The Best Carrot Cake Cupcakes! These moist Carrot Cupcakes are topped with cream cheese frosting. Easy to make and so delicious!
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Best Carrot Cake Cupcake Recipe
If you're looking for the BEST carrot cake cupcakes - look no further. These cupcakes are moist and sweet - filled with pieces of carrot!
The base cake is a spiced batter that has grated carrots folded in and once cooled, the cupcakes get topped with a creamy, tangy cream cheese frosting that is incredibly easy to make!
You could totally enjoy these as a breakfast treat, but you could also try our Mini Carrot Muffins or Easy Carrot Muffins.
Why you'll love this Recipe for Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Delicious: Some of the best recipes are simple and still have a ton of flavor. Even though this recipe is made with only a few ingredients it’s loaded with flavor.
- Cheap: With grocery store costs on the rise, this is a delicious, budget friendly dessert!
- Total Comfort Food: When you need something comforting, this is the ultimate cupcake recipe!
What is carrot cake?
Carrot cake is a cake with grated or shredded carrots mixed into the batter and can have warm spices like cinnamon and ginger, and sometimes raisins, coconut, nuts, or pineapple. Typically it is topped with cream cheese or buttercream frosting.
Carrot Cake Cupcake Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- all purpose flour
- baking powder, baking soda
- cinnamon, ginger
- vegetable oil
- light brown sugar, white sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- shredded carrot
For the frosting:
- unsalted butter
- powdered sugar
- cream cheese
- vanilla extract
- walnuts, optional
How to make Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Whisk together oil and sugars. Whisk in the eggs. Then mix in the vanilla extract. Sift in the dry ingredients and fold everything together gently with a wooden spoon. Fold in the shredded carrot.
- Transfer the mixture to a lined cupcake pan. Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
- Frosting: Once the cupcakes have cooled, make the frosting by beating the butter until smooth. Then sift in powdered sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat until thick.
- Pipe or spread frosting on top of each cooled cupcake. Top with some chopped walnuts if desired.
How long to bake carrot cake cupcakes?
Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until a skewer poked into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting
- Add the butter to the bowl of an electric stand mixer and beat on medium speed until completely smooth. You can also use a handheld electric whisk if desired.
- Sift in the powdered sugar and beat until very smooth and fluffy – about 5 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat for another few minutes until thick.
How to decorate Homemade Carrot Cake Cupcakes
You can decorate carrot cake cupcakes however you like, but our favorite way is topped with cream cheese or buttercream frosting and sprinkled with walnuts or other nuts.
You could also add:
- shredded coconut
- a sprinkle of cinnamon
- carrot curls (use a veggie peeler)
- dye some of the frostings and pipe a little carrot on top.
Carrot Cake Cupcake Recipe Substitutions & Variations
Sugar: We don't recommend substituting white sugar unless you have to, but white sugar can be used interchangeably with brown sugar. You can add 1 teaspoon of molasses to white sugar to make brown sugar. Check out this post on Sugar Substitutes for Baking for other ideas.
All Purpose Flour: We don't recommend substituting the flour, but you can check out this article on Cake Flour vs. All-Purpose Flour or Substitutions for All-Purpose Flour
Baking Soda: Baking soda is essential for this recipe. Do not substitute with baking powder.
Eggs: We don't recommend substituting eggs, but you can read this article on Egg Substitutions for Baking if you need to substitute. Try it at your own risk!
Frosting: This Cool Whip Frosting would also be delicious!
Carrot Cake Cupcake Storage
How long can you keep carrot cake cupcakes?
You can store these cupcakes unfrosted for up to 2 days in an airtight container at room temperature. Or up to 5 days in the refrigerator. We prefer to store them in the fridge!
How to freeze homemade carrot cake cupcakes
I don't love freezing cupcakes. It's best to enjoy them fresh. If you are going to freeze cupcakes, freeze them unfrosted!
Tips for making Moist Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Don't over bake your cupcakes- Overbaking cupcakes can make them dry. Make sure to bake only until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center of the cake.
Store the cupcakes properly: After baking make sure you store the cupcakes tightly wrapped. Once frosted, make sure to put in an airtight container to preserve the moisture!
Moist Carrot Cake Cupcakes FAQs
Typically cake and cupcake batter are the same, but the cooking time is different.
There are a few reasons your carrot cake may not be moist. Overbaking and not adding enough fat are two of the top reasons.
If your carrot cake is watery, it might have too much oil or fat added to it. It also may need to cook for longer. You can reduce the temperature and increase the cook time. If your cake is starting to brown you can also cover it with foil on the edges to prevent it from burning.
Carrot cupcakes should be refrigerated, especially if they have cream cheese frosting on top. Even if they don't have frosting, they should be put in the refrigerator to maintain fresheness.
Other yummy cupcake recipes:
Best Recipe for Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ⅔ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups shredded carrot approx. 2 medium carrots
For the frosting:
- ¾ cup unsalted butter at room temp
- 1 ⅓ cups powdered sugar
- 12 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Finely chopped walnuts to decorate, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a 12 hole cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger to a mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
- In another large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil and sugars until well combined.
- Add the eggs one by one, whisking to combine after each addition. Then add the vanilla extract and mix again.
- Sift in the flour mixture and fold everything together gently with a wooden spoon.
- Add the shredded carrot and gently fold again to combine.
- Transfer the mixture to your prepared cupcake pan. Each cupcake should be approx. ⅔ of the way full.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a skewer poked into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
- Leave the cupcakes in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cupcakes have cooled, make the frosting.
- Add the butter to the bowl of an electric stand mixer and beat on a medium speed until completely smooth. You can also use a handheld electric whisk if desired.
- Sift in the powdered sugar and beat until very smooth and fluffy – about 5 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat for another few minutes until thick.
- Assemble the cupcakes. Pipe or spread swirls of the cream cheese frosting on top of each cupcake. I used a Wilton 1M piping nozzle. Top with some finely chopped walnuts to decorate (optional).
Diana
Hi! Looking forward to making these as a treat for my Dad... but I don't have vegetable oil in the house; would it be okay to use melted coconut oil? I also have olive and avocado but not sure those would go well as far as taste. Thanks!
Liz Marino
Sorry I just saw this! these should work with coconut oil, but I can't be sure without trying it!