New Meal Monday: Bunny Carrot Cakelets

For this week's New Meal Monday we thought we'd take our inspiration from one of our favorite brands! Nordic Ware is a family owned company that specializes in bakeware; their products are almost always top in their category and are made in the USA.  Whether its a simple classic baking sheet, or a more specialty item like a popover pan, their products are always top rated! Recently we started carrying a few of their spring and summer themed specialty baking pans.  The Backyard Bugs Pan and the Wildflower Loaf Pan ensure that your baked goods are not only delicious, but visually fun and appealing! 
We also brought in their Bunny Cakelet Pan, which comes with a recipe for Bunny Carrot Cakelets!  With Easter around the corner we thought we'd give this recipe a try! The pan itself (pictured below) sold out nearly as quickly as it arrived; however, this recipe would still work great for a large Bundt Cake, or for carrot cupcakes! 
The frosting directions provided below are for a glaze, however you can get creative to get the texture you want for the type of decorating you plan to do. We liked the idea of a bushy frosting tail and some icing in the ears, so we needed a thicker texture. We used slightly less milk and added more confectioners sugar. We simply added a bit at a time, while mixing, until it looked fluffy (plenty of opportunity to taste test here!) To add a little color, we used red food coloring to make a small portion of the icing pink for the ears and nose. 

What you'll need:

Cake

  • 1-2/3 Cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 Cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 Cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 1 tsp mutmeg
  • 1.5 Cup finely shredded carrots
  • 1/3 Cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 Cup sour cream
  • 1/4 Cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 1.5 tsp vanilla extract

Frosting

  • 1/4 cup softened cream cheese
  • 1/4 softened butter
  • 1.5 cups confectioners sugar
  • 2 Tbsp  milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract


How you'll do it: 

  1. Preheat oven to 350F
  2. Prepare pan by greasing with butter or shortening, and flouring. (or use a baking spray that contains flour)
  3. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and toss with carrots until well combined and coated.
  4. In a separate bowl add oil, butter, sour cream, eggs and vanilla and beat thoroughly until well combined.
  5. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir till combined
  6. Pour into pan and bake 25-30 min (till cake tester or toothpick comes out clean!) Cool in pan 5-10 min before removing, then allow cakes to continue to cool on rack prior to frosting.
  7. While baking make the frosting! Combine cream cheese and butter and microwave until very soft and melted (10-20 seconds). Mix together.
  8. Mix in vanilla and confectioners sugar, stirring until very smooth.
  9. Use milk to thin glaze to desired consistency, then use a fine pastry brush to glaze each cakelet. Then serve or refrigerate.