Primal Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Brandon’s birthday was the other day and neither one of us wanted to gorge out on birthday cake, but believe me, that does happen every once in a while. So I decided to challenge myself by making something that was “health-bent” and still better than edible. Gotta say, I’m tootin’ my own horn with this one. No almond flour is involved. All the ingredients are pretty dang cheap. Hope ya’ll can find a special occasion to show off this show stopper.
On a side note: Yes I’m using sugar. Yes I’m using dairy products. But hopefully you all understand this is a special occasion treat and we use sugar very sparingly. Also, dairy is something that is quite controversial in the Paleo world. We source raw (unpasteurized, non-homogenized ) and grass fed dairy products–and that’s the only way we’ll eat them.
Yield: 18
Ingredients
- 1 c almond butter
- 1/2 can full fat coconut milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 t baking powder
- 1 t baking soda
- zest of 1 orange
- 1/2 c raisins or 1/3 c sugar
- 3 carrots, shredded
- 1 T vanilla extract
- 2 T cinnamon
- 1 t nutmeg
- 1 t ginger
- 1/4 t cloves
- pinch salt
- 1/2 c toasted, chopped pecans (optional)
Frosting Ingredients
- 1 lb. cream cheese, room temp
- 4 ounce butter, softened
- 1/4 c powdered sugar
- 1 T vanilla extract
- pinch salt
Method
In a bowl, combine all the cupcakes ingredients and whisk to combine. Scoop into a muffin tin and bake at 350ºF for about 20-22 minutes.
While the cupcakes are baking, make the frosting by dumping all the ingredients into a mixer and mix until fluffy, about 10 minutes. Don’t frost the cupcakes until they’re C O M P L E T E L Y cool, otherwise it will melt and that is just not good.
To frost the cupcakes, use a spatula to put 1/4 of the frosting into a zip top bag. Cut a tip off the corner of the bag and try your hardest to make them look pretty (it takes practice). Fill the bag again and repeat. Or use a small spatula to swirl a bit of frosting on ‘em. Top with chopped, toasted nuts if you’d like.
Holy Mary! I love carrot cake and even more when they’re in the shape of a cupcake. I cannot wait to try this out. I love your Paleo approach and that you make allowances for treats like this. Go ahead and toot your own horn…this looks AMAZING!
thanks liz! i had a comment about nutritional info for our brownie recipe. so i looked these up too. i got 10g of carbs…using raisins (not sugar) and including the frosting. not bad!
I made these for my aunt’s birthday. My whole family eats Paleo so they totally appreciated the goodness you came up with. Thanks. Keep up the yummy work.
thank you! i applaud your entire family for eating this way. we have a very hard time convincing ours.
Did you use sugar or raisins in your recipe?
well…some people like raisins, some don’t. so i put two options. but…it also depends on how sweet you want it. they’re not that sweet with one or the other, so both sugar and raisins may be better if you’re making these for non-paleo eaters.
I officially love you. the cupcakes were amazing! I used sugar instead of raisins and it was delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe and treat
hahaha. we love you too!!!
Hi Megan–My wife and I tried out the brownies last weekend and they did come out a lot like fudge–not as cake like as traditional brownies. I realize that may just be part of the territory when it comes to paleo desserts. But, do these cupcakes come out a little more cake-like with the addition of the baking soda/powder, or are they still pretty dense?
P.s. Love the site!
thank you david!
you are exactly right, the lack of a leavening agent in the brownie caused it to be more like fudge. the ‘cupcakes’ are definitely more cake like, not exactly a traditional cake ‘crumb’, but it’s a decent alternative, i think.
So excited – about to try this recipe in t minus one hour to bring to my boyfriend’s parents.
I wanted to make a paleo treat that didn’t have agave or maple syrup etc. Yours was one of the few I came by – I’ll let you guys know how they come out!
DELICIOUS – just blogged about it on my own blog. . .
http://30dayszonepaleoinga.blogspot.com/2010/11/day-50-something-thanksgiving-food-plan.html
hope this sends some folks your way
basically because I didn’t make the icing I added some hazelnuts and pecans in the ‘batter’ . . I also doubled the amount of raisins. . .=)
YAY you guys
jasmine, awesome-ness..glad they worked out for you!
I tried this recipe and it turned out really well! I added in a few scoops of crushed pineapple and some coconut, but I’m definitely keeping this recipe. I even brought the leftovers to work the next day and had 2 people (who had no idea that this cake had no flour and barely any sugar) asked for the recipe. I put it up on my blog: http://www.thecookincutie.blogspot.com
keep up the great recipes, I love them!
looks great girl! thanks for the feedback!
Just curious if you have considered trying to use stevia instead of sugar? Would it work you think?
we actually JUST bought some stevia. i don’t see why it wouldn’t work…can’t help you with quantities though. we will definitely post any recipes we like w/ it.
Just tried them, but with out the frosting…and im not quiet sure. It does taste good, but without any almond flour i found them too much `juicy`.
Just an F.Y.I both sugar and cream cheese (especially) are not primal… might want to rename these!
Used your frosting recipe on the Pumpkin Spice Bars – fantastic!
These are for my son’s 2nd birthday so I was fine with having a little treat (cream cheese, icing sugar).
This dessert was great! I constantly have a sweet tooth and usually just suffer! I have tried to make other paleo desserts but they usually fall flat because they don’t taste like “normal” desserts. This one conquered my sweet tooth while not trying to be something it isn’t… yummy. I did not use the frosting recipe because I personally don’t do dairy as a part of my diet, but I did a modified version of the cinnamon icing on another recipe you have up! I just stumbled upon your website this week and am already making 3 recipes from it! Thanks for the great ideas!
awesome! glad you enjoyed the cake jen!
I made these for my mom’s birthday. They were soo good. I did modify a few things: I tallied up the spice measurements and instead used the same amount of pumpkin pie spice (penzey’s), I used almond flour instead of almond butter, added some crushed pineapple and a couple of tablespoons of coconut flour. Yum.
hmmm…you made hummingbird cake, kind of. i made that for our wedding cake. love it! great idea!