Eggless Carrot Cake Cookies
These Eggless Carrot Cake Cookies are tender and perfectly spiced! I promise they are melt-in-your-mouth addicting. The flavor you crave from a traditional carrot cake made into an easy-to-make soft cookie.
Servings 16 cookies
Calories 217kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups (315 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) milk
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (100 g) quick oats
- 1 1/4 cups (125 g) finely grated fresh carrots
- 3/4 cup (115 g) chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
- Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)
Instructions
Make the Eggless Carrot Cake Cookies:
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a bowl. Set aside.
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the milk and vanilla; mix until incorporated.
- Reduce the speed to low and gradually beat in the flour mixture; mix until combined.
- Stir in the oats, grated carrots, and pecans (if using) and mix until evenly distributed.
- Scoop out 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of dough for each cookie. Roll each portion into a ball and place it on a baking sheet or large plate. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Place the chilled cookie balls on the prepared baking sheets, evenly spacing them about 2 inches apart. I recommend baking one sheet at a time.
- Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until barely golden brown around the edges, but still soft in the middle. When you remove the cookies from the oven, they will still look doughy, and that’s okay; they will continue to set as they cool.
- Cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Make the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Make the Cream Cheese Frosting following the steps in this recipe.
Assemble:
- Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cookies and sprinkle with chopped pecan, if desired. Or add a tablespoon or two of frosting on the flat side of half of the cooled cookies and sandwich with another half cookie.
Notes
Store: The frosted cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for two days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Freeze: You can freeze frosted or unfrosted Carrot Cake Cookies. To freeze unfrosted cookies, let the cookies cool completely. Then place them in a freezer container or bag and freeze for up to 2 months. To freeze frosted cookies, place the cookies in a baking tray or large plate. Then place the baking sheet in the freezer and freeze cookies until solid. After the cookies are frozen, wrap each cookie individually in plastic wrap, add it to a freezer bag, and seal it. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Thaw: When ready to eat, remove the desired number of cookies from the freezer bag, then remove them from plastic wrap. Let Eggless Carrot Cake Cookies thaw on the counter for about 30 minutes.
Make-Ahead: You can make the eggless cookie dough two or three days in advance. I recommend making the dough and scooping it into balls and then refrigerating it. Make sure to keep it refrigerated and well-wrapped.
Oats: I like to use quick oat for these cookies. However, if you only have rolled oat handy, place them in a blender or food processor and pulse a few times until they're relatively small pieces. You can also use rolled oat instead, but the texture will be chewier.
Carrots: Do NOT use pre-grated matchstick carrots. These carrots are too thick for our cookies and don't release moisture like freshly grated carrots. Use the small holes on a box grater to grate the carrots.
Extra Tips:
- Measure the ingredients correctly! A kitchen scale is always the best option.
- Don't over mix your cookie dough, or you will end up with a dense cookie.
- Chill the dough for 30 minutes before baking; this gives the dough a chance to firm up a little and bake much better.
- For evenly sized cookies (better for baking), use a small spring-loaded ice cream scoop to spoon out the dough.
- Bake the cookies until they are JUST golden around the outside. The cookies might still look a little raw in the center, but they will be perfect once they cool. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. If you leave the cookies on the baking sheets for too long, they will continue cooking and be hard.
Nutrition
Calories: 217kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g