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    Home » Recipes » Cupcakes

    Carrot Cupcakes {Carrot Cake Cupcakes}

    Published: Mar 14, 2016 · Modified: Dec 3, 2023 by Abeer Rizvi · This post may contain affiliate links · 6 Comments

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    Quick, easy spiced carrot cupcakes with cream cheese icing, homemade from scratch with simple ingredients. Soft and moist with classic carrot cake flavor.

    *Thank you Vital Proteins for sponsoring this post so that I can share this recipe with you. As always, all opinions are my own.*

    I have eaten all variations of these cupcakes over the years. Ones with our without raisins, with or without nuts, even those with pineapple. Each of those ingredients bring something extra to your cupcakes, but my favorite is this version with pistachios. I also enjoy these Carrot Cookies and Carrot Cake I encourage you to try!

    How to make easy carrot cupcakes recipe from scratch?

    • Mix together- Eggs, oil, applesauce, vanilla extract, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
    • Add in- Shredded carrots.
    • Whisk together- Flour, collagen peptides, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon powder, allspice, and nutmeg powder.
    • Dump dry mixture- Into the wet mixture and mix until combined.
    • Pour batter- Into cupcake liners and begin preparing batter
    • Bake- until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
    • Prepare Icing- Add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract in a mixing bowl.
    • Continue to mix- While adding powdered sugar
    • Frost cupcakes- Once cooled.
    • Sprinkle- Chopped pistachios and golden edible pearls on top. Enjoy!
    Easy Homemade Carrot Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting and Pistachios in Pink Liners

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    Variations for moist carrot cake cupcakes

    • Add raisins and nuts- You can add ⅓ cup of mixed raisins, pecans and walnuts into the batter, if you like. If you are really fond of nutty/chewy cupcakes, you can increase that quantity to ½ cup. Make sure to toss these “add-ins” in some flour so as to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cupcakes.
    • Replace protein powder- With the same amount of all-purpose flour without any noticeable difference in these cupcakes.
    • Add zests- For a bit of tang using lime, orange, or lemon. You'd be surprised at the tasty results.
    • Change extracts- Instead of using vanilla, you can change the flavors by adding maple, almond, or lemon extract.
    • Try different frostings- The cream cheese frosting is my favorite with this recipe, but you can also try Maple Frosting, Sugar Free Frosting, or American Buttercream Frosting.
    • Try different toppings- If you aren't a fan of pistachios, you can always use raisins, walnuts or various nuts, different kinds of sprinkles, or mini chocolate chips.
    Partially Eaten Carrot Cake Cupcakes on Rustic Background

    Tips and techniques

    • Mix until smooth- You want to mix ingredients for about 2 minutes so that everything is smooth with no lumps.
    • Don’t over-mix- Because this will make your cupcakes fall and make the texture chewy.
    • Don't put all the powered sugar in at once- Because you want to make sure it reaches the correct thickness. Start with 1 cup of powdered sugar and then work your way up to the desired consistency.
    • How to thicken frosting- Add in more powdered sugar.
    • How to make frosting thinner- Slowing mix in a Tablespoon of milk until you reach the desired consistency.
    • Use Vital Proteins- to increase the nutritional value with a boost of vitamins and minerals without adding an unwanted odor or taste.
    • How do I know when the cupcakes are done?- The cupcakes should begin to turn a golden brown and when a toothpick is inserted, it will come out clean. If the toothpick is still gooey, put the cupcakes back into the oven toa cook a few minutes more.
    Overhead Shot of Pistachio And Gold Edible Pearl Decoration on Cupcake

    Storage of cupcakes

    Fridge- Store in an air-tight container for up to 3 days.

    Freezer- Store unfrosted in an air-tight container for up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge and then frost as desired.

