Chocolate Chip Carrot Cake Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing

Happy Easter!   Nothing says Easter to me like carrot cake, and this is one of the best recipes I have ever tasted.  The cake itself is rich and moist and fragrant with cinnamon.  The original cake recipe comes from the Junior League of Milwaukee (thanks to Joyce Dekker for gifting me the 1987 cookbook Gatherings [now called An Occasion To Gather] which published the recipe).  I have added mini chocolate chips to the batter because I love the surprise hint of chocolate in this cake.  YUM.

But I really have to admit, that as good as the carrot cake is, it is merely a vehicle for the white chocolate cream cheese icing.  WOW.  Gone is the toothpaste-like graininess of the usual cloyingly sweet cream cheese icing made with confectioners sugar (eeew, nasty).  This icing is a three-ingredient wonder:  Cream cheese, unsalted butter and melted white chocolate.  The result is an icing that is light like a white chocolate mousse with the tang of cream cheese.  The icing is perfectly silky and smooth and is phenomenal against the dense moist carrot cake.

This is one of my most requested recipes, and I hope you will try them sometime.  They are incredibly easy and keep for days.  And best of all the recipe makes a generous 3 dozen cupcakes, so there are always plenty to go around!  Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Carrot Cake Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing
makes 3 dozen

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
2 cups finely grated carrots
1 cup crushed, drained pineapple
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt into a large bowl, set aside.  In the bowl of a mixer combine sugar, vegetable oil and eggs, beat until well combined.  Gradually add flour mixture and mix until batter forms.  Fold in carrots, pineapple, coconut, walnuts and chocolate chips.  Fill paper-lined cupcake pans with scant 1/4 cup batter.  Bake 25 minutes.   Cool completely before icing.

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
2- 8 oz. packages cream cheese, room temperature
12 oz. chopped white chocolate.

In a large mixing bowl, combine butter and cream cheese and whip until mixed and light and fluffy.  In a glass bowl, melt the white chocolate in the microwave, on high, for  15-second intervals, always stirring between microwaving.  When chocolate is liquid, allow to cool for 5 minutes, then add to butter/cream cheese mixture.  Whip until blended and light.