Zucchini-Orange Cupcakes

I discovered this recipe in my backlog of unposted recipes, and just had to share it with you! It's from a lovely set of cupcake recipes given to me by my sister a couple of years ago. The original recipe was for carrot cake, but I substituted zucchini since I baked these in the middle of zucchini season when we were absolutely drowning in them! Zucchini and orange make an interesting and tasty combination, and the raisins and chopped nuts add texture and extra delicious-ness. The orange cream cheese frosting is absolutely to-die-for, and would be excellent on many kinds of cupcakes (or even some fancy muffins!).


Zucchini-Orange Cupcakes (adapted from The Cupcake Deck)
Makes 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1 cup unbleached flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp grated orange zest
1 cup grated zucchini
3/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 cups finely chopped walnuts or pecans

For the frosting:
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp grated orange zest

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line twelve muffin tin cups with paper cupcake liners. Spray with nonstick spray.

2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar on medium speed until smooth and thick, 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides as needed. On low speed, mix in the oil, vanilla, and orange zest until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate.

3. Press down on the zucchini to extract as much liquid as possible. Add to the batter along with the raisins and walnuts and mix.

4. Fill each cupcake liner with 1/4 cup of atter. Bake until the top feels firm and a tester comes out clean, 28 minutes.

5. Make the frosting. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, cream cheese, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides as needed. Add the sugar, mixing until smooth, about 1 minute, and then meat on medium speed for 1 minute to lighten the frosting further. Fold in the orange zest with a rubber spatula.

6. Frost the cupcakes once completely cooled.