Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

From the Cupcake Archives...

The title does sound a bit odd, no? This is slightly based off of zucchini bread, but this is a bit sweeter, and with a slightly different taste profile. The idea came after reading up on The Great Big Veg Challenge, a blog that, if you haven't read yet, you really should take some time and check it out. Especially you parents out there raising veggie-phobic ragamuffins. The woman's a genius I tells ya'!

The real key to this cupcake is turbinado sugar, extra cinnamon, and the addition of raisins to create a deliciously moist, dense, and courageously flavorful cupcake. The turbinado gives it a nice caramel flavor and appearence, while the cinnamon gives it that great spicy kick.

None of the flavors berate you, but instead talk to you softly, ask how your mom is, and then give you a backrub. It's really a nice summer cupcake, as it's a perfect chance to make use of all that fresh zucchini that'll be coming in soon. Currants or golden raisins would be great in this cupcake too, as would a variety of nuts, coconut, or maybe even some other spices like nutmeg or allspice. The cream cheese frosting just finishes everything off, and plus, it's cream cheese.

I like cream cheese. Don't you like cream cheese?

They have a reminiscence of maybe cinnamon raisin bread, or maybe carrot cake, but still very unique. If you take a bite, you'll know it's zucchini cake based on the fresh taste.

Zucchini Cupcakes
Makes 24 cupcakes / 350 F oven

What You'll Need...
3 cups of all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups of turbinado sugar (muscovado, raw, and brown could work in a pinch too. white sugar will work I guess, but you will get a different end product than I did)
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
4 eggs at room temperature
1 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
3 cups of grated zucchini
3/4 cup of raisins, currants or sultans

What You'll Do...
1) Combine in a large bowl the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Make a well in the center.

2) Whisk together the oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and combine together. Batter will be very thick.

3) Add the zucchini and raisins, currants or what have you. The batter will gain more moisture and will become more workable. Scoop into cupcake papers a little over 1/2 full.

4) Bake for 18-24 minutes, being sure to rotate the pan after the first 15 minutes of baking. If a toothpick comes out clean when testing the cupcakes, they're done. Place on a wire rack to cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting
What You'll Need...
1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature
8 oz of Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature
2 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

What You'll Do...
1) Cream the butter and cream cheese together, about 3 minutes. Scraped down the sides and bottom.

2) Slowly add the powdered sugar. Add the vanilla to taste. Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes.