These vegan carrot cake cupcakes are perfectly spiced and easy to bake, topped with tangy homemade cream cheese frosting and crushed walnuts. This easy dessert has everything you love about traditional carrot cake—made into cupcakes, minus the eggs and dairy!

Closeup of vegan carrot cupcake with cream cheese frosting on cake stand

I love my vegan carrot cake recipe, but sometimes you don’t need a whole cake. Sometimes, you want perfectly fluffy, deliciously frosted carrot cupcakes! You’re in luck. I’ve adapted my original carrot cake recipe into these moist, flavorful vegan carrot cake cupcakes. They’re a great addition to any party or Easter celebration, but you can totally make them for yourself and stash some in the freezer for whenever you have a craving. Speaking from experience! You’re going to love how easy these are to make.

About These Moist, Fluffy Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes

  • Swap the eggs with applesauce. The cupcakes start with a dense, spiced carrot cake base. Because traditional carrot cake is always made with oil and tends to be denser than a vanilla cake or chocolate cake, you can easily make it vegan by swapping the eggs for applesauce!
  • Dreamy homemade frosting. My carrot cupcakes are capped off with a swirl of homemade vegan cream cheese frosting, which you may recognize from my red velvet cupcakes. If you’re not concerned about appearances, you can spread the frosting on with an offset spatula instead of piping it, but trust me when I say you’re going to want a generous amount on each cupcake because it’s THAT good.
  • Get them party-ready. Garnish each cupcake with toasted walnuts, or get creative and pipe a carrot onto the top! These make an excellent Easter dessert or holiday treat, especially if you’re expecting a crowd.

Notes on Ingredients

These carrot cupcakes use the same ingredients as my original vegan carrot cake recipe, adapted to bake in a cupcake pan instead. Please note that this is important information on the ingredients and instructions, and the FULL recipe with amounts and details can be found DOWN BELOW (scroll to it) in the recipe card.

Overhead view of carrot cupcake ingredients with labels
Overhead view of carrot cupcake frosting ingredients with labels
  • All-purpose flour – Sift the flour after measuring it. This removes any lumps that may find their way into the cake batter.
  • Baking soda and baking powder – I use both for exceptionally fluffy, tall carrot cupcakes.
  • Spices – Ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. If you’d like, you can replace these individual spices with pumpkin pie spice, which shares many of the same ingredients.
  • Solid refined coconut oil – Make sure you measure the oil while it’s solid. If your kitchen is hot and the coconut oil has melted in the jar, pop it in the fridge for a bit.
  • Brown sugar – Or granulated sugar.
  • Unsweetened applesauce – Applesauce gives these vegan cupcakes structure in lieu of a flax egg or vegan egg replacer. I recommend unsweetened applesauce, so your cupcakes don’t come out overly sweet.
  • Vanilla extract – Or equal parts vanilla paste.
  • Finely grated carrots – You’ll need about 3 large carrots for this recipe. Grate the carrots using a box grater so it’s quick and easy.
  • Chopped walnuts – Toast the nuts by placing them in a skillet over medium heat. Then, remove them from the pan when they’re fragrant and darkened. You can swap walnuts with pecans if you’d prefer, or skip the nuts and add raisins to make this recipe nut-free.

Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting

  • Vegan cream cheese – This should be cold from the fridge.
  • Vegan butter – This should be room temperature.
  • Vanilla extract – Again, swap with vanilla paste if you’d like.
  • Powdered sugar – Sift the powdered sugar to prevent lumps in your frosting.

How to Make Vegan Carrot Cupcakes

You can either make these all in one go, or break things up and make the cupcakes one day and frost them the next. It’s up to you! Here’s an overview of the recipe with step-by-step photos.

Dry ingredients in glass mixing bowl with whisk
Mix the dry ingredients.
Wet ingredients for carrot cupcakes in glass bowl with metal whisk
Combine the wet ingredients.
  • Prepare. Preheat your oven to 350℉ and place cupcake liners into your muffin or cupcake pan.
  • Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices in a mixing bowl.
  • Mix the wet ingredients. Place the coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl and melt it in the microwave by heating in 15-second bursts. Then, pour the melted oil into a large mixing bowl, stir in the sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined, about 2-3 minutes.
Walnuts, carrots, and dry ingredients being stirred into carrot cake batter
Add the carrots, nuts, and dry ingredients.
Overhead view of carrot cupcake batter in glass mixing bowl with spatula
Mix to make the batter.
  • Finish the cupcake batter. Pour the flour mixture into the bowl with the wet mixture, then fold in the shredded carrots and nuts.
Carrot cake batter in cupcake pan
  • Fill the cupcake pan. Working quickly, divide the batter between the 24 cupcake liners, filling them about two-thirds of the way full. 
  • Bake. Place the pan in the centre of the middle rack in your oven. Bake the cupcakes for 20-22 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and let them cool in the pans for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Frost the Cupcakes

