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Full of the depth of flavor from the spices and topped with cashew cream cheese frosting, these carrot cupcakes are delicious, wholesome snacks that are perfect for Easter and all year round!
Easter is coming (when I’m writing this post) so I want to create something for this holiday. Even though we don’t celebrate Easter in Taiwan, I still got the holiday mood with all the beautiful photos I saw on the Internet. So here are some Vegan Carrot Cupcakes for you!
These carrot cupcakes are special because a) they are vegan and gluten-free, and b) they are made with wholesome ingredients including oat flour, carrots, and applesauce.
Here’s a peek inside these cupcakes:
- They are sweet snacks packed with nutrients from carrots, walnuts, and oats.
- The cupcakes are full of texture: carrots, raisins, walnuts, all the good stuff.
- There is also a vegan frosting on top of each cupcake!
- Oh, and the frosting is really amazing with these cupcakes. I bet you won’t want to miss out on it!
For the sake of the Easter theme, I also add a few rabbit-shaped cookies on top of each cupcake. This way I bet the toddler’s appetite will increase as well.
These cupcakes are best to enjoy at room temperature or warm so the texture will be fluffier and softer. I recommend saving the frosting right before serving because it might melt if the weather is warm/hot.
And if you refrigerate them, make sure to let them come back to room temperature or reheat them in the oven for a few minutes.
If you love carrot cake, I think you will prone to love these carrot cupcakes too!
Other Vegan sweets:
- Vegan Cherry Black Forest Parfait (Gluten-free)
- Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Cream Pie (Gluten-free)
- Vegan Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake (No-Bake)
Vegan Carrot Cupcakes (Gluten-free)
Ingredients
Carrot Cupcakes
- 60 g (1/4 cup) applesauce, room temperature*
- 24 g (2 Tbsp) coconut oil, melted
- 60 ml non-dairy milk, room temperature (I use unsweetened soy milk)
- 30 g (1/6 cup) coconut sugar, or light brown sugar
- 67 g oat flour, **
- 17 g (1/6 cup) almond meal
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
- 42 g (3/8 cup) shredded carrot
- 30 g walnut, roughly chopped
- 15 g (1.5 Tbsp) raisins, optional
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
- 70 g raw cashews, soaked for 3-6 hours
- 80 g silken tofu, firm, drained out the water
- 30 g non-dairy milk
- 1 Tbsp extra-virgin coconut oil, melted
- 1 Tbsp coconut butter
- 1 Tbsp maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/8 tsp salt
Instructions
- Soak the raw cashews for 3-6 hours if you haven’t yet.
To make the cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 180 c. Line a 6-cup muffin pan with silicone baking cups or cupcake liners.
- In a big bowl, add applesauce, melted coconut oil, non-dairy milk, and coconut sugar. Mix to combine.
- In another bowl, add the oat flour, almond meal, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg. Mix evenly.
- Add the dry mixture to the wet one. Mix to combine.
- Stir in the shredded carrot, walnut pieces, and raisins.
- Divide the mixture into the lined muffin pan. Drop the pan gently against the counter to even out the batter.
- Bake these cupcakes for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Transfer the pan onto a wire rack to cool down completely.
To make the cream cheese frosting
- Drain out the water from the cashews. Give them a gentle rinse.
- Add all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Stop and scrape down the sides as needed.
- Pour the mixture into a bowl. Put it into the freezer for 20 minutes or 3 hours in the fridge until it’s set.
Assemble
- Remove the cupcakes from the pan. Make sure they are cooled.
- Transfer the frosting mixture into a piping bag with the tip. Pipe the cream cheese frosting on top. You can add a biscuit on top of each cupcake as I do. EAT!
Notes
- *Applesauce: It’s American-style applesauce that is smooth, not chunky. I usually use Homemade Applesauce because it’s not common in Taiwan.
- **Oat flour: I make my oat flour by grinding instant oats in a coffee grinder until very fine. If you don’t have a grinder, I will suggest buying fine oat flour. Use a gluten-free one if necessary.
- Storage: Store in a food container in the fridge for 3-4 days or 2 weeks in the freezer.
