This is not your normal, buy at the store carrot cake. You won’t find any nuts in this. I don’t believe in nuts in my dessert. You can thank my father for that one!
This recipe came from my Aunt Bev and it’s the only one I use when I make a carrot cake. It’s more healthy because you use a combination of apple sauce and oil. (Anything to justify a dessert, right?! It still has a lot of sugar. So if you are looking for healthy, this is not the recipe. However, I can promise this recipe will taste delicious, won’t be dry, and has the most amazing cream cheese frosting.
You can make this as a cake or cupcakes and it will turn out great. Just adjust the baking time if you use a cake pan.
Here’s my one tip for you. Hand grate the carrots with a fine grater. I’ve tried this with a food processor to save myself the trouble and it ends up making causing too much moisture and the cake will taste overly carrot-y. If you decide to use a food processor, cut back on the carrots called for in the recipe. Trust me.
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Equipment
- 1 Handmixer
- 1 Fine Grater
- 2-3 Muffin Tins
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 3/4 cups Vegetable Oil
- 3/4 cups Apple Sauce
- 4 large Eggs
- 2 cups Flour
- 2 cups Sugar
- 2 tsp Baking Soda
- 2 tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Cinnamon
- 2 1/2 cups Grated Carrots
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 oz Cream Cheese softened
- 4 tbsp Butter room temperature
- 2 tbsp Milk
- 2 tsp Vanilla
- 2-3 cups Powdered Sugar
Instructions
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Combine 3/4 cup oil, 3/4 cup apples sauce and eggs together in a large mixing bowl.
- Add 2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, 2 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp salt, and 2 tsp cinnamon. Mix to combine until no lumps.
- Add in the grated carrots and mix until just combined.
- Line muffin tins with cupcake papers, then scoop 1/4 cup of the batter into each muffin cup.
- Bake at 350℉ for 15-18 minutes.
- Remove cupcakes from muffin tins and allow to cool. Frost with desired frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Using a hand mixer, combine the butter and cream cheese together until fluffy.
- Add in 2 tbsp milk and 2 tsp vanilla and mix to combine.
- Start by adding 2 cups powdered sugar and mix again. You want to mix in enough powdered sugar to make it sweet and hold its form, but not add so much that it only tastes like the sugar. Depending on how soft your cream cheese and butter are, this could fluctuate.
- Place frosting on top of the cupcakes and enjoy!
Notes
- If you want to pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes, you will need to double the frosting recipe.
- If you don’t have muffin tins or cupcake papers, you can easily make this in a 9×13 inch pan. Just increase the baking time to 45-50 minutes.