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Our carrot cake cupcakes are topped with a heavenly brown sugar cream cheese frosting, making them extra delicious and perfect for Spring.
A Classic in Cupcake form
Cupcakes are a favorite dessert of ours – because their simple, they feed a crowd and both kids and adults love them.
Since we love the flavors of Carrot Cake (especially for Easter), we wanted to have a classic version of carrot cake cupcakes. Today’s recipe is just that – classic and so delicious.
The best part is the brown sugar cream cheese frosting that is out of this world! It’s the ideal complement to the carrot cake flavors with it’s sweet and tangy taste.
Although these cupcakes are a great Easter dessert, they can be enjoyed all year long! Try our Carrot Cake Cookies for another deliciously sweet version.
WHY WE LOVE IT:
- As easy as cake! Cupcakes are fun, easy, and great for feeding a crowd.
- Sweet and fluffy. You get that signature sweet and fluffy texture with just the right amount of spice.
- Perfectly frosted. Top it all off with some homemade brown sugar frosting, and you’ve got yourself one tasty treat!
Ingredients
PREP TIME: 15 minutes
COOK TIME: 20 minutes
Cupcakes
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour – see How to Measure Flour
- ½+⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ½+⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs – or ½ cup applesauce for an egg-free version
- ½ cup canola oil – or vegetable oil or baking olive oil
- ¼ cup sour cream – or Greek yogurt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups finely grated carrots – Grate carrots using the fine side of a box grater. Do not use pre-packaged carrots as they are too dry.
- optional mix-ins – Add between ½ and 1 cup walnuts, pecans, and raisins to the batter, or sprinkle chopped nuts on top of the frosting.
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- ½ cup butter softened – We used unsalted butter, but salted butter can be used.
- ⅔ cup brown sugar – light brown sugar or dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- dash salt – omit if using salted butter
- 3 cups powdered sugar (more or less, if needed) – sifted
- optional topping – Add a simple layer of frosting and top with adorable Carrot Chocolate Covered Strawberries.
How to Make carrot cake cupcakes
- PREP. Preheat oven to 350°F and line a cupcake tin with paper liners.
- BATTER. In a medium bowl, whisk 1¼ cups flour, ½ + ⅛ teaspoon soda, ½ + ⅛ teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and ¼ teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl (or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment), beat 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, and ½ cup oil until thick and foamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add ¼ cup sour cream, ½ teaspoon vanilla, and 1½ cups finely grated carrots, and mix well.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just blended.
- BAKE. Fill paper-liners about ⅔ full. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with a few crumbs. Cool completely on a wire rack.
- FROSTING. In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand-held electric mixer, beat 8 ounces of cream cheese, ½ cup butter, and ⅔ cup brown sugar until smooth. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes until the brown sugar dissolves completely.
- Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl, and add 2 teaspoons vanilla, a dash of salt, and enough powdered sugar (about 3 cups) to make a frosting thick enough to pipe.
- Use a large star tip for textured frosting or a large round tip to pipe on smooth frosting. If spreading the frosting instead of piping, cut the recipe in half and still have more than enough.
Bite-size Carrot Cupcakes
Follow the recipe exactly and fill mini muffin liners (in a mini muffin tin) halfway. This will likely be about 2 tablespoons of batter for each mini cupcake. Bake at 350°F for 10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
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Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½+⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ½+⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup canola oil
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups finely grated carrots
Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- dash salt
- 3 cups powdered sugar, more or less, if needed
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a cupcake tin with paper liners.
- Whisk flour, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, eggs, and oil till thick and foamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the sour cream, vanilla, and carrots, and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and stir till just blended.
- Fill cupcake paper liners about ⅔ full. The cupcakes do not rise too much, and that is just fine. It's easier to frost them that way! Bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely.
Frosting
- Beat cream cheese, butter, and brown sugar until smooth. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes until the brown sugar dissolves completely.
- Add vanilla, salt, and enough powdered sugar to make a frosting thick enough to pipe. Use a large star tip to frost cupcakes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
Store unfrosted cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in a freezer bag in the freezer for 4-6 months. Store frosting in an airtight container in the fridge for 10-14 days or the freezer for 2 months.
Due to the cream cheese frosted cupcakes need to be kept cold. Store covered in the fridge for 2-3 days or carefully freeze for 2-3 months.
For more delicious recipes by her, head on over to Creations by Kara!
Most amazing carrot cake recipe very easy ti follow. The best thing about this recipe it can be made in advance and frOZen. WHen thawed it is still as moist as the day made.
The icIng is a wonderful compliment
Thank you for sharing that!! I am happy that you like them 🙂
This recipe was perfect! Im picky about baking recipes, but this is So delicious!!!
Yay, I am glad you liked this recipe! Thank you for trying it & for letting me know!
Your ingredient listing says 2 plus 1/8 tsp for Each baking SOADA AND baking powder. But, your instructions say 1 Plus 1/8 tsp each. WHICH IS it?
It is 1/2 tsp plus the 1/8 tsp 🙂
THESE WERE ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!! CAKE WAS MOIST AND FLAVORFUL AND THAT FROSTING WAS PERFECT! VERY WELL RECEIVED BY EVERYONE THAT HAD ONE.
I love hearing that! I am glad you tried them! Thank you!
This recipe was sooo yummy! I baked it as a cake, and just needed to double the baking time. The frosting was to die for. Lots of people said it was the best carrot cake they ever had!
Perfect!! I need to make it as a cake! Thank you so much!
these turned out very nice I did tweak a few things. I added some applesauce to cut down on the oil. i used only half a cup of coconut sugar And I added a few raisins on top of the muffins because I forgot to add them into them. next time I will put crumbled walnuts on top of the muffins. and I may try pumpkin spice instead of cinnamon.
I got 12 fair sized muffins out of my batch. easy straightforward and cooking time was spot on. thanks
Sounds perfect! Thank you so much for sharing that!
MAde this last year for Easter and I’m making them again this year. The frosting was a huge hit. But I cant remember if I used salted or unsalted butter. What do you use? Thank you!
I like to use unsalted butter when baking 😉
So I don’t usually leave comments, but I simply must with this recipe! These cupcakes, coupled with the frosting are absolutely amazing! I’ve had some recipes that haven’t turned out even when I followed them to the letter. not so with this one! Followed it exactly and they came out perfect!! I can’t say enough good things about this recipe! Thank you so very much for sharing your recipe!!
Thank you so much for sharing that & for leaving a comment. I love to hear them! I am so glad you liked them!
First time, i followed the instruction to a t and the cupcakea were fantastic. Had way too much feosting, so i froze half of it.
Fast-forward to today and i Followed the recipe again, but baked thw batter in two small LoaF pans (350 for 40 minutes) and topped with the thawed frosting from before. I like Then even better as a loaf (you get thw slightly crunchy edges).
Love this recipe – thank you for sharing!
Thank you for sharing that!! I will have to try that!
i made these cupcakes the other day and they were amazing and super moist. do you think this batter would work for a cake?
You know, I have never tried, but I don’t see why not?! I am glad you liked them!