Ingredients
- • 8-ounce package cream cheese
- • ¼ cup sugar
- • 2¼ cups flour
- • ½ cup sugar
- • ¼ cup light brown sugar (firmly packed)
- • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- • 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- • ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- • ¾ teaspoon salt
- • 2 large eggs
- • ¾ cup water
- • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- • 1-2 cups grated carrots lightly packed (about 2 medium-large carrots)
- • sparkling white sugar
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Step 2
For cream cheese:
• Place cream cheese in a microwave-safe bowl and heat on low power for 40 seconds
• Stir in ¼ cup granulated sugar
• Stir until smooth and set the filling aside while you make the muffin batter
Step 3
Whisk together the following: flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt
Step 4
In a separate small bowl, add the eggs, water, and vegetable oil and whisk until well combined. Add the grated carrots and stir to combine
Step 5
Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients
Step 6
Place paper muffin cups in a cupcake pan and grease the paper cups. Put about 2 TBSP of muffin batter in each muffin cup and spread to cover the bottom
Step 7
Drop a heaping TBSP of cream cheese filling on top of the muffin batter.
Step 8
Cover the cream cheese filling with enough muffin batter so the muffin cups are very full (next time I will add a little less on the bottom of the muffin cup so the cream cheese filling is more in the middle)
Step 9
Sprinkle sparkling white sugar on top of each muffin
Step 10
Bake for 17 minutes
When they are done, a toothpick inserted into the cake part of one (not into the cream cheese filling) will come out clean and the tops of the muffins will feel firm to the touch
Remove the muffins from the oven, and immediately tilt them in their cups; a fork works well here
Wait 30 minutes or so for the muffins to cool and for the filling to stiffen up