Easy Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Our favorite carrot cake recipe, in 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!

Here are a few more cupcake recipes we think you’ll love – Cupcakes in a Jar, Keylime Cupcakes with a Printable Rainbow Topper, Pinata Cupcakes, and Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes.

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 fruity flavors!

Today I want to share one of my other favorite Spring treats on the more decadent side of the flavor spectrum – some delicious (and darling!) Carrot Cake Cupcakes.

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 candies with real fresh snips of parsley!

Here is how to make them –

How to Make Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS –

for the cupcakes:

• Dry Ingredients – flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ground nutmeg, salt
• Wet Ingredients – vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla extract
• Grated Carrots – I toss some matchstick carrots into my food processor until they are finely grated. (Using a box grater was taking FOREVER!)
• Cupcake Liners – You’ll need 24 paper liners in whatever colors you like!
• Option Add-Ins – feel free to add in some chocolate chips, raisins, your favorite nuts (walnuts, pecans, etc.)

for the frosting:

• cream cheese, butter, vanilla, salt, powdered sugar, milk

for the toppers:

• Orange Tootsie Rolls – you could also use orange fondant, taffy, airheads, etc.
• Fresh Greenery – parsley, cilantro, long carrot tops, celery leaves, etc.

INSTRUCTIONS –Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, then add the wet ingredients, and mix well.

ADD-INS – Stir in the shredded carrots and any additional flavor add-ins.

FILL YOUR MUFFIN TIN. Spoon batter into 24 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.

BAKE. Bake for 20 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

Make the Frosting. Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Chill in the fridge until the cupcakes are cooled, then frost to your liking.

Make the Carrot Tops. Take an orange tootsie roll fondant and roll into a log, making one end smaller than the other. If your candy is too hard, soak it for a minute in warm water until it is formable.

Using the backside of a butter knife, make a few indentations.

Gently place a carrot on each frosted cupcake, then place a small leaf or greenery at the top.

Eat and enjoy!

STORAGE – Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. (The frosting on these cupcakes will last longer chilled than if you leave it at room temperature.)

More Spring Treats –

• Rainbow Jello Cups
• Fruit Ice Cubes
• Cottage Cheese Jello Salad
• Carrot Cake Push Pops
• Bird’s Nest Cookies

HERE’S A PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION OF THE RECIPE SO YOU CAN SAVE IT FOR LATER –

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Servings: 24 cupcakes

Our favorite carrot cake recipe, in 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!

Prep Time:10 minutes mins

Cook Time:20 minutes mins

Total Time:30 minutes mins

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 carrots, finely grated

for the frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter , softened
• 1 tbsp of vanilla
• dash of salt
• 3-4 cups of powdered sugar
• 2-3 tbsp. of milk

for the toppers:

• 24 orange tootsie rolls , you could also use orange fondant, taffy, airheads, etc.
• fresh parsley, or cilantro, long carrot tops, celery leaves, etc.

Instructions

for the cupcakes:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Mix flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a 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 for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the 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 an orange tootsie roll fondant and roll into a log, making one end smaller than the other. If your candy is too hard, soak it for a minute in warm water until it is formable.
  
• Lay your carrots on a sheet of wax paper and using the backside of a butter knife, make a few indentations along your carrot
• Gently place a carrot on each frosted cupcake, then place a small leaf or greenery at the top of your “carrot.”
• Eat and enjoy!
  

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cupcake · Calories: 233 kcal · Carbohydrates: 42 g · Protein: 3 g · Fat: 6 g · Saturated Fat: 3 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 2 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 43 mg · Sodium: 119 mg · Potassium: 126 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 33 g · Vitamin A: 2902 IU · Vitamin C: 1 mg · Calcium: 41 mg · Iron: 1 mg

Other Notes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: carrot, cupcakes, easter, spring

If you make these cupcakes, we’d love to hear what you think of them! Leave us a comment or tag us on social media!