Vegan cream cheese and butter in glass mixing bowl with whisk attachment
Mix the frosting.
Vegan cream cheese frosting in glass mixing bowl
Chill in the fridge.
  • Make the frosting. Start by beating the butter and cream cheese for about 2 minutes. Then, beat in the vanilla extract and salt, followed by the powdered sugar, one cup at a time. Once the first cup is incorporated, add the next, then another. When the frosting reaches your desired sweetness and consistency, stop there; otherwise, add more sugar.
  • Refrigerate the frosting. Place the bowl of frosting in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes to allow it to thicken a bit.
  • Frost the cupcakes. Use a piping bag or offset spatula to frost the cupcakes, then garnish with the toasted walnuts, if you’re using them.
Carrot cupcake topped with vegan cream cheese frosting and walnuts

Tips for Bakery-Style Cupcakes

  • Perfect portioning. You can use an ice cream or cookie dough scoop to help make sure your cupcakes all have equal amounts of batter. This ensures they’ll all be done baking at the same time!
  • Removing air bubbles. Gently tap the pan on the counter three times by lifting and tapping down slightly to remove any air bubbles from the batter before baking.
  • Getting pipe-able frosting. If you plan on piping the frosting, you’ll need it to be nice and thick. I recommend using all 4 cups of powdered sugar for a stiffness that’s conducive to piping.
Vegan carrot cupcakes on cake stand

How to Store

  • Refrigerate. Store your vegan carrot cupcakes in an airtight storage container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Let the cupcakes come to room temperature before serving.
  • Freeze. Pre-freeze the frosted carrot cupcakes on a baking sheet, uncovered. As soon as the frosting is frozen solid, transfer the cupcakes to an airtight storage container or freezer bag. Freeze for up to 2 months, and thaw the cupcakes in the refrigerator before serving.

More Vegan Cupcake Recipes

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Closeup of vegan carrot cupcake with cream cheese frosting on cake stand

Vegan Carrot Cupcakes

Servings: 24 cupcakes
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
With a perfectly spiced carrot cake and mounds of tangy cream cheese frosting, these vegan carrot cupcakes are a guaranteed crowd-pleaser!
5 (from 8 ratings)
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Ingredients

For the cake:

  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted, 270g
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 cup solid refined coconut oil, 200g
  • 1 ½ cups brown sugar, 300g
  • 1 cup unsweetened applesauce, 250g
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 cups finely grated carrots, about 3 large carrots (288g)
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (112g)

For the vegan cream cheese frosting:

  • 8 ounces vegan cream cheese, cold from the fridge
  • ½ cup vegan butter, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Pinch salt
  • ¼ cup cornstarch, sifted (32g)
  • 2-3 cups powdered sugar, sifted (480g)
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts, for garnish (optional)

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line muffin cups with cupcake liners or foil bake cups.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.
  • Place the coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Melt the oil in the microwave by heating in 15-second bursts, then stir in the sugar, applesauce and the vanilla extract until thoroughly combined, at least 2-3 minutes.
  • Pour the flour mixture into the wet mixture, then fold in the shredded carrots, and nuts.
  • Working quickly, divide the batter evenly between 24 cupcake liners (about ⅔ ‘s full). You can use an ice cream scoop to help! Tap the cupcake pan on the counter three times (lift and tap down slightly) to remove any excess air bubbles before baking.
  • Place the pan in the middle rack of your oven and in the center of that rack. Bake for 20-22 minutes until fully cooked. Remove from the oven and let them cool in the pans for about 5 minutes, then remove onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  • After cooled, frost with vegan cream cheese frosting and some walnuts. Enjoy!

To make the frosting and assemble:

  • Beat the butter and cream cheese for about 2 minutes, or until fully incorporated. Beat in the vanilla extract and salt, followed by the sifted cornstarch and powdered sugar. Once the first cup is incorporated, add the next, then the next. If the frosting has reached your desired sweetness and consistency, stop there. If not, add the third cup of sugar. I usually add all 3 cups to reach a stiffness that I can pipe.
  • Refrigerate the bowl of frosting for at least 15 minutes before using.
  • Frost cupcakes and garnish with walnuts, and enjoyed! You can store them on the counter if you live in a cool climate/air conditioned home or in the fridge.

Notes

  • Storage instructions: Store your vegan carrot cupcakes in an airtight storage container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Let the cupcakes come to room temperature before serving.
  • Freezing instructions: Freeze carrot cupcakes by putting them on a baking sheet, uncovered, and placing them in the freezer. As soon as the frosting is frozen solid, transfer the cupcakes to an airtight storage container or freezer bag. Thaw the cupcakes in the refrigerator before serving.
Calories: 341kcal, Carbohydrates: 38g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 21g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 1g, Sodium: 306mg, Potassium: 136mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 25g, Vitamin A: 2858IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 56mg, Iron: 1mg

Disclaimer: Although jessicainthekitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Jessicainthekitchen.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.

Cuisine: American
Course: Dessert
Author: Jessica Hylton