Recently we got a silicone cupcake pan in the shape of a car. Once the pieces are cooked and removed and arranged back together, they are in the shape of a car.

Last night I made another variation of a carrot cake recipe I’m trying to perfect, and Luke convinced me to try the new pan. It was fun to scoop the muffin batter into the various spots.

This morning Isaac helped me make a frosting experiment, and we assembled the cupcake pieces and frosted them. Of course, it doesn’t look exactly like the picture that came with the mold, but we were pretty tickled with our car-rot cake breakfast.

I was most impressed with my frosting experiment, so I’ll share it with you here:

1 stick butter

1 package cream cheese (8 oz.)

2 cups powdered sugar

a splash of vanilla (1-2 tsp.)

Cream the butter and cream cheese until the child running the mixer interrupts your daydream with the question, “How long does this need to mix?”

Add a cup of the powdered sugar, incorporate thoroughly, then add the second cup of powdered sugar. Once that’s mixed in a little, splash in the vanilla, and again let the child running the mixer have a grand old time chasing the frosting around with the beaters.

What you’ll have in the end is a fluffy mixture that is very smooth and easy to spread and that is not so sweet that it overpowers your carrot cake.

Update: The cream-cheese-butter icing stays spreadable even when it’s kept in the fridge. Now the challenge is to not eat it by the spoonful when the children aren’t looking.