Carrot Cake Cookies

Carrot Cake Cookies are exactly what you expect – soft spiced carrot cookies which are obviously topped with cream cheese frosting. Add a little carrot icing decoration for those spring festivities.

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If given the choice between cookies and cake I will pick cookies every time. I’m just a fan of the toothy-ness of a cookie over a fluffy cake. This is likely why I prefer denser cakes, such as carrot cake. But clearly even carrot cake is subject to being in cookie form.

These carrot cake cookies are made from scratch including the frosting (okay no I didn’t grind my own flour or make my own cream cheese), but obviously I didn’t make the carrot icing decorations. Wilton sent me those for some spring baking fun along with an adorably festive carrot shaped whisk.

Sure you could use a box of carrot cake mix to make them instead (like when I made red velvet cake mix cookies) paired with a jar of cream cheese frosting. TBH if I had a box of carrot cake mix on hand I would have gone that route but what I did have was carrots and all the other necessary ingredients. Yes, even cream cheese. I always have cream cheese.

What I am trying to say is, I get it if you’d rather take the shortcut if you happen to have cake mix in your pantry, but I’m betting it’s more likely you also the ingredients to make these from scratch rather than a box of carrot cake mix and jar of cream cheese frosting.

Another reason carrot cake is one of my favorites? The cream cheese frosting. So of course these cookies had to be topped with it. In the end they truly tasted like mini slices of dense carrot cake. I had to distance myself from them, so Bob brought them to work and they caused a commotion.

If you like the idea of sneaking vegetables into your cookies, you should also try my Glazed Orange Carrot Cookies. I have also made Carrot Cake Breakfast Cookies before without cream cheese frosting (because you, know trying to be healthier or breakfast) but they really were missing that little something special. If I make them again they for sure are getting the cream cheese treatment – #CreamCheeseLover

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CARROT CAKE COOKIES

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Yield: 4 dozen Prep Time: 30 Minutes Cooking Time: 12 Minutes 12 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Ingredients

COOKIES

• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 2 cup grated carrots (about 4 carrots)
• 1 cup chopped pecans

FROSTING

• 8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• Wilton Carrot Icing Decorations

Directions

1. For the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 and line cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and creamy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the eggs and vanilla until combined.
3. To the butter mixture, add flour, baking soda, spices and salt and beat until just combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in carrots and chopped pecans until combined.
4. Drop walnut-sized balls of dough (I used a medium cookie scoop) onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until no longer shiny and edges are browned. Let cool on pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. For the frosting: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese,  butter, and vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time, beating until smooth between addition, until it reaches desired consistency.
6. Frost cookies using an offset spatula. Top with carrot-shaped icing decorations or a pecan half.

Source: Adapted from Lil’ Luna and Carlsbad Cravings.

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