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Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
5 from 107 votes

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These carrot cake cupcakes feature shredded carrot, crushed pineapple, coconut, and walnuts incorporated into a cinnamon-spiced batter. Baked in muffin tins, they yield moist cupcakes with a lumpy, textured crumb from the added ingredients. Topped with a smooth cream cheese frosting flavored with vanilla and a hint of salt, they offer a balance of sweetness and tang. The pineapple juice and vinegar activate the baking soda for rise. These cupcakes serve as a single-layer alternative to traditional carrot cake, ideal for portioned servings.

Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Cooling
1 hr
Total Time
45 mins
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 458 kcal
Course: Dessert, Baked Goods
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 440g / 14 oz crushed pineapple drained but RESERVE juice (Note 1, 1 can in juice
Wet Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup milk , at room temperature (full fat best, low fat ok)
  • 1/2 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice or other clear vinegar, (Note 2)
  • 2 egg at room temperature, large
  • 1 cup brown sugar (loosely packed)
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil (or canola)
Dry Ingredients
  • 1 1/3 cups flour , plain / all-purpose
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking soda (aka bicarb soda, Note 3) (NOT BAKING POWDER!)
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
Stir-ins
  • 1 1/3 cups carrot 1 medium carrot peeled (Note 4, shredded
  • 2 tbsp coconut , shredded or desiccated (unsweetened)
  • 1/3 cup walnuts roughly chopped (ie. measure after chopping, or pecans
Cream Cheese Frosting
  • 180g / 6oz cream cheese , at room temperature (Note 5)
  • 90g / 6 tbsp butter softened (17°C/62°F, unsalted
  • 3 1/2 cups icing sugar sifted (Note 6, soft, aka powdered sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp salt
Decorating (optional)
  • 1/4 cup walnuts moderately finely chopped, or pecans

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types). Line a 12-hole muffin tin with cupcake liners.
  2. Canned pineapple: Drain crushed pineapple well, reserving the juice. Measure out 3/4 cup pineapple and 2 tbsp pineapple juice.
  3. Whisk Dry Ingredients: Whisk Dry ingredients in a large bowl.
  4. Whisk Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, vinegar, eggs, sugar, oil and the 2 tbsp pineapple juice from Step 2.
  5. Add-ins: Stir in carrot, crushed pineapple, coconut and pecans into the Wet ingredients bowl.
  6. Combine Wet & Dry: Pour Wet into Dry ingredients, stir only until flour is no longer visible. Batter will be lumpy (from the stir-ins) and thick, but runny.
  7. Fill muffin tin: Divide batter between 12 holes. (A 3-tbsp levered ice cream scoop makes life super-easy here.)
  8. Bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and fully cool before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
  1. Cream butter: Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer (or whisk attachments for hand mixer), beat the butter for 1 minute until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
  2. Cream cheese: Add cream cheese then beat for 1 minute until smooth.
  3. Icing sugar: Add 1/3 of the icing sugar, then starting on the lowest speed (to avoid a powdery explosion!), beat until mostly incorporated. Add half the remaining icing sugar, beat it in, then the remaining icing sugar.
  4. Fluff it! Beat on high for 2 minutes until fluffy. Add vanilla and salt, beat briefly to incorporate.
  5. Pipe: Transfer to piping bag fitted with a round tip (or ziplock bag with snipper corner). Pipe on to cupcake, sprinkle with chopped walnuts or pecans if desired.

Notes

  • Use grated carrot held perpendicular to the grater to avoid long strands and ensure even texture.
  • Reserve some pineapple juice from the drained crushed pineapple to activate the baking soda for proper rise.
  • Use block cream cheese for frosting rather than spreadable tubs for best consistency.
  • Store cupcakes in the fridge in hot, humid weather to maintain frosting stability; let come to room temperature before serving.
  • This recipe works with both metric and US measurements; crushed pineapple brands may vary in size but perform similarly.

Nutrition Information

Calories 458cal (23%) Carbohydrates 65g (22%) Protein 4g (8%) Fat 21g (32%) Saturated Fat 13g (65%) Trans Fat 1g (50%) Cholesterol 62mg (21%) Sodium 268mg (11%) Potassium 179mg (4%) Fiber 1g (4%) Sugar 52g (104%) Vitamin A 2856IU (57%) Vitamin C 3mg (3%) Calcium 65mg (7%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12 cupcakes

Amount Per Serving

Calories 458

% Daily Value*

Calories 458cal 23%
Carbohydrates 65g 22%
Protein 4g 8%
Fat 21g 32%
Saturated Fat 13g 65%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Cholesterol 62mg 21%
Sodium 268mg 11%
Potassium 179mg 4%
Fiber 1g 4%
Sugar 52g 104%
Vitamin A 2856IU 57%
Vitamin C 3mg 3%
Calcium 65mg 7%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.