I'm late! I'm late! For a very important date!

Obviously things did not go well earlier in the week, when I had hoped to get back much sooner to Dorie's Carrot Cake. Instead of Wednesday, it is Saturday, and I am only now posting about last week's TWD selection, having finished making and decorating it only minutes ago.

Since I had made the cake previously as written, minus the nuts, I decided this time to make cupcakes, much to the thrill of my assistant chef, my five year old son. We gathered our ingredients out on the counter, he pulled up his chair and dug right into helping. The grin on his face as he pushed down on the plunger of the food processor and saw the carrots zoom down into shreds in the bottom is one of the reasons I encourage him to help me. Because, yes, most times, it is easier, and quicker, and oh my, cleaner, to do the baking alone.

Not this time though - I measured, he poured. He sampled plain cinnamon (and said yuck), he turned on the mixer, after being careful to lock it, and watched anxiously for the sugar and oil to mix together. He hovered between eggs, ready to add the next one, and reminded me several times that he wanted to help with the icing too!

Having read several other carrot cupcake posts this week (and I'm sorry I did not comment on most of them this week, again, my bad!), I knew not to over fill my little paper cups. Which is why I was extra careful filling them, being sure not to go over 3/4's full, or even a little less.

Which did me no good what so ever....


Yes, that is indeed 24 carrot cupcakes, each and every one of them, over flowed and a mess.

I managed five that did not over flow. But only because they didn't fit on the first cookie sheet, giving me time to go back and scoop out some of the batter into one more cup.

Note to self, already written in my book - do not fill cupcakes more than HALF full!

All was not lost, though. The icing, which I could eat with a spoon if I weren't exhibiting amazing self control right now, is plentiful, and the cupcakes, though a mess, are still moist and flavorful.

I managed to salvage them by carefully cutting them out of the paper cups and placing them into regular cupcake papers, topped with a generous piping of that wonderful cream cheese icing. Except the one that I turned into a mini layer cake. Which still leaves me with alot of carrot cupcakes, which will be happily shared out among the neighbors tomorrow.

Amanda, our hostess for this past week, from Slow Like Honey, made a wonderful choice. No matter how you manage to bake it, this is a great carrot cake and I was glad of the excuse to remake it. Even if it took me alot longer than I had planned on.

Next weeks' choice, however, leaves me in a bit of a quandry. Caitlin of Engineer Baker has chosen the Fluted Polenta and Ricotta Cake, found on pages 200-201, a cake which I will not be able to convince the rest of my family to even try, though I'm curious. I wonder if I can make only 1/4 of the recipe?