These carrot cake cupcakes are the perfect mini version of classic carrot cake. Moist, tender carrot cupcakes flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg, swirled with sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients for Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Carrot cupcakes
- All-purpose flour – Be sure to fluff the flour before scooping and level the measuring cup.
- Granulated sugar – For sweetness.
- Baking powder – Leavening agent that helps the cupcakes rise.
- Salt – Enhances the flavor of the cupcakes and balances the sweetness.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg – Warm spices to give the cupcakes a classic carrot cake flavor.
- Egg – Large egg, room temperature.
- Milk – Room temperature. You can use regular milk or buttermilk if you prefer.
- Vegetable oil – You can also use canola oil or any other neutral baking oil.
- Vanilla extract – Vanilla extract adds great vanilla flavor to the cupcakes.
- Carrots – Finely shredded carrots are best. (See tips below!)
Cream cheese frosting
- Unsalted butter – Room temperature for easy creaming.
- Cream cheese – Room temperature cream cheese to cream well with the butter.
- Powdered sugar – Also known as confectioners’ sugar or icing sugar.
- Salt – Enhances the flavor of the frosting and balances the sweetness.
- Vanilla extract – Vanilla extract adds great vanilla flavor to the frosting.
Tools & Supplies for Making Carrot Cake Cupcakes
How to Make Carrot Cupcakes
These carrot cake cupcakes are very simple to make! All you need is a bowl and a whisk!
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F & line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Whisk together all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl.
- Add in milk, egg, vegetable oil and vanilla extract to the dry ingredients.
- Whisk the dry and wet ingredients together until combined and smooth. Do not overmix.
- Stir in the shredded carrots until they are well dispersed.
- Portion into cupcake liners using a cookie scoop, 3/4 full.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes until the cupcakes bounce back when gently touched or an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting
This is the easiest cream cheese frosting recipe! You will need a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or an electric hand mixer. There are only 5 ingredients and the frosting only takes a few minutes to make.
- Whip the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.
- Add half of the powdered sugar and mix on low. Then add the remaining half and continue to mix on low speed.
- Add in salt and vanilla extract and continue to mix on low speed.
- Turn the mixer to medium-high and whip for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
Carrot Cake Cupcakes Recipe Tips
Finely grated carrots
Be sure that your carrots are very finely grated. You can use a box grater or a food processor. If you use a food processor, I recommend using the blades as opposed to the grating discs. Pulse the food processor until the carrots are finely grated. If the grated carrots are too thick, they will not bake well and your cupcakes will be crunchy.
Add a little extra flair and flavor
Want to make the cupcakes even more decadent? Drizzle over some homemade or store-bought caramel sauce and chopped pecans. If you don’t want to get too carried away, add a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg after frosting for an extra hint of flavor. For these cupcakes, a simple sprinkle of chopped pecans was perfect!
Spice-less?
Don’t have nutmeg? No worries! Replace it with more cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice!
Frosting the cupcakes
To frost the cupcakes as pictured, use a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M piping tip. Create an “ice cream swirl”. Check out this video to see how it’s done!
Storing and serving
The cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Serve at room temperature. Remove the cupcakes from the refrigerator about an hour before serving.
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Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Equipment
- Stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or electric hand mixer
- Food processor or hand grater
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- 1 egg room temperature
- ¾ cup milk room temperature
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup finely shredded carrots
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 4 oz. cream cheese room temperature
- 3 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a cupcake pans with 15 cupcake liners.
- In a mixing bowl, combine all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine.
- Add in room temperature egg, milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Whisk until the ingredients are combined. Do not overmix.
- Fold in the finely shredded carrots until well dispersed throughout the batter.
- Fill cupcake liners ¾ full. Use a large cookie scoop for easy portioning!
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes until the cupcakes bounce back when gently touched.
- Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and cool completely.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and cream cheese. Whip on medium high with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer until light and creamy.
- Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until combined. Add in remaining half of the sugar and continue to mix on low until well combined.
- Add vanilla extract and salt. Mix on low speed until the ingredients are fully combined.
- Turn the mixer on high speed and whip for approximately 5 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Spread or pipe onto the cooled cupcakes. For these cupcakes, I used a Wilton 1M tip.
Notes
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Comments & Reviews
Made these for Easter and they were a HUGE hit!! Thank you for sharing your recipes!!
Amazing to hear! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!! Thanks for trying it out!
Can I use buttermilk instead of regular milk for this recipe?
Yes absolutely!
Wow! I could not believe how GREAT my house smelled while I was whipping up these carrot cake cupcakes! The color was beautiful, and they baked PERFECTLY leaving me with gorgeous, soft and moist and most importantly- DELICIOUS cupcakes! I will surely be using this recipe again!
I’m thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks for trying it!