Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Imagine all the flavors of carrot cake, but baked into muffins! These healthy carrot cake muffins are soft, moist, warmly spiced, and topped with a high-protein cream cheese frosting. Vegan, gluten-free, and naturally sweetened.
I cannot get over how cute and delicious these healthy carrot cake muffins are! Side note, if you haven’t tried my healthy carrot cake recipe, it’s a must.
These carrot cake muffins are filled with warm spices, natural sweetness, a tender crumb, and topped off with a high-protein cream cheese frosting. Because letās be honest, whatās carrot cake without the frosting?
Featured Comment
These muffins are delicious. They are super moist and just the perfect kick of of carrot. I have friends who arenāt vegan and couldnāt even tell they were made with nondairy items. Definitely a staple in our household.Ā
– Angela
This healthy carrot cake muffin recipe is the kind where no one believes you when you say theyāre vegan, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free. With hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and freshly grated carrots, they truly taste like a slice of carrot cake you’d get at a bakery, but made with much better ingredients.
Why You’ll Love These Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins
As a self-proclaimed carrot cake aficionado, these are honestly my dream muffin!
- Soft, fluffy, tender, and perfectly moist
- Warmly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla
- Made in one-bowl with wholesome ingredients
- Packed with freshly grated carrots
- Naturally sweetened with coconut sugar
- Topped with a high-protein cream cheese frosting (no powdered sugar!)
- Vegan + gluten-free
Healthy carrot cake muffins for breakfast? Yup. They’re perfect for breakfast, snack, dessert… basically whenever a carrot cake craving hits. So if youāve ever wanted to eat carrot cake for breakfast and feel good about it, this recipe is your moment!
Ingredients Needed
You just need a few simple ingredients to make this healthy carrot cake muffin recipe.
- Carrots: whatās a carrot cake without carrots? We’re using 1 cup of carrots, which is equivalent to 2-3 carrots, and will add moisture to the muffins.
- Unsweetened applesauce: adds natural sweetness and moisture (but donāt worry, you wonāt taste it).
- Coconut sugar: the natural sweetener which also makes for a tender crumb with a hint of warmth.
- Non-dairy milk: any non-dairy milk works here (soy, oat, almond, etc).
- Coconut oil: make sure to use refined coconut oil so there’s no coconut flavor.
- Apple cider vinegar: reacts with the baking powder and soda to help the muffins rise.
- Vanilla extract: adds depth of flavor
- Oat flour: this gluten-free flour is rich in heart-healthy nutrients. While I sometimes make my own oat flour, I recommend using store-bought oat flour for this recipe for a light and tender crumb.
- Baking bowder + baking soda: helps the muffins rise for a light and airy texture.
- Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt bring that cozy carrot cake flavor.
- For the vegan cream cheese frosting: you’ll need vegan cream cheese, a high-protein vegan yogurt, a splash of maple syrup, and a drop of vanilla extract.
How to Make Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350Ā°F and line a muffin tin with parchment liners.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut sugar, applesauce, non-dairy milk, melted coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract.
- Add the dry ingredients: Stir in the oat flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Stir until just combined.
- Fold in the carrots: Gently fold in the freshly grated carrots.
- Bake: Divide the batter evenly between muffin cups and bake for 18ā20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the frosting: While the muffins are baking, make the frosting by adding the vegan cream cheese, high-protein vegan vanilla yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to a bowl and use a hand mixer to beat until smooth and creamy.
- Frost and decorate: Once the muffins are completely cooled, frost generously and decorate as desired (crushed walnuts, piped carrots, or keep it classic with a simple swirl).
Scroll down to the recipe card to get the full recipe with measurements!
Megan’s Tips
- Freshly grated carrots are key. Whenever you’re making carrot cake, freshly grated carrots are key. Skip the pre-shredded bag from the grocery store – those are great for soup, but not for cake. Freshly grated carrots release natural moisture, which is what gives these muffins that soft, tender crumb.
- Use store-bought oat flour for the best texture. Store-bought oat flour is much more finely milled than homemade, which gives these muffins that soft, fluffy, bakery-style crumb. Homemade oat flour can work in a pinch, but the texture may be slightly more dense or grainy.
- Use a high-protein yogurt for the frosting. This is what gives the frosting its creamy texture and boosts the protein. I use cocojune’s dairy-free greek-style protein yogurt. P.S. the muffins taste equally as delicious without the frosting!
