Do y’all smell that?
Montana sure does!
I’m seriously still laughing at this picture… oh and this was totally not planned. I was kneeling taking side shots of these cupcakes and Montana decided she wanted to take a sniff. Probably one of my favorite photos of all time.
P.S. they did smell AMAZING so I don’t blame her for trying to grab a sniff… or a cupcake.
Any who, I’m literally the worst at posting appropriately timed holiday/seasonal recipes… like really Adrienne… carrot cake cupcakes the Friday after Easter? YUP. See the problem is that I made these for Easter sooo I couldn’t really post them before Easter. I’m slowly getting better at planning my editorial calendar around holidays/seasons but I failed with these so for right now you get carrot cake cupcakes for…. Mother’s Day?? Sure… it’s a thing? Or at least I’m making it a thing!
TALK ABOUT HOW THEY TASTE HERE.
^ That was a note to myself to remember to come back to this post and talk about how these cupcakes taste. The notes that Past Adrienne leaves crack me up lol. So how do they taste future Adrienne?
Fluffy.
And light.
And moist.
And carrot-y.
And cinnamon-y
And don’t forget, buttercream-y.
I find that carrot cake is usually paired with cream cheese frosting, but I don’t eat cream cheese and I wanted to make rose swirled icing, which I find is extremely difficult to do with cream cheese frosting… it doesn’t hold the shape. Boo. But buttercream is seriously delicious and oh so creamy SO it’s no biggie! But if you love cream cheese frosting, feel free to do that instead yo.
Lastly, sometimes I like to keep things simple when I’m baking in a hurry… like Saturday morning before driving to my in-law’s house for Easter Sunday.
Simple = no raisins, nuts, fancy add-ins, etc. Just pure carrot cake cupcakes that are fast, easy, and freaking tasty as shit.
side note: I really need to steam my white backdrop… #wrinkles
Total time includes time to cool and frost your cupcakes.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups matchstick carrots
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup coconut oil, melted
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temp
- 4 - 5 cups confectioners' sugar
- 1/4 cup coconut cream (heavy cream if you aren't dairy free)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or oil/butter.
- Prep carrots: Add matchstick carrots to a food processor and mince for about one minute or until only small bits remain.
- Prep dry ingredients: To a large bowl, add flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt then stir to combine.
- Combine minced carrots and melted coconut oil in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or just use a large bowl and a hand whisk) and whisk until combined. Slowly pour in your dry ingredients, stirring until just mixed. Add in the lightly beaten eggs and whisk again until just combined.
- Divide batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups; each muffin cup should be about 2/3rds full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the tops of the cupcakes are golden brown and springy. Remove from oven and allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
- Make the buttercream frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy and smooth (about 2 minutes). Add 4 cups confectioners' sugar, coconut (or heavy) cream, vanilla extract, and salt, then beat on medium-high for 3 minutes. Add more confectioners' sugar (1/4 cup at a time) if buttercream is too thin or an additional tablespoon of cream if buttercream is too thick.
- Frost your cupcakes using either a piping bag or another frosting tool. To achieve icing roses, use a piping bag fitted with Wilton's 1M or 2D piping tip (standard tutorial here or two-toned rose frosting here).
- ENJOY.
Happy Friday weirdos! We are trying out a new brewery in town tonight before I head to Chicago for work on Saturday. Hope you have a fabulous weekend!
If you try this recipe, let me know! Leave a comment or tag a photo #appetitesanonymous on instagram!! I’d love to see your cupcakes in action. Peace, friends!
– a
Dennis
Hey,
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe! Carrot cake is one of my favorite desserts. I usually use cream cheese frosting, but I will definitely give the buttercream recipe a try! I am currently looking for a refrigerator repair service so that I can get my kitchen back in order. Once that’s done, this will be the first thing that I make!
Best,
Dennis
Adrienne
So glad you’re going to try this recipe! Let me know how it goes. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