    More cupcake recipes

    • Filled Cupcakes (Stuffed Cupcakes)
    • Gingerbread Cupcakes (With Cake Mix)
    • White Wedding Cupcakes
    • Rainbow Cupcakes (With Cake Mix)
    • Brownie Cupcakes from Scratch
    Moist Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Icing and Pistachios

    Recipe

    Easy Carrot Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting And Pistachio Topping on Wood Background.

    Easy Carrot Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting

    Abeer Rizvi
    Quick, easy spiced carrot cupcakes with cream cheese icing, homemade from scratch with simple ingredients. Soft and moist with classic carrot cake flavor.
    5 from 1 rating
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 20 minutes mins
    Total Time 30 minutes mins
    Course Cupcakes
    Cuisine American
    Servings 12 Cupcakes
    Calories 724 kcal

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    Ingredients
      

    Cupcakes

    • 1 cup All-purpose flour All-purpose
    • 3 tablespoon Protein powder Optional
    • ½ cup Granulated
    • ½ cup Brown sugar
    • 1 cup Carrots Shredded not pureed
    • ½ cup Oil
    • ¼ cup Applesauce Unsweetened
    • 2 Eggs Large
    • 1 teaspoon Baking powder
    • ½ teaspoon Baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon Cinnamon powder
    • ½ teaspoon Allspice
    • ½ teaspoon Nutmeg powder
    • ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract

    Icing

    • 4 cups Cream cheese frosting

    Toppings/Decoration

    • 2 cups Pistachios Chopped
    • ½ cups Golden edible pearls

    Instructions
     

    • In a mixing bowl, add eggs, oil, applesauce, vanilla extract brown sugar and granulated sugar.
    • Mix for two minutes until everything is smooth and there are no lumps.
    • Add the shredded carrots and mix everything, until just combined.
    • In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, collagen peptides, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon powder, allspice and nutmeg powder.
    • Dump this dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix until just combined. The batter will be thick but don’t over-mix!
    • Pour this batter into cupcake liners and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

    While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare your cream cheese icing…

    • Add the cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Mix everything until there are no lumps.
    • Then, start adding powdered sugar, while continuing to mix. Start with 1 cup of powdered sugar and work your way up. More powdered sugar = thicker consistency of frosting. Less powdered sugar- Thinner consistency of frosting.
    • Once the cupcakes have cooled down to room temperature, frost them in cream cheese icing and cover them in chopped pistachios and golden edible pearls. Enjoy!

    Notes

    • Read all my tips above.
    • Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 724kcalCarbohydrates: 101gProtein: 8gFat: 34gSaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 211mgPotassium: 380mgFiber: 3gSugar: 87gVitamin A: 2465IUVitamin C: 2.6mgCalcium: 93mgIron: 1.9mg

    An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.

    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below or rate and tag @cakewhiz on social

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Thalia

      March 17, 2016 at 10:43 pm

      Love these cupcakes! Perfect for Easter.. and they look great too.

      Reply
      • Abeer Rizvi

        March 18, 2016 at 2:08 am

        Thanks! I loveeeeeee pistachios and I am always looking for a reason to use them in my recipes

        Reply
    2. Mary Frances

      March 18, 2016 at 3:36 pm

      Wow! Look at those cupcakes. They look so delicious

      Reply
      • Abeer Rizvi

        March 20, 2016 at 2:17 am

        Thanks Mary! I wanted to give those classic carrot cupcakes a subtle makeover

        Reply
    3. Lisa

      November 22, 2016 at 7:29 am

      We plan to make these for Thanksgiving. Can I assume the pistachios are UNSALTED? Thank you.

      Reply
      • Abeer Rizvi

        November 22, 2016 at 7:55 am

        Oh yes, definitely unsalted but get the roasted ones! They have more flavor. Let me know how it goes

        Reply
    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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    Hello, I'm Abeer Rizvi, the author and founder of CakeWhiz.com—a cherished dessert blog dedicated to baking, cake decorating, doctored cake mix recipes, and all things sweet. As a skilled food writer, baker, recipe developer, and cake decorator, I take pride in wearing multiple hats.

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