These Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes are moist, fluffy, and flavorful. Made with grated carrots and then frosted with a delicious cream cheese frosting, these Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes are perfect for parties, family, and friends. And picky eaters.
Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes Highlights
These Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes are THE BEST! They are soft, fluffy, and moist…Made completely from scratch with real grated carrots.
As I have mentioned many times before, my kids are super picky when it comes to food so hiding veggies in treats have become a constant task for me.
Happily, my eggless pumpkin muffins, Eggless Fudgy Zucchini Brownies, and now these Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes are my kid’s favorite treats. I always make double batches and freeze (without frosting) to have them handy anytime.
These Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes are easy and quick to make and will surely become a favorite in your eggless baking repertoire.
Ingredients Notes & Substitutions
- Flour: Standard all-purpose flour works best here, skip the cake flour, bread flour and wheat flour.
- Baking soda and Baking powder: Make sure they’re not expired
- Salt: I prefer kosher or sea salt. If you only have table salt handy, I recommend reducing the amount to half.
- Ground cinnamon
- Sugars: You’ll need brown sugar and granulated sugar.
- Oil: Vegetable or canola oil, or any light tasting oil of your preference.
- Plain yogurt: You can substitute plain yogurt for plain sour cream. I recommend using the full-fat versions.
- Unsweetened applesauce
- Pure vanilla extract: For optimal flavor, reach for pure vanilla instead of imitation. Even better, try homemade vanilla extract
- Fresh carrots: I highly recommend grating fresh carrots.
Step By Step Recipe Photo Tutorial
Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).
- Preheat oven to 350º F (175º C). Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together sugars, oil, yogurt, apple sauce, and vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Stir in grated carrots; mix until well combined.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling 2/3 of the way full.
- Bake for about 18 -20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.
- Frost cooled cupcakes however you’d like. I used an Ateco Pastry Tube – Plain – Size 808 tip for these pictured cupcakes. Top with chopped walnut.
Eggless Cupcakes Baking Tips
Measure the ingredients correctly. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
Preheat the oven at least 15 minutes before you get started to give it plenty of time to reach the ideal recipe temperature.
Don’t overmix the batter. Instead, mix just until you’ve evenly distributed the ingredients throughout the batter.
Bake the cupcakes as soon as the batter is ready.
Don’t open the oven door until the cupcakes have set. Leave the oven closed until the minimum time stated in the recipe.
Every oven is different, so baking times always have to be taken with a grain of salt. Oven thermostats can be wildly off, and that will all affect baking time, so keep an eye on yours. The cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
When it comes to baking, I don’t recommend using store pre-shredded carrots because these usually have lost a lot of moisture. So, I highly recommend grating fresh carrots.
The easiest way to shred carrots is using a small food processor. To do so just place the chopped carrots in the food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
2-3 medium carrots to yield approximately 1 cup of moist carrot shreds.
Cupcakes can be made ahead 1 day in advance, covered, and stored at room temperature. Frosting can also be made 1 day in advance, covered, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Yes, if you want to make these cupcakes in a miniature muffin tin instead of a regular muffin tin, use mini paper liners and bake them around 10-12 minutes. Check the cupcakes for around 10 minutes. You can test for doneness by sticking a toothpick in the center of a cupcake. If it comes out clean, they are done.
Adapt This Recipe to Other Food Allergies
This recipe is egg-free and nut-free, but you can certainly adapt it to other food allergies.
Gluten-Free
Substitute all-purpose flour for 1-to-1 Gluten-Free flour mix. My favorite brands are Cup4Cup and King Arthur.
Dairy-Free
Use your favorite plant-based, dairy-free, or vegan yogurt.
Storing & Freezing Instructions
Store
Frosted cupcake leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze
Unfrosted cupcakes can be frozen for up to 2-3 months. Follow these steps:
- Let cupcakes cool COMPLETELY.
- Wrap cupcakes tightly in plastic wrap.
- Place individually-wrapped cupcakes in a plastic double zipper quart freezer bag.
- To defrost, unwrap cupcakes and bring them to room temperature. Frost to your liking.
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Eggless Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup (210 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2/3 cups (134 g) brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (120 ml) vegetable oil (or any other light tasting oil)
- ½ cup (120 g) plain regular yogurt
- ¼ cup (60 g) unsweetened applesauce
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (90 g) grated carrots
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Frosting:
- 4 oz (112 g) full-fat cream cheese, softened
- 4 tablespoons (56 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch kosher salt
- 3 cups (360 g) confectioner’s sugar powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F (175º C). Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together sugars, oil, yogurt, apple sauce, and vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Stir in grated carrots; mix until well combined.
- Spoon the batter into liners, filling 2/3 of the way full.
- Bake for about 18 -20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool pan on wire racks for 5 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan, place back on rack, and cool to room temperature before frosting, about 1 hour
- Frost cooled cupcakes however you’d like. I used an Ateco Pastry Tube – Plain – Size 808 tip for these pictured cupcakes. Top with chopped walnut.
Frosting:
- In a large bowl using an electric handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add salt and vanilla; mix to combine.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. Add confectioners’ sugar. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 3 minutes. If you want the frosting a little thicker, add the extra 1/4 cup of confectioners’ sugar.
Nutrition
Eggless Baking Frequently Asked Questions
You’ve asked, I’ve answered! Read on for a handful of answers to the most frequently asked questions about eggless baking.
Originally posted March 2019, post content edited to add more helpful information, no change to the recipe in September 2021.
