We didn’t plan it on purpose, but we managed to schedule our Louisville trip so that we had two three-day weekends in a row! Both Lindsey & I took Monday off last week because we were flying home from Kentucky and then Good Friday is a company holiday. I definitely like four-day work weeks!
Good Friday is the only holiday that we get to take off and a lot of other businesses don’t. Lindsey and I have started a tradition of going to Denver for the day to hang out. It varies each year, but we’ve done massages, pedicures, manicures, shopping, went to Blackhawk, etc. This year we scheduled mani-pedis for Friday at one of our favorite spots the Sweet Life Nail Bar. It is super cute and they decorate with rustic doors that have been painted in different pastel colors. I really like it, plus their pedicures tend to last a long time!
My mom decided to go with us this year and she is going to get a pedicure too. It’ll be a girls day out! I talked Lindsey into letting us get Bubu for lunch, which is a Troy Guard quick-service restaurant. After that we don’t have any firm plans. Maybe some shopping. Maybe a movie. Who knows!
What I DO know is that I loved these carrot cake cupcakes! There is a new restaurant in Wiggins, Colorado called Hub 39 and their carrot cake is amazing! We went there for my dad’s birthday and they brought a gigantic piece out for all of us to share. We went through it so quickly that they brought us another piece! My dad, Lindsey, & I were so full but we are not quitters. We could not stop eating that cake!
These carrot cake cupcakes are much lighter and have a lot fewer calories than that cake. I used all clean-eating approved ingredients, including the icing! Speaking of the icing, I made is using vanilla protein powder, cream cheese, and a little milk. I used Greek yogurt cream cheese, but if you cannot find it then use regular. Greek yogurt cream cheese is fluffier than regular, so you might want to use whipped cream cheese. I used the Greek yogurt cream cheese in the Green Chile Smothered Burritos. It is really good!
I used whey isolate protein in vanilla for the icing. I’m sure it would work with any other vanilla protein (soy, pea, rice, etc). The amount of milk might vary depending on which type you use. Add the milk one tablespoon at a time until you reach the consistency you prefer.
I used a snack-sized Ziploc bag to drizzle the icing. Spoon the icing into the baggie and seal. Snip the corner of the baggie and pipe it on the cupcakes in whatever design you choose. You could also spread the icing on with a knife.
These cupcakes use homemade buttermilk. You can make your own by combining milk with apple cider vinegar. I combined 1 cup unsweetened almond milk and 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar in a small bowl. Stir and allow to sit for five minutes before adding it to the other wet ingredients. I used this same technique for the Green Chile Cornbread Muffins. The homemade version is much lower in calories, in fact, contains 30 calories per cup compared to buttermilk which contains 110 calories per cup. You save 80 calories!
One last note, take the time to shred your own carrots. Do not try to use the shredded carrots that you find in the store already packaged. They are a little more hard and will make the texture of the cupcake weird.
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour*
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 cup cashew milk, unsweetened**
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp cloves, ground
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 cup carrots, grated
- 2 tsp cashew milk, unsweetened**
- 1/2 cup vanilla whey protein****
- 2 Tbsp greek yogurt cream cheese
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees with the rack placed in the middle.
- Spray two muffins pans with non-stick cooking spray or use paper liners.
- Combine 1 cup cashew milk with 1 tbsp vinegar in a small bowl, stir, and let it sit for 5 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all three flours, salt, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the egg, applesauce, maple syrup, and the cashew milk-vinegar mixture (once 5 minute is up).
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredient bowl. Stir to combine. Add the grated carrot and raisins and gently fold in.
- Using a measuring cup or ice cream scoop, divide the batter among the two muffins pans. Fill each cup about 3/4 full.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 17 minutes.***
- While the cupcakes bake, make the icing by combining the cashew milk, vanilla protein powder, and cream cheese in a small bowl. Stir until well combined and no lumps remain.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack.
- Divide the icing evenly among the cupcakes.
- *If you do not have garbanzo bean flour, you may substitute with an additional 1/2 cup whole wheat flour.
- **Unsweetened almond milk can be substituted for cashew milk.
- *** You might want to cook each pan separately. Do not put one pan on the middle shelf and one underneath on a lower shelf.
- ****Other types of protein may be used (soy, pea, etc), but the amount of cashew milk may vary with substitutions.