- Let the muffins cool completely before frosting. Trust me, I know itās tempting, but warm muffins + cream cheese frosting = a slippery situation.
Decorating Your Carrot Cake Muffins
Decorating the muffins is totally optionalā¦but also kind of irresistible. I like to finish them with a few simple touches:
- big blob of frosting
- rim of crushed walnuts for a little crunch
- small piped carrot on top (I just tinted a bit of the leftover frosting with some turmeric for a natural orange color)
- tiny sprig of rosemary for a ācarrot topā
Oh and you’ll want to remove the rosemary before digging inā¦unless you love rosemary that much (I do not!).
How to Store Carrot Cake Muffins
- Storing unfrosted muffins: store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days, or in the fridge for 4ā5 days.
- Storing frosted muffins: because of the cream cheese frosting, store them in the fridge for 3ā4 days.
- Freezing: yes, you can freeze them! As long as they’re unfrosted. Pop them in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge or at room temperature, then optionally frost before serving.
Whether you’re enjoying them as a breakfast, snack, or dessert, this healthy carrot cake muffin recipe is sure to become a favorite in your house, as it has in mine!
eat your veggies! More Carrot Recipes You’ll Love
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and ā ā ā ā ā star rating below. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram so I can see your creations!
Healthy Carrot Cake Muffins (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
Equipment
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Muffins
Wet Ingredients
- Ā½ cup coconut sugar
- Ā½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- Ā½ cup non-dairy milk
- Ā¼ cup melted coconut oil
- 1 Ā½ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups oat flour
- 1 Ā½ tablespoons cinnamon
- Ā½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Ā¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup freshly grated carrots, not from a bag
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 oz vegan cream cheese
- Ā½ cup non-dairy yogurt, I use a high-protein one from cocojune
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- Ā½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350Ā°F and line a muffin tin with liners.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut sugar, applesauce, non-dairy milk, melted coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract.
- Add the dry ingredients: Stir in the oat flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Stir until just combined.
- Fold in the carrots: Gently fold in the freshly grated carrots.
- Bake: Divide the batter evenly between muffin cups and bake for 18ā20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the frosting: While the muffins are baking, make the frosting by adding the vegan cream cheese, high-protein vegan vanilla yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to a bowl and use aĀ hand mixer to beat until smooth and creamy.
- Frost and decorate: Once the muffins are completely cooled, frost generously and decorate as desired (crushed walnuts, piped carrots, or keep it classic with a simple swirl).
I made this for easter! I substituted 1cup of oat flour for almond flour. For the frosting, I used regular cream cheese with a 1/2 cup of Lakanto powdered sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla, and it was delicious! I tried to make another carrot cake from someone else for my birthday, and it was horrible, so when I found that you had a recipe for it, I knew it would turn out great, which it did!!! Thank you!
I’m so happy to hear these carrot cake muffins were a hit! Thanks so much for sharing your review š„° I’m glad to hear it worked with those substitutions too. Can’t wait to hear what you bake next!
Made them mini for our Easter brunch (24 minis baked 13 mins) and even the picky kids loved them! Thank you for another delicious recipe!
I’m glad they worked as mini muffins! And so happy to hear they were a hit. Happy Easter!
Absolutely loved these muffins. Ā They were so moist and the vegan cream cheese frosting was perfect! Ā I will make these again for Easter!
So happy you enjoyed the muffins, Kristy! Thanks so much for sharing your review. I hope they’re a hit at Easter!
These muffins are delicious. They are super moist and just the perfect kick of of carrot. I have friends who arenāt vegan and couldnāt even tell they were made with nondairy items. Definitely a staple in our house hold.Ā
That makes me so happy to hear that you (& your non-vegan friends) loved these muffins š thanks for sharing, Angela!
Hi
I love you recipes , I follow you on intragram . Thanks so much .
I made the carrot muffins and love them .
I also made , a while back now, the brownies with the dates and I think peanut butter and cocoa powder that was amazing!!!!
Have a good day
Janine
Hi Janine, thanks so much for your review, it brought a smile to my face š so happy to hear you’ve been loving my recipes – I can’t wait to hear what you make next!
These are incredibly delicious thank you so much for sharing this delicious recipe.Ā
I’m so happy to hear you loved these muffins, Rita! Thanks for sharing your review š
I cannot get over how delicious these carrot cake muffins are and they couldn’t be easier to make! I love them with or without the frosting. So yummy and healthy!