Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins with Cream Cheese Frosting

The perfect recipe to add to your Easter or spring gathering this upcoming month. 🥕

The carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting!

This recipe was inspired by spring cottage core dreams and wanting to create a recipe that would be versatile for breakfast, snack, or dessert! 🥕

These muffins are dense and lightly sweetened, and contain all kinds of goodies, such as carrots, walnuts, dried raisins, fresh ginger, and orange zest! 🍊

CARROT CAKE MUFFINS w. CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Prep. Time: 15 minutes || Cook Time: 25 minutes || Makes: 12 muffins

Ingredients:
CARROT CAKE MUFFINS —
• 1 1/2 cup grated carrots
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. freshly grated ginger
• zest of 1 orange
• 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup flavorless oil (such as canola or grape seed)
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
• 1/4-1/2 cup Thompson raisins

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING —
• 1 package full-fat cream cheese
• 1/2 cup icing sugar, sifted
• Pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS —
• Drizzle of maple syrup

Instructions:
1. Start by turning on your oven at 375F. Take a 12-mold muffin tin pan and place 12 paper cup liners. Set aside.
2. To prepare your muffin batter, start by adding all of your wet ingredients to one bowl (carrots, applesauce, eggs, ginger, orange zest, vanilla bean paste, brown sugar). Mix well together.
3. In another bowl, mix all your muffin dry ingredients (flour, oats, spices, salt).
4. Add your dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix.
5. Fold in your walnuts and raisins until combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared muffin liners.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the muffin comes out clean. Set aside and let cool.
7. For the cream cheese frosting, in a bowl and a hand mixer, whip the cream cheese until softened. Add the icing sugar, salt, and vanilla and mix until whipped.
8. Add to a piping bag and frost your muffins!
9. Add a drizzle of maple syrup for a wow factor. 🥕