls for a sauce thing to be poured over the cake while still hot; I decided to pour on some of the remains of the vegan sweetened condensed milk I made last week for Dash's cupcake icing instead, because I already had that made and am lazy.

Carrot Cupcakes

2 c shredded carrot
3/4 c shredded, sweetened, toasted coconut
1/2 c chopped pecans
1 c crushed pineapple in juice
1 c milk (as always I used almond)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c sugar
3/4 c oil
2 c flour
2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c sweetened condensed milk

Preheat the oven to 350. This recipe made 24 cupcakes, so either halve it and make 12 or line 2 cupcake tins with paper liners.

Shredded carrot and coconut

Mix the milk and vinegar in a large bowl and set aside for a few minutes to curdle.  Meanwhile sift together the flour through salt in a smaller bowl. Then, to the milk, add the vanilla, oil and sugar and whisk well until combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir until just combined; fold in the remaining ingredients. Scoop into the muffin tin; they will be pretty darn full - 3/4 or so. Bake for 20 -22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

You can probably just let them cool on a rack and then frost and eat, but if you want to go the 'gooey' route, poke them several times each, while still warm, with something about chopstick size. I used a chopstick. Then pour sweetened condensed milk over the cupcakes, into the holes, by the teaspoonful. Allow to cool the rest of the way on racks.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

1 1/2 c cream cheese, softened (I used tofutti, which I like better than most other brands I've tried)
1/2 c Earth Balance, softened
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
4 c icing sugar

Cream together the Earth Balance and cream cheese. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon, then add the icing sugar by the cupful and mixing to incorporate each cup entirely before adding the next. Spread onto cupcakes. Mine was too soft to pipe nicely and hold a shape, but you can try or maybe add more icing sugar to see if that makes it more solid. It's freaking delicious this way though so I'd say just stick with it.

Yum.