Gluten Free Carrot Cakes

In Melbourne town its pouring down rain all day..........its cold and windy and wet and bleak. But I am tucked up safe and sound in my tiny unit, sipping tea and eating biscotti. This weather makes me SOOOOO hungry......and I know that I MUST NOT, I MUST NOT, I MUST NOT eat biscotti for breakfast......but all the same I do, because it tastes so damn good. 

This month I really wanted to focus on not just making cakes, but on making pretty cakes. Usually I'm all about the rustic, home style food, but lately I want everything I make to be pretty.....pretty and neat. So I have been spending my time looking up new icing styles, and practicing making little fondant flowers. Its quite lovely really. 

 I've been finding it so much easier to make something neat if I start out neatly. So I have been weighing out all the ingredients, and setting them in a row before I start. Its so comforting seeing all those little bowls of fours, eggs and sugar set out in front of me. When its all so neat, it makes it much easier to pretend that everything in my life is this neat (and that I totally didn't eat chocolate for breakfast, I didn't leave the kitchen such a mess.......and all that wine, well it drunk itself!)

Gluten free Carrot Cup cakes........ They are delicious and are perfect for your gluten free friends.

• 3/4 cup of rice bran oil
• 2 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 1/2 cups of grated carrot
• 1/2 cup of cup up walnuts 
• 2 tsp of gluten free baking powder
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of gluten free flour 
• 1 tsp cinnamon 
• 1/2 tsp of mixed spices 

Icing:

• 2tbs cream cheese
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 tsp soft butter
• 3/4 cup gluten free icing sugar

 1) Whisk together the sugar, oil and vanilla
2) Beat in eggs one at a time

 3) Sift together flour, baking powder and spices.
4) Fold in dry mix, along with carrot and nuts.
5) 3/4 fill muffin tins and bake at 180 for 30 minutes.

 6) Beat together butter, and cream cheese.
7) Add icing sugar and whisk until smooth.

You can either pipe the icing on top of the cup cakes....of just use a butter knife. I made little hearts out of flower moulding paste by using a cookie cutter and sticking them onto toothpicks.

Hope you enjoy them.....and this cold weather....