Our favorite carrot cake recipe, in smaller cupcake form! These Carrot Cake Cupcakes are topped with a delicious cream cheese frosting that tastes amazing! They are the perfect treat for Easter, spring bake sales, or a simple afternoon treat!
Spring is for sure one of my favorite times of the year. Flowers are blooming, the weather is perfect and Easter is just around the corner. Spring also has some of my very favorite flavors when it comes to baked goods. Lemon Cookies, Strawberry Shortcake, Mini Fruit Pizzas… I can’t get enough of the fresh and fruit flavors! Today I want to share one of my other favorite Spring treats on the opposite, more decadent part of the flavor spectrum – some delicious (and darling!) Carrot Cake Cupcakes.
Easy Carrot Cake Cupcakes
I can’t get enough of these carrot cake cupcakes. I usually use a boxed cake mix for my carrot cake and top it with my favorite Cream Cheese Frosting, but a friend of mine brought these tasty little treats to my house one day and I knew I had to get her recipe!
It was surprisingly easy to make, plus it doesn’t use any weird ingredients. Most importantly, it yields a super delicious and moist cupcake, so I think this recipe is a keeper!!!
And how cute are those carrot toppers? The carrots are made out of orange fondant with real carrot tops from Whole Foods. Here is how to make them –
Fondant Carrots
- Take a small piece of orange fondant and roll into a log, making one end smaller than the other.
- With a bamboo skewer or toothpick, put a small hole in the top for the greenery.
- Lay your carrots on a sheet of wax paper and with your skewer or toothpick gently make a few indentations along your carrot and allow to dry.
- To keep your carrot tops fresh until you’re ready to use them, cut off the carrots and place the tops in a cup of fresh water, just like you would flowers. Just before you’re ready to serve, add the real carrot leaves by sticking the stems into the holes on the tops of your fondant carrots.
Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
If you make these cupcakes, we’d love to hear what you think if them! Leave us a comment or tag us on social media!
Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
for the cupcakes
- 2 cups flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups finely grated carrots
for the frosting
- 8 oz package of cream cheesesoftened
- 1/4 cup butter softened
- 1Â of vanilla
- dash of salt
- 3-4 cups of powdered sugar
- 2-3 tbsp. of milk
for the carrot top
- orange fondant
- real greenery from carrot tops
- toothpick
Instructions
for the cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in large bowl.
- Add oil, eggs and vanilla; mix well.
- Add carrots; mix until well blended.
- Spoon batter into 24 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
- Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
for the frosting
- Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- Beat with an electric mixer until smooth.
for the carrot tops
- Take a small piece of orange fondant and roll into a log, making one end smaller than the other.
- With a bamboo skewer or toothpick, put a small hole in the top for the greenery.
- Lay your carrots on a sheet of wax paper and with your skewer or toothpick gently make a few indentations along your carrot and allow to dry.
- To keep your carrot tops fresh until you're ready to use them, cut off the carrots and place the tops in a cup of fresh water, just like you would flowers. Just before you're ready to serve, add the real carrot leaves by sticking the stems into the holes on the tops of your fondant carrots.
- Gently place a carrot on each cupcake and enjoy!
Nutrition
Other Notes
Seriously, how cute is this?!?!
So yummy and festive for Easter! Love the carrot on top!
Thank you!
These are the perfect Easter cupcake! Love that cute fondant carrot!!!
Isn’t it adorable?! Thanks!
Absolutely stunning to look at and the cream cheese carrot cake combo makes my mouth water.
Thanks Natasha, you’re so kind!
I am loving the carrots on top! How adorable!! Can’t wait to wow my guests on Easter.
Thanks Jen!
These are the cutest carrot cupcakes ever!
Thanks Anna, you’re too sweet!
The cupcakes look amazing!! I love the carrot on top. Pinned 🙂
These are GORGEOUS! Carrot Cake is a family fave at my house. Last summer my 5 yr. old son even requested carrot cake for his bday.
Hi there! I just wanted to stop over and let you know that I’ve shared this post in a Baby Bunny SPRING Baby Shower idea board on my blog http://sparklysharpandfabulous.blogspot.com/2013/04/baby-bunny-spring-baby-shower.html I hope you can check it out and enjoy the event! <3
These look amazing! I would love for you to join the Pinworthy Projects link party!