How many muffins would the Easter Bunny eat, if the Easter Bunny could eat muffins?
Plenty—if you’re serving Carrot Cake Muffins, that is!
A pair of delightful recipes from Rodney Williams of the Strawberry Creek Inn B&B, the following lets you enjoy a taste of carrot cake bundled in petite, muffin form.
- Are they delicious, you wonder? You have my word.
- Are they easy to make? Surprisingly so.
- Does it really taste like carrot cake? Absolutely, only in handy, bite-size form.
- How do I turn these into more of a dessert? Easy! Whip up a batch of Strawberry Creek Inn’s accompanying homemade, Cream Cheese Icing and let your carrot cake dreams come true.
While a perfect addition to any Easter breakfast or brunch, don’t let that stop you from enjoying these tasty, moist muffins all year-long.
Tip: Try making these muffins ahead of time and transform hectic, weekday breakfasts into easy grab & goes!
Carrot Cake Muffins
(recipe(s) featured on Inn Cuisine, courtesy the Strawberry Creek Inn B&B)
The following recipe has been adapted to create 8 standard-size muffins. If you need more muffins or are feeding a crowd, just double the recipe to produce approximately 16 standard muffins.
dry ingredients:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
wet ingredients:
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
other ingredients:
- 2 (small standard) carrots, peeled & grated
- 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
- 1/2 cup raisins (plumped by soaking in 1 tablespoon rum plus hot water to cover, then drained)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl; stir in toasted walnuts. In another bowl, whisk wet ingredients together until incorporated and smooth. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. DO NOT OVERMIX. Fold in grated carrots and raisins. Fill buttered, sprayed, or papered standard muffin cups approximately 2/3 full of batter. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of muffins comes out almost clean (moist crumbs are ok, but no wet batter). Remove tin from oven, allowing muffins to cool in tin for 15 minutes, then remove muffins and set on wire rack to finish cooling completely.
Cream Cheese Icing
Recipe has been adapted to frost 8 standard-size muffins. May double ingredients if you are also doubling the carrot cake muffin recipe from above to produce a proportionate amount.
- 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) softened butter (to room temperature)
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- generous 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
Blend softened butter and cream cheese using an electric mixer (with paddle attachment) until combined. Add vanilla extract, turn mixer to low speed, and slowly add confectioner’s sugar. Mix until combined. Use as desired to frost cooled carrot cake muffins.
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Bonus Family-Friendly (Easter) Bunny Riddle
(Don’t giggle, but this is the first joke my husband ever told me, back when we were dating. It completely endeared him to me and his silly sense of humor worked like a charm—we’ve been happily married ever since!)
How do you catch a unique rabbit? Unique up on him.
How do you catch a tame rabbit? The tame way, unique up on him.
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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Love your hubby’s sense of humor! And your carrot muffins. Great idea to do them in muffin form! I just found out I am having last minute guests when I thought we were going out. So am copying the recipe right now…we’ll have it for dessert!
These are full of yummy goodness!
It’s funny because I was just thinking of converting a carrot cake recipe to muffins or cupcakes. This is perfect!!!
unique up on him. ha. so corny.
now, can these still be called muffins if they’re frosted? meh, either way, they look scrumptious.
Cute joke! I love carrot cake and love the idea of muffin sized portions. With the cream cheese frosting – perfection!
I’ve never been crazy about carrot cake, but in small amounts in a muffin, I might just like it! With frosting, of course!
Just looking at the pictures makes my mouth water. lol! Your carrot cake is really unique. I’d like to try it later. And I would say having a great sense of humor is really a plus asset for a person. It pays to be like a clown sometimes.
Barbara – Last minute guests, how fun (or stressful, depending on your viewpoint)
May your guests devour these muffins and leave nothing but an empty tin!
Maria –
Val – Oh yay! I love it when things work out like that!
Grace – Frosted or plain, I’d still call them muffins—too substantial to pass as a cupcake
Susan – Cute, but corny (even I know that), but I liked that he told me a “clean” joke first and not something raunchy or inappropriate. He’s a gentleman that way. And the muffin portions? Perfect!
Lydia – I hope you’ll try these (I know you like carrots and these muffins are worth a taste drive).
Kathy – I had a friend on Facebook tell me the same thing, “Your muffin photos are making my mouth water.” I hope you try them as well, and I fully agree: sense of humor is an asset in anyone.
These look absolutely scrumptious!
love the idea of a carrot cake – in mini portions looks and sounds sensational!
So – I was going to make carrot cake muffins for breakfast tomorrow! This recipe looks delish!
I agree with Meeta – good thing these are mini portions because if they were in cake form I would eat the entire cake! Delicious!
These look perfectly yummy. And your photography is superb. When will your classes start? Sign me up!
Just wanted you to know: I did make the cupcakes and they were a smash hit! Thanks!