These vegan carrot cake cupcakes have all the benefits of traditional carrot cake in a lovely single-serving package! They are the perfect treat for spring and a great choice for birthdays and other celebrations.

If you want carrot baking ideas, I have a delicious one for you.

Think carrot cake, but easy to distribute, in a charming form: carrot cake cake.

There is no shortage of carrot cake on this blog. I like to make a pumpkin and carrot cake in the fall.

Then there’s my favorite vegetarian carrot cake, a traditional version with some special touches (for example, I like to grind carrots on a miniature plane so the cake is lighter).

However, these are not low-stress baking efforts. As much as I love carrot cake – or any vegan cake, for that matter – making and icing a layer of cake feels like a lot of work.

However, what about vegan cupcake recipes? That’s another story.

That’s where vegan carrot cake cupcakes come in—all the advantages of carrot cake but a little less work.

They’re cute and delicious, perfect for spring celebrations or birthdays.

The recipe for the perfect vegan carrot cake (and carrot cake cupcakes)

My obsession with carrot cake encouraged me to look for ways to be dairy-free and egg-free. Here are some tips I’ve picked up from baking carrot cakes many times:

Grate the carrots

There’s something to say about a very dense carrot cake. But Coral Lee’s technique of grinding carrots on a miniature grater (or the delicate pasta of a box grater) to make carrot cake was a complete game changer for me. The carrot cake doesn’t have the “texture of a salad,” as Mr. Collier put it.

Ever since reading Coral’s recipe and using it for my favorite carrot cake, I’ve fallen in love with delicate carrot tips. Now, I always use the small side of the box grater to grind the carrots. You can also use a micro-peeler.

If you don’t have the patience for fine gratings, that’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with more giant carrots in a carrot cake! But finely chopped carrots are worth a try. It makes carrot cake – and these vegan carrot cakes – moist and rich, yet fluffy enough to be cake-like.

Use the mixture sparingly

Another piece of advice that Coral Lee gave in her article, which I have taken to heart by now, is not to put too many nuts and dried fruit in your carrot cake. I like my carrot cake with raisins and walnuts. However, less is better in terms of quantity. Mix too much, and the texture of the cake will disappear.

I don’t use raisins for these carrot cake cupcakes; I use 1/4 cup of chopped walnuts. That’s the right amount! Feel free to substitute chopped pecans for walnuts or skip nuts altogether.

Use a mixture of brown sugar and sucrose

Brown sugar adds moisture to baked goods. It’s perfect for carrot cakes, but I also like to use cane sugar. The cane sugar helps (again) keep the cake light, while the brown sugar gives it a lovely, moist interior.

I am often asked how to reduce sugar in recipes. Reducing a small amount (about 1/4 cup) is fine, but sugar adds moisture when baking. So, if you’re leaving out a big part of it, know that your cake could be dry, dense, or both.

Keep the tradition

The carrot cake itself is delicious. So, only a little needs to change. I keep it traditional with vegan cream cheese frosting and cake toppings. There’s nothing better than a classic.

Can carrot cake be gluten-free?

Most sure. I used gluten-free all-purpose flour (King Arthur flour is my favorite) to make my favorite carrot cake and these cupcakes, and the results were beautiful. You can modify the recipe with your favorite mix of AP and GF flour.

Vegan cream cheese frosting

The cream cheese frosting that adorns the carrot cake cake is my favorite lactose-free frosting. I prefer it to the traditional cream frosting. The cream cheese gives it just the right amount of richness, offsetting the sweetness of the butter and sugar.

I tried this frosting with several different vegan butter sticks and cream cheese. My default choice is Earth Balance Stick and Tofutti cream cheese. They work well and are relatively inexpensive. (I like to use Tofutti when baking – just like my classic vegan cheesecake – and save the fancier, more expensive vegan cream cheese for toast or bagels.)

I also used Miyoko’s butter, Kite Mountain cream cheese, and many other butter/cream cheese combinations to make the cake frosting of the carrot cake. I have yet to have any significant failures. Choose your butter and cream cheese.

Prepare and store vegetarian carrot cake cupcakes

Whenever I make cupcakes or cakes, I tend to work for two days. I make the cake part on the first day, let it cool overnight, and do the icing/decoration on the second day.

You don’t have to spend two days making these cupcakes if you want to do it all at once. Be sure to allow the carrot cake to cool completely before applying the frost, which will take at least two hours.

Cream cheese frosting can be prepared the day before garnish. However, it needs to be refrigerated and will harden as it cools. So, if you make the icing ahead of time, be sure to heat it to room temperature and then stir it again to make it fluffy.

The decorated cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. If you want to keep them longer, I suggest freezing them—cakes, frosting, etc.!

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Ingredients

1 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour (180 g)

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/3 cup avocado oil (or another neutral cooking oil, such as safflower or grapeseed)

1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar (substitute coconut sugar) (110 g)

1/4 cup cane sugar (50 g)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup applesauce (125 g)

1/4 cup oat, soy, almond, or cashew milk

2 medium/large carrots, peeled and grated on the fine side of a box grater (1 packed cup, or 115 grams after preparation)

1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts (35 g)

For the cream cheese frosting

1/4 cup vegan cream cheese (60 g; make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature)

8 tablespoons vegan butter (112 g, or 1 stick; make sure the butter is at room temperature)

2 cups confectioners sugar (227 g)

1/2 teaspoon white vinegar

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and spray or line a cake pan with a liner.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the oil, brown sugar, cane sugar, vanilla, applesauce, and non-dairy milk. Stir the wet ingredients well and add them to the dry ingredients. Use a spatula to rub the batter together. Add the carrots and walnuts when the batter is almost mixed (a few flour strips are suitable). Continue folding the batter until thoroughly mixed, and the carrots are evenly distributed. Try to keep the mix manageable.
4. Use a muffin spoon or 1/3 cup measuring cup to pour the batter into the cupcake liner or prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top of the cake is rounded and the sides begin to turn golden brown. Allow cupcakes to cool completely, then coat with icing for about 2 hours.
5. To prepare the frosting, place the butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Alternatively, you can use a hand-held blender to prepare the icing. Beat at medium speed for 3 minutes or until the butter and cream cheese are light and fluffy. Stop the blender and add the sugar. Blend on low speed for 2 minutes. Then, beat on medium speed for another 2-3 minutes or until the frosting is very fluffy. Add the white vinegar and stop the blender.
6. Transfer the icing to a piping bag and decorate with a tube over the cupcake. You can also decorate by hand with a small, offset spatula. Serve the cupcakes or store them for when you want them.

While carrot cake has always been a favorite of mine, it took on a new meaning for me during the pandemic. I took this photo in an Instagram story during the first spring of the lockdown, hoping it would comfort others as much as it comforted me.

She asked for a carrot cake for my mother’s birthday last May. I made it and walked the 15 blocks to her apartment, afraid I’d drop it the whole way. I handed her the bread outside the building where she lived – we were still wary of meeting indoors – and sang her Happy Birthday and watched her eat it on Zoom.

Carrot cake is one of those recipes that brings a sense of familiarity and joy to a scary, unsettling time. Therefore, I give it a special kind of love and affection. These vegan carrot cakes are my favorite tasting these days. They’re easier to carry and deliver to friends than a giant layered cake!