The most delicious Carrot Cake Cupcakes! They are soft and fluffy and topped with homemade cream cheese frosting. Perfect for Easter!
If you want to make more carrot cakes, try Carrot Cake with Buttermilk Glaze or Carrot Cake Roll!
Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Carrot cake cupcakes are truly one of my favorite desserts ever. I love the combination of the cinnamon cupcake with the cream cheese frosting. I love that I can pretend I’m being healthy by eating carrots.
These cupcakes are moist, fluffy, so soft, and just perfect. They are topped with a homemade cinnamon cream cheese frosting and walnuts for a little crunch.
Make them for your Easter party or any time of year!
Why This Recipe Works
- Carrot cupcakes are the perfect year round dessert! They work for Easter because carrots and they work for the cooler months because the cinnamon and ginger feel like fall spices.
- Cream cheese frosting is everyone’s favorite!
- They are a great use for that bag of carrots in your fridge that you’re worried is going to go bad!
Ingredients
Keep scrolling for ingredient amounts!
- All purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Cinnamon – cinnamon will be going in the cupcakes and the cream cheese frosting
- Ground ginger
- Granulated sugar
- Brown sugar
- Canola or vegetable oil
- Eggs
- Egg yolk
- Vanilla extract – vanilla will be going in the cupcakes and the cream cheese
- Orange zest
- Buttermilk
- Grated carrots – you can grate carrots by hand or use a food processor. You’ll need 5 – 6 carrots
- Cream cheese – for the cream cheese frosting, of course!
- Butter – for the cream cheese frosting
- Powdered sugar
- Walnuts – walnuts are optional but look really cute on top of the cupcakes!
How To Make Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger into a large mixing bowl.
- Combine wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and oil. Add one egg at a time. Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and orange zest, and whisk until combined.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients. Pour about a third of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients along with the buttermilk, and fold together with a spatula or wooden spoon. Add in the remaining ingredients, and continue folding until everything is just combined.
- Add carrots. Fold in the grated carrots.
- Fill muffin cups. Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners about halfway full.
- Bake and cool. Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle cupcakes comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting
- Combine ingredients. Cream together the 8 ounces of cream cheese and 1 stick of butter with an electric hand mixer on medium speed.
- Add sugar. Gradually add in the 2 cups of powdered sugar and continue blending until the frosting is smooth. Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and blend on low speed until everything is mixed.
- Decorate. Transfer the frosting to a piping bag with a large tip, and pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes.
How To Store Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Because these cupcakes have cream cheese frosting, they need to be stored in the refrigerator. Cover them well and they will be good for up to 5 days.
Let them stand at room temperature for 15 – 20 minutes before serving to get the chill off.
Can You Freeze Carrot Cake Cupcakes?
You can freeze the cupcakes without the frosting for up to 3 months. I recommend wrapping them tightly with plastic wrap and then placing in freezer ziploc bags.
When you are ready to serve them, let them defrost at room temperature for several hours and then you can make the frosting and decorate them.
More Cupcake Recipes
- Pink Velvet Funfetti Cupcakes
- Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream
- Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes
- Apple Spice Cupcakes
- Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes
- Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes
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Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
- 1 ½ cup all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup brown sugar, light or dark, packed
- ¾ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon orange zest
- ¼ cup buttermilk
- 1 ½ cups grated carrots, 4-5 medium carrots
For the cream cheese frosting
- 1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Place 12 white cupcake liners into a regular muffin tin. Set aside.
- For the cake, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger into a large mixing bowl, then whisk the dry ingredients to make sure everything is mixed thoroughly. Set aside.
- Mix together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and oil with a whisk. Add one egg at a time, making sure they are each incorporated before adding the next. Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and orange zest, and whisk until combined.
- Pour about a third of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients along with the buttermilk, and fold together with a spatula or wooden spoon. Add in the remaining ingredients, and continue folding until everything is just combined. Fold in the grated carrots.
- Spoon the batter into the cupcake liners about halfway full. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle cupcakes comes out clean. Set the cupcakes on a cooling rack to rest.
- To make the cinnamon cream cheese frosting, in a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter with an electric hand mixer on medium speed. Gradually add in the powdered sugar and continue blending until the frosting is smooth. Add the cinnamon and vanilla extract, and blend on low speed until everything is mixed.
- Transfer the frosting to a piping bag with a large star tip, and pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes (make sure the cupcakes are completely cool before adding frosting, or the frosting will melt). Serve at room temperature.
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Juliane says
Wow, this is SO good! We all love this.
Erik says
Such a fun recipe! The frosting is wonderful, too.
Erin | Dinners,Dishes and Dessert says
These Carrot Cake Cupcakes would disappear fast in our house!
Catalina says
Mmmm…. these cupcakes look amazing! They are on our baking list for Easter!
Beth says
These look absolutely delicous! Carrot cake is one of my favorite baked goods of all time so I can’t wait to make these. They’re so pretty, too.
Amanda says
I love carrot cake and I love cupcakes so this is going to be a necessity. I will be baking these this weekend!