Happy almost Mother’s Day!! If you’re looking for something quick to whip up for your mom, or just because you’re craving something sweet, this is the perfect recipe Gluten Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes !! It’s SO easy, and really uses only two bowls to make the recipe! The cupcakes bake for a short amount of time, and, on the cupcake scale, they’re pretty healthy! They use plant-based milk, maple syrup for half of the sweetener, and part almond flour.
I don’t have many tips for this recipe, as it is pretty self-explanatory and fail-proof if you measure everything right! The frosting ends up being kind of thin, which makes it easy to spread. And when you let the cupcakes sit for a while, the frosting develops a nice “crust” on the outside, almost making it like a glaze.
The one thing I would like to say is that if you’re out of bananas, you can make a substitution by adding an extra egg. The banana flavor won’t be there, but the texture will end up being the same! If you’re worried about missing the sweetness from the banana, you can add one tbsp more of maple syrup.
Start by gathering the ingredients, as always. However, for this recipe, just measure all the dry ingredients into one bowl and all the wet ingredients (minus the banana and carrot) into another. That way, it makes for fewer dishes!
Start by whisking the dry ingredients and then the wet ingredients in seperate bowls. Then whisk them together in the big bowl. It should end up looking like this:
Then, whisk in the banana quite vigorously. The goal should be to break up any pieces of banana and create a batter where the banana is completely combined throughout. Then, GENTLY whisk in the carrots. It can be easy to break them apart and turn the batter into mush, but for this recipe, it’s better if the carrots give the cake a little bit of texture and bite.
Next, fill the cupcake tin, bake, and frost!
Happy cooking!! And happy Mother’s day!!
Easy Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
- 3/4 cup all purpose gluten free flour
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1 1/2 cup shredded carrot
- 1 overripe banana
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup oil
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 oz softened butter
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and whisk until combined.
- In a medium sized bowl (or liquid measuring cup), add the oil, maple syrup, eggs, almond and almond milk. Whisk until slightly combined. It doesn't need to be fully combined; it will combine when mixed with dry ingredients.
- Add the wet mixture to the bowl of dry ingredients and whisk until fully combined.
- Add the mashed ripe banana and whisk until fully combined.
- Add the shredded carrots and gently whisk until combined.
- Line your cupcake tin with liners. Using an ice cream scooper, add one scoop of batter to each cupcake. There should be enough batter for exactly 12 cupcakes.
- Bake the cupcakes for 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- While the cupcakes are baking, make the cream cheese frosting.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, add 1/2 of the cream cheese and all the butter and mix with the whisk attachment until combined.
- Add the rest of the cream cheese and whisk again until fully combined.
- Add the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time, whisking in between. After all of the powdered sugar has been added, whisk on high speed for 5 minutes.
- When the cupcakes have cooled, frost them and add chopped walnuts on top.
- Enjoy!