I know, I know, calling a post ‘the best ever carrot cupcakes’ is a big call. I said it for The Best Ever Chocolate Mud Cake and so far everyone who has tried it has agreed so you’ll just have to make these and tell me what you think.

For my beautiful grey and yellow baby shower last year, my only job was making mini carrot cupcakes with yellow icing. Mum was very specific in her directions.

I really wanted grey and white cupcake cases to go with the yellow icing but try as I might I could not find them anywhere. I ended up ordering some from eBay which claimed to be grey but when they arrived they were more of a charcoal-black.

It was back to the drawing board where I decided to make little toppers and use white cases instead. If you’d like a copy of the file to print your own please ask.

Anyway back to the cupcakes. When my grandma heard I was tasked with carrot cupcakes she said ‘you’re making your mother’s recipe aren’t you, it’s the best?’ Now who am I to go against something like that especially coming from my grandma.

I’m not sure where mum’s recipe originated from but it is in my folder of recipes mum typed for me when I went off to Canada for 3 months nearly 10 years ago and she has been making it forever.

The base recipe is carrot but where it calls for 2 cups of grated carrot, you can substitute some crushed pineapple, coconut, mango or mashed banana or any combination. Can you guess which one I went with? Yes you’re right I added a little mashed banana.

The result is a moist but still light and fluffy little cake that will have you hiding the wrapper so you can sneak another one. It can be made up as a cake (cook it for about 40 minutes) but I think bite-sized is just perfect.

So will you give them a go and see if they live up to their name? Don’t forget the cream cheese icing though – it’s the, well, the icing on the cake!

The best ever carrot cupcakes

Name: The best ever carrot cupcakes
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 36
Ingredients: 1 cup raw sugar; 1 cup olive oil; 3 free-range eggs; 1 1/3 cups plain wholemeal flour; 1 1/3 tsp bicarbonate of soda; 1 1/3 tsp baking powder; 1 1/3 tsp cinnamon; 1/2 tsp salt; 2 cups of grated carrot or any combination of coconut, mango, mashed banana or pineapple to equal the two cups (I used 1 banana and the rest carrot); 1/2 cup chopped walnuts; 120g (4oz) cream cheese; 240g (8oz) icing (confectioners) sugar; 1 tbsp butter; 1 tsp vanilla extract

Yield: 36

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

Cupcakes

1 cup raw sugar
1 cup olive oil
3 free-range eggs
1 1/3 cups plain wholemeal flour
1 1/3 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 1/3 tsp baking powder
1 1/3 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups of grated carrot or any combination of coconut, mango, mashed banana or pineapple to equal the two cups (I used 1 banana and the rest carrot)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Icing

120g (4oz) cream cheese
240g (8oz) icing (confectioners) sugar
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 160C fan-forced (350F) and line three 12-hole mini muffin tins with liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar and oil.
Add the eggs one-at-a-time and whisk them through.
Stir in the sifted dry ingredients.
Fold through the grated carrot and walnuts.
Divide the batter between the cupcake liners.
Bake for 20-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the middle of the cupcakes comes out clean.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
To make the icing, beat the butter and cream cheese until soft then add the icing sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy (beat in colour if using).
If the icing is too thick, add a little water and if too thin, add a little extra icing sugar.
Pipe the icing onto the cooled cupcakes.

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15 Comments

Verna on July 16, 2015 at 8.07 pm
Hi Claire,
Long time fan of your blog but first ever question :)
I’m looking for something to make for my soon to be 2 year old. She loves carrot and banana. Was initially looking at a carrot and banana cake but now I’m inking of these divine looking cupcakes. My question is would it be a big deal to omit the one cup of sugar out of the cupcake mix? We are quitting sugar at home. Is it in their just for extra sweetness? Could I mash up a banana and add that instead??
Any other suggestions re substitutes?
Thanks in advance.
- Claire on July 17, 2015 at 8.39 am
  Hi Verna. I have been substituting out sugar for my little man too. It will be a bit of a trial but I would say one mashed up banana and a bit of coconut sugar or honey would do the trick. Thanks for your lovely comment about the blog!
elle on June 30, 2014 at 3.43 pm
..in the oven for my 5yo girl tomorrow! We are making the best chocolate cake too! Could not choose! ;)
Laura (Tutti Dolci) on January 13, 2014 at 10.10 am
Adorable cupcakes, I love your elephant toppers!
- Claire on January 13, 2014 at 10.30 am
  Thanks Laura!
Danielle on January 12, 2014 at 6.36 pm
You got the frosting the perfect shade of yellow to match the little elephants :-) Love the look of these, can’t believe I haven’t got a mini muffin tin…must rectify that asap!
- Claire on January 13, 2014 at 9.46 am
  Hehe I may have held one next to the icing as I tinted it Danielle :-) Yes you must indeed!
The Café Sucre Farine on January 11, 2014 at 6.55 am
I love the beautiful rounded tops Claire! This sounds like a winner and the colors are gorgeous! Pinned! My family would LOVE these.
- Claire on January 11, 2014 at 2.48 pm
  Thanks Chris!
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef on January 10, 2014 at 6.39 pm
I have been craving a carrot cake all week. I even looked at a packet mix on the USA food website but resisted. These look so good!
- Claire on January 11, 2014 at 2.48 pm
  Make them Maureen I dare you!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella on January 10, 2014 at 6.36 pm
Grandma’s advice is always spot on isn’t it? What did you use to colour the icing? :)
- Claire on January 11, 2014 at 2.48 pm
  Usually! Just a little gel yellow.
Kirsty @ The Natural Foodie on January 10, 2014 at 11.03 am
These look stunning Claire – well done. I loved your colour scheme for the Shower x
- Claire on January 10, 2014 at 4.40 pm
  Thanks Kirsty!