This is our favorite recipe for carrot cake cupcakes! They are 100% made from scratch, easy to make, versatile and utterly delicious. These cupcakes are also inspired by one of our most popular recipes!
Watch the Video
Related: We love this popular carrot cake!
A few years ago, we shared our absolute favorite recipe for carrot cake. Since sharing it, so many of you have reviewed it and shared it with your family and friends. We’ve also been asked about turning it into cupcakes and while we do provide a few quick tips in the cake recipe, we thought it was about time that we shared our go-to recipe for carrot cake cupcakes.
These cupcakes are very simple to make and you don’t need any fancy equipment to make the batter. Let me walk you through the basic process, the full recipe with all ingredient amounts is below.
How to Make Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Making these cupcakes is just as simple as making carrot cake. If you have a couple of bowls and can stir ingredients together then you can absolutely make these cupcakes! Here’s how I like to do it:
- Mix the Dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another: I like to whisk my dry ingredients together in one bowl until they are well blended. Then I whisk all the wet ingredients together in another bowl.
- Fold the dry and wet ingredients together: For this step, I switch to a rubber spatula or large spoon and fold the two — wet and dry ingredients — together until I don’t see any large streaks of flour. (We use the same method when making blueberry muffins and this buttery blueberry cake. Both recipes are so good!)
- Add lots of grated carrots, and if you’re adding them, nuts and raisins: When I’ve got the batter ready, I fold in the carrots and if I have them on hand, some raisins and chopped pecans.
Baking the Cupcakes
We’ve developed this recipe so that it makes about 12 nicely sized cupcakes. I use a standard cupcake pan. They bake in the oven for 22 to 27 minutes.
After baking, it is important to let the cupcakes cool before frosting with your favorite frosting (we’ve provided a simple cream cheese frosting in the recipe below).
More: If you’d like to make a full-sized cake, take a look at our Easy Carrot Cake Recipe.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you store the cupcakes? Technically, because there is a cream cheese frosting on the cupcakes, they should be kept in the fridge, but most bakers (even professional ones) are okay with leaving frosted cupcakes on the counter for a few hours (as long as your kitchen isn’t hot). When refrigerated, the cupcakes will last about 5 days.
Can I use applesauce instead of oil in the cupcakes? This is something we have never tried ourselves, so you may need to do some experimenting on your own. That said, you should be able to swap some of the oil for applesauce without too many issues.
Can I add pineapple to the carrot cake cupcakes? Yes, absolutely. It will add even more moisture to the cupcakes so use fresh pineapple or if you are using canned, drain it first before adding to the cake. We do not recommend adding more than 1/2 cup.
More Cupcake Recipes
- Double Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes
- Our Favorite Chocolate Cupcakes (Naturally Vegan)
- Easy Apple Pie Cupcakes
- Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Easy Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
Easy Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- PREP
- COOK
- TOTAL
These carrot cake cupcakes are so simple to make. For the carrots, we prefer to hand grate for the finest carrot pieces that melt into the cupcake batter, but you can also use a food processor. It makes quick work of grating carrots, but the pieces will be slightly larger. Some grocery stores sell bags of grated carrots, as well.
This recipe is forgiving. You can make this with or without the nuts and raisins. We like using both granulated and brown sugar in this, but using one or the other is an option.
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
Carrot Cake Cupcakes1 ¼ cup (160 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom, optional
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, optional
1/2 cup (118 ml) canola or other vegetable oil
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (95 grams) lightly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 ½ cups (150 grams) grated peeled carrots, 2 to 3 medium carrots
1/4 cup (32 grams) coarsely chopped pecans, optional
1/4 cup (32 grams) raisins, optional
Cream Cheese Frosting4 ounces (113 grams) full-fat block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2 tablespoons (57 grams) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch fine sea salt
1 ½ cups (180 grams) powdered sugar or confectioners sugar, plus more as needed
Pinch ground cinnamon or ground cardamom, optional
1/4 cup (32 grams) coarsely chopped pecans, optional
Directions
- Make Batter
1Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners.
2In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and the nutmeg until well blended.
3In a separate bowl, whisk the oil, sugars, and vanilla. Whisk in eggs, one at a time, until combined.
4Switch to a large rubber spatula. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl then add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, gently stirring until they disappear and the batter is smooth. Stir in the carrots, nuts, and raisins.
- Bake Cupcakes
1Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, filling about 3/4 of the way to the top. Bake until the tops of the cupcakes are springy when touched and when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
2Cool cupcakes in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely before frosting.
- Make Frosting
1In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt with a handheld mixer on medium speed until very creamy, about 2 minutes.
2For the creamiest frosting, sift the powdered sugar or whisk until most large lumps are gone.
3Beat in the powdered sugar, a 1/4 cup at a time until fluffy. For a thicker frosting, add an additional 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of powdered sugar.
4To make spiced frosting, beat in a pinch of ground cinnamon or cardamom.
- To Finish
1Frost cooled cupcakes and if you’d like top with coarsely chopped pecans.
2Store frosted cupcakes in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Optional spices: In our original carrot cake recipe, we only call for ground cinnamon. We love it this way (as do many of our readers), but I also love a slightly spicier version. The optional ground ginger, cardamom, and nutmeg don’t overpower the cupcakes, but add a lovely warm spice.
- Frosting: If you plan to pipe a lot of frosting onto each cupcake, you may need to double the frosting recipe above. If you have any leftover, the frosting can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days or in the freezer for a few months.
- Recipe inspired and adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Recipe for Carrot Cake Cupcakes.
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
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can i just use the spices from the cake recipe?
Yep!
I get many recipes from the internet. This was by far the best one yet! I did add an extra egg because mine were medium size, I also used a single serve unsweetened applesauce and just a quarter cup of canola oil, I added sunflower seeds too. I’m not using frosting because they’re sweet enough for us without it. Thank you for this fantastic recipe!!
The carrot cake recipe is delicious and the cup cake version, however sometimes & it has happened again today, my frosting (made with butter) is too runny. What can I do to remedy this?
Thank you
Hi Dawn, I’d start by chilling the frosting for 15 to 20 minutes to see if that firms it up a bit. Otherwise, you can add a bit more butter or even cream cheese to thicken it a little.
These are so easy and turned out beautifully-perfect moist crumb and frosting is delicious
Apologies, I see two eggs 😊
No problem!