Parsnip Cardamom Cupcakes

Happy 1st of December, friends! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was very nice, just spent some time with some family and ate as much food as I could fit in my belly. Just how Thanksgiving should be done, right? Now that Thanksgiving is over, it’s time to prepare for the next big holiday meal, Christmas. Stay tuned because I’ll be working on some great new cookie ideas for you to bake up this season.

By now most of you have heard about my new book! Pies That Inspire. Named so because all the pies in this book are unique, non-traditional, but still very approachable. I wanted to showcase how you can switch up a traditional pie with some modern flair, and I had an absolute BLAST working these recipes. I hope you all like them as much as I liked creating them. Pies that Inspire is open for pre-orders NOW and the book is released December 22, 2020, you know, just in case you need one more gift for that baker in your life. Click here to go straight to the amazon page!

I’ve also recently set up a store on my website! I’m now selling my 1st book, Easy as Pie, and once my new book is released, I’ll be selling it on here as well. Click here to check it out. 

If you like carrot cake, then you’ll love these parsnip cardamom cupcakes. Parsnip is one of those vegetables that can be easily made into a sweet or savory dish, because of it’s inherent sweetness. I paired this cupcake with cardamom because I love the aroma cardamom gives in a baked good. Fair warning, you’re gonna love the way your house smells after these cupcakes come out of the oven. The cake is delicate, moist, and best of all, super easy to make. You can either shred the parsnips by hand or do what I do: throw them in the food processor. The cardamom cream cheese frosting is the perfect topping, but honestly, is there anything cream cheese frosting doesn’t go with? Cranberry jam drizzle is a great tart element that brings everything in this dessert together. I just make a simple compote with some fresh cranberries, then blended it up together. Because all of that simply isn’t enough, I’ve topped this cupcake with some toasted pecans for crunch. You’re taste buds can thank me later.

Happy December everyone! Stay warm and safe out there, and stay tuned for some unique cookie ideas.

Parsnip Cardamom Cupcakes with Cardamom Cream Cheese Frosting and Cranberry

Yield 12 cupcakes

Flour 1 cup

Cardamom 1 tsp

Cinnamon ½ tsp

Baking Powder 1 ½ tsp

Salt ¼ tsp

Brown Sugar ¾ cup

Eggs 2

Canola oil 2/3 cup

Vanilla 1 tsp

Parsnip, shredded 2 cups (about 2 parsnips)

Cardamom Cream Cheese Frosting

Cream cheese, soft 1 cup

Butter, soft ½ cup

Powdered Sugar, sifted 1 cup

Vanilla 1 tsp

Cardamom ½ tsp

Cinnamon 1/8 tsp

Cranberry Jam

Fresh Cranberry 1 cup

Honey 2 Tbsp

Sugar ¼ cup

Juice and zest of 1 orange

Vanilla 1 tsp

Pecans 1/2 cup, toasted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners.

Peel and shred 2 parsnips. You can shred them by hand or use a food processor. Measure out the shredded parsnips into 2 cups and set aside. In a stand mixer or a large bowl, combine oil, brown sugar, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon. Whisk in eggs, vanilla, flour, and baking powder. Fold in parsnips last. Scoop batter evenly among 12 cupcake liners. Bake cupcakes for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cupcakes at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Prepare the cranberry jam by heating all ingredients in a small sauce pot. Cook for about 8-10 minutes on medium high until cranberry appears thick like jam, stirring every couple of minutes. Transfer to a food processor and process for about 30 seconds. You want the jam to be smoother, but still a little chunky. Cool jam down at room temperature, about 20 minutes, and then transfer to a piping bag.

Make the cardamom cream cheese frosting by combining cream cheese and butter in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Paddle together until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Add in powdered sugar, vanilla, cardamom, and cinnamon, and paddle until smooth. Transfer frosting to a piping bag.

To assemble, pipe cardamom cream cheese frosting on each cupcake. Top the frosting with a little cranberry jam. Top the cupcakes with some toasted pecans. Enjoy!