These ‘To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free’ are chocked-full of delicious and fresh ingredients such as pineapple, carrots, and raisins. The combination of our chunky, slightly spicy and oh-so-moist cake with a rich cream cheese frosting make these “to die for”.
Bunny Food!
Originally, we were going to release this recipe late last summer. Fortunately, we got backlogged and it’s now spring! Just in time for Easter, these To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free will make even the Easter Bunny smile with glee! And greedily, you’ll want the “Easter Bunny” to eat them all. After eating one, you’ll realize they might just be too good to share! The problem is, baking and decorating these To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free are a wonderful family activity. Trying to hide away a couple dozen of these babies isn’t too practical.
What Recipe Is This?
We checked through our recipe index and found my mom’s original recipe for Carrot Cake Muffins. After a few adaptations, such as substituting fresh pineapple for canned pineapple, adjusting the carrots, and removing the coconut, we were set! Oh yeah, and the obvious, substituting wheat flour for GF flour, we held our breaths as they went into the oven. Always the optimistic, we assumed they’d be great, but you just never know how they will turn out in the first round with the GF flour. As it turns out, they are a smashingly delicious success! I can’t say enough how as to rich, moist, and delicious these Carrot Cake Cupcakes are!
Pineapple in To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free?
Yes, you read it right! Our Carrot Cake Muffins call for pineapple. While we prefer using fresh pineapple, you can also use canned pineapple. The fresh tends to give a bit more vibrance, but both work just as well. Carrot cake recipes in general tend to be very neutral, so the acidity and fruitiness of the pineapple helps to round out and balance the flavor! On top of that, the pineapple helps lock in the moisture – win, win!
How Do I Present Them?
There are a million ways to decorate these To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free! They can be eaten plain – and will satisfy basically any and everyone. Our household loves the traditional cream cheese frosting and colorful sprinkles! Speaking of sprinkles, kids and sprinkles equal emergency vacuuming. Go to Home Depot and buy a cheap reusable tarp to place under children. Not only will it save your house for this deliciousness, but they come in so handy for all other kinds of art projects!
Our kids chose to decorate in every color, but the combination was super cute and perfect for Easter. But don’t limit yourself, these cupcakes would also be great for a birthday party! If you want a more traditional look, after piping on the frosting, sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. The color combination is beautiful and they will look like they came from the bakery.
Tips and Tricks for Making To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free
- If you are NOT GLUTEN FREE, simply replace the 1:1 gluten free flour with ‘regular’ white flour. You’ll get a delicious results either way!
- If you don’t want cupcakes, try making a full cake. Bake in 9X13 cake pan for 45-60 minutes @ 350°, or until toothpick comes out clean
- Don’t overfill the cupcake liners. You want to leave at least a 1/4 inch gap so the cupcakes can rise, but not overflow. If they overflow, they tend to deflate and look a little funny after baking (but they still taste delicious!).
- If you haven’t tried piping frosting but are interested in it, check out this simple tutorial here. I haven’t spent much time piping, and although I’m no professional, it IS fun and makes a big difference in the presentation!
- Although this recipe calls for fresh grated pineapple, you can used canned crushed pineapple. Just try to get as much juice released from it as possible before using.
- I shredded my carrot with my box grater. It took about 2 large carrots. If you don’t know what side to use, check out this article here. My prefered box grater (I’ve got 3) is the Microplane Box Grater. Somehow all of Microplane’s shredding and grating instruments seem to be and remain that much sharper.
- If you like your carrot cake with coconut, add 1/3 cup of toasted coconut to the recipe. Yum!
- If you want higher topped muffins, boost the oven temperature to 425°F for the initial baking. After 5 minutes lower the temp to 350°F and bake for approximately another 8-10 minutes.
Check Out More of Our Recipes:
To Die For Carrot Cake Cupcakes – Gluten Free
Course: DessertDifficulty: Easy30
servings30
minutes16
minutesThese ‘Best Carrot GF Cake Cupcakes’ are chocked-full of delicious and fresh ingredients such as pineapple, carrots and raisins. Chunky, slightly spicy and oh-so-moist, the cake in these is “to die for”. Combine this tasty cake with a cream cheese frosting and fun sprinkles and you have a cupcake for any occasion or season!
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Ingredients
- Carrot Cake Cupcake Base
1/2 Cup 1/2 Canola Oil
1/2 Cup 1/2 Salted Butter (1 stick), softened
2 Cups 2 Sugar
3 Large 3 Eggs
2 tsp 2 Vanilla
2 Cups 2 1:1 King Arthur Gluten Free Flour or White Flour
2 tsp 2 Cinnamon
2 tsp 2 Baking Powder
1/2 tsp 1/2 Baking Soda
1 tsp 1 Himalayan Pink Salt
2 Cups 2 Carrots, Finely Shredded
1 Cup 1 Pineapple, Freshly Grated
1/2 Cup 1/2 Raisins
- Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 Cup 1/2 Salted Butter, Softened
4 Ounces 4 Cream Cheese
2 tsp 2 Vanilla
3+1/2 Cups 3+1/2 Powdered Sugar
1-4 Tbsp 1-4 Milk or Heavy Cream
Extra cinnamon or sprinkles for decoration
Directions
- Carrot Cake Cupcake Base
- Preheat oven to 350° F and line 2 muffin tins with cupcake liners. Spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking.
- Add oil, butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Sprinkle GF 1:1 flour evenly over the top, and then do the same with the cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, pink salt and mix well again. Add shredded carrot, grated pineapple and raisins. Stir with a spoon until thoroughly distributed.
- Spoon batter into greased muffin liners and leave a 1/4 inch gap to the top. Place in oven and bake for 16-18 minutes or until toothpick or fork comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Add softened butter, vanilla and cream cheese together in large mixing bowl. Cream well. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time until it is completely mixed in. Once all powdered sugar is incorporated, add milk or cream 1 Tbsp at a time until frosting reaches desired consistency. If it gets too thin, add more powdered sugar.
- Frost cupcakes, sprinkle with cinnamon or colored sprinkles and enjoy!
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