I like to experiment when I’m baking. I also like to dabble in vegan recipes from time to time. One of my favorite recipes that is not vegan is for carrot cake. It is absolutely delicious! I was curious if I could make a vegan carrot cake with no refined sugar that would also be delicious. I’ve never used coconut sugar before, but I did use it in this recipe and it added a nice sweetness to the cupcakes. I made half of these cupcakes with walnuts and the other half without. You can enjoy them which ever way you prefer.
I was ecstatic that these cupcakes passed the children test. My kids would not have known they were vegan if I hadn’t told them. Even better, they all asked for more! Sometimes when you buy something at the store that is vegan or gluten free it tastes like its is vegan or gluten free. It is always best to enjoy desserts or dishes without giving up the quality and taste.
I’ve made vegan frostings in the past using raw cashews. This time I wanted to try something different. I came across some vegan cream cheese at a local store. Intriguing! Since carrot cake is often paired with cream cheese frosting, it seemed like the way to go!
I’ve also tried different ingredients to replace eggs. Originally I thought of using a flax egg. In the end I used unsweetened applesauce and it worked very well in this recipe.
I used a large closed star tip to pipe the icing on the cupcakes and then they looked beautiful too! Let me know what you think! I hope you enjoy them!
Tasty Vegan Carrot Cupcakes with Cinnamon "Cream Cheese" Frosting
Delicious vegan cupcakes with no refined sugar and great flavor!
- 1 1/2 cup All purpose flour (( 180 gr or 6.4 oz))
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp unsweetened applesauce
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/4 cup shredded carrot ((124 grams or 4.375 oz))
- 100 grams chopped walnuts (3.5 ounces) (optional)
Cinnamon "Cream Cheese" Frosting
- 100 grams vegan cream cheese (3.5 ounces)
- 150 grams vegan butter (5.3 ounces)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 cup+ 2 Tbsp Pure Maple Syrup ((3 ounces))
- 1/2 Tbsp raw sugar (Turbinado or Demerara) (Optional)
Preheat oven to 350 F/ 180 C. Place cupcake liners in a cupcake pan. (Makes 12-14)
Shred 1 1/4 cups of carrot and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and coconut sugar. Whisk the ingredients together.
Add the vegetable oil, applesauce and vanilla to the mixing bowl and mix them using the paddle attachment.
Start the mixer on low speed and gradually increase until everything is evenly blended.
Add the shredded carrot.
Mix the carrot into the batter on low speed or alternatively, stir it into the batter.
*Optional – stir in chopped walnuts.
If you only want half with walnuts, just use 50 grams instead of 100 grams and add it to half of the batter.
Scoop the batter into prepared cupcake pan.
The cupcake liners should be a little over half full.
Bake the cupcakes for 16-18 minutes. They should spring back when touched once they are done. Let them cool.
Cinnamon "Cream Cheese" Frosting
Let the vegan butter and cream cheese sit at room temperature for 20 minutes or so to soften some. Add them to a bowl of a stand mixer.
Beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until they are well blended. You will need to scrape the bowl a couple of times.
Add the cinnamon and mix it on low to medium speed.
Add the vanilla and slowly pour in the maple syrup while the mixer is running on low speed. Slowly increase the speed to medium to incorporate all the ingredients.
Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix again on medium to medium high speed for 2-3 minutes.
Frost your cupcakes. You can use an icing spatula or a piping bag with a star tip.
Optional – Sprinkle a little raw sugar over each cupcake.
Optional – If you used walnuts in the cupcakes then you can also sprinkle a little chopped walnut on top.
Enjoy!
