Try these fluffy spiced carrot cake cupcakes topped with a rich brown sugar cream cheese frosting. You’ll loves this tasty twist on traditional carrot cake!
The addition of brown sugar to a typical cream cheese frosting makes these cupcakes extra special. We’ve made this recipe multiple times, and these cupcakes are always met with rave reviews. Prefer a different version of carrot cake? Try our Carrot Cake (layer cake) or Carrot Cake Bars.

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Why you’ll love these carrot cake cupcakes
Texture: Fluffy and moist cupcakes topped with creamy frosting.
Flavor: Cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla create a delicious flavor combination.
Ease: The cupcake batter comes together in minutes.
Twist on a classic: The carrot cake element is traditional with an updated twist from the brown sugar cream cheese frosting.

Recipe overview
Cupcakes:
- Combine dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon).
- Whisk sugars, oil, eggs, applesauce, and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and whisk to combine.
- Stir in the shredded carrots

Divide the batter between 12 lined muffin cups and bake!

Note: These cupcakes do not have a high rise. You will not get a large dome shape, but the cupcakes should give a slight dome just above the top of the cupcake wrapper.
Frosting:
Beat butter, cream cheese, and molasses. Allow the mixture to sit at room temp for about 5 minutes, this helps the brown sugar dissolve. Beat in powdered sugar, and vanilla.
Pipe or spread the frosting on the cooled cupcakes.

Key ingredients
Brown sugar: Brown sugar is in both the cupcakes and frosting. The deep, rich, caramel flavor of brown sugar really elevates this recipe.
Carrots: Finely grated carrots add moisture and color and help give a classic carrot cake texture.
Applesauce and oil: Using a combination of applesauce makes the cupcakes mist but not oily. The applesauce also adds a bit of natural sweetness.

Tips for the best cream cheese frosting
- Cream cheese and butter should be softened to cool room temperature. Do not speed this along by microwaving – you will get them too soft, which will result in a runny frosting that will require a lot powdered sugar to thicken it. I leave my cream cheese and butter at room temp for 30 minutes to one hour.
- Your brown sugar needs to be fresh, moist, and free from lumps. Soft, fresh brown sugar is essential for this frosting.
- To avoid grittiness from the brown sugar, make sure the frosting is thoroughly beaten. Scrape the beater, and the sides of the bowl periodically.
- This frosting is softer than a typical cream cheese frosting. It holds its shape best if stored in the refrigerator. Once I add the frosting to the cupcakes I pop them in the fridge for the frosting to firm up.
- Prefer REGULAR CREAM CHEESE FROSTING? Use this recipe, cut in half, to frost 12 cupcakes.
More carrot cake recipes
Recipe

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- 1 cup all purpose flour, see note
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, increase to 2 teaspoons, if desired
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup vegetable or canola oil
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ⅓ cup brown sugar, light or dark, it should be fresh and soft
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups FINELY grated carrots (loosely measured, not packed), about 2 medium carrots
Frosting:
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to cool room temp
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to cool room temp
- ¾ cup brown sugar, light or dark, it should be fresh and soft
- 1 teaspoon molasses, optional, see note
- 2 cups powdered sugar, plus more if needed
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.
- Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk oil, applesauce, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract until thoroughly combined. Add dry ingredients and whisk until just combined. Stir in carrots using a rubber spatula or spoon.
- Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups (I use an ice cream scoop). Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. These cupcakes do not have a high rise, they'll be just over the top of the paper liner. Cool for 10 minutes, then remove cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frosting and assembly:
- Place the butter, cream cheese, brown sugar, and molasses in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat for 1-2 minutes at medium speed. If necessary, scrape the sides of the bowl and the beater, then beat a little longer. Let this mixture sit for 5 minutes, to allow the brown sugar to absorb into the wet ingredients (this is to avoid grittiness).
- Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth and creamy, scraping the beater and sides of the bowl periodically. If you prefer the frosting thicker, add a little more powdered sugar. Give it a mix on high speed for one full minute. This frosting is on the softer side and it will firm up once refrigerated.
- Spread or pipe the frosting on top of each cupcake (I used a pastry bag and open star decorating tip). Place the cupcakes in the fridge so the frosting can firm up a bit. Serve at cool room temperature.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Jamie says
I made these cupcakes gluten free. I substituted gluten free all purpose flour 3/4 cup and corn starch 1/4 cup in place of the 1 cup flour. They were amazing!! The frosting is awesome 👏
Allison says
Perfect! I’m glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
Carissa says
Thank you for the gluten free tip!!
Alexandra says
I randomly picked this recipe on Pinterest and it turned out to be a direct-hit. I brought them to a party I attended and literally everyone was talking about these amazing cupcakes. This recipe will be my absolute go-to and I‘m excited to try out your other recipes. Thank you so much for sharing this gem!
Allison says
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
Morgan says
Hi! I’ve been using this recipe for a few years and I was wondering if you still had the old recipe with the walnuts in it?
Allison says
Hi, Morgan. Stir 1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts into the batter before adding it to the muffin pan. Everything else is the same. 🙂
assia says
hi,
did anyone try the recipe with metric measurements , i tried to convert the ingredients but i am left with different numbers when i did the research ,the recipe looks perfect and i really want to try it but i am affraid i will mess it up with the wrong mesurments of ingredients .
thank you
Jen says
How long will they last in the refrigerator?
Allison says
They are best within 2 days of baking. You could likely store a few days longer but the cake might dry out a bit.
Avi says
This was such a delicious treat. I added a little less sugar in the frosting and it was perfect for us! Could not stop licking the spoon. Thanks.
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Jeannette davis says
The cake was delicious as well as the frosting I just think the frosting was a tad to sweet and the sugar does not dissolve well. next time I will only use half the brown sugar and add a tad bit more molasses in the frosting to avoid so much crunch but overall a good recipe I will do again
Kelley Brockman says
Hi! Can I use this in a Bundt pan??
Allison says
Probably, but you’ll likely want a bundt pan on the smaller side. There won’t be enough batter for a large capacity bundt. You’d have to just play around with it.
Jane C says
I only used the frosting portion of the recipe and it was SOOO YUMMY. I e never tried brown sugar with cream cheese. What a great combo! I put it on top of very fudgy brownies. It is soft frosting, but did set up after a while in the fridge. I will definitely use it again on a spice cake or your carrot cake cupcakes!! Thank you for a very tasty recipe 👍🏼
Allison says
You’re welcome!
Dawn says
Looking forward to enjoying these for my moms birthday. For the frosting, I followed exactly with the exception of molasses as I did not have on hand. I used piping bag and still have so much left over, did I do something wrong or should I bake another batch of cupcakes? Thank you
Allison says
I frost them generously. If you have leftover frosting you can put it in the freezer.