Inside Out Muffins!



Mom splitting her muffin open!

I have been meaning to make these little guys for a couple of months now.  When I found the recipe, I was very intrigued: carrot cake muffins with the cream cheese frosting inside?  This is great for a few reasons.  One: I love carrot cake.  Two: I love cream cheese frosting.  Three: everthing that I frost ends up looking like crap, so by hiding the frosting inside the muffin, my food can still look nice!   Finally tonight, Mark took over the dinner planning and cooking,so I had time to get back to my beloved baking, and inside-out carrot cake muffins were at the top of my list.

I like to tell msyelf that these are healthy.  After all, there is a whole cup of fresh carrot in there (and perhaps a little bit of my pinkie... good lord is my new grater sharp!).  The cream cheese frosting is healthier than when it's on the outside, because there is no butter, just cream cheese and sugar.  There's only 1/4 cup of oil in the muffins themselves.  While saying that they are healthy might be a stretch, they certainly aren't as awful for you as most of my baked goods.

The great news is, these are absolutely delicious.  The carrot cake is spiced and soft, and the gooey cream center is just amazing.  My mom ate one right out of the oven and while she burned her tongue, she was raving over them- and you  know  how picky she can be.  Mark and Rachael both devoured one too. I am waiting to let them cool a little bit before I have my own, but I took a few bites of my Mom's and was pumped.  These little guys are a keeper!

On a side note, I think I am in love with the muffin cups I used.  They are made by Reynolds and are lined with what appears to be tin foil.  They are very stiff, so they don't let your cupcakes sag outward, and they keep their color.  The best part about them is that they peel off perfectly.  We were joking that I could reuse them, because not a single crumb was left on them after we took out our muffins!  I am sick of crappy muffin cups and might be hooked on these ones from now on!

My new favorite muffin cup liners :)

Recipe:
Inside-out carrot cake muffins