Carrot Cake Cookies (Printable version)
Soft spiced cookies with carrots and cream cheese frosting.
# What you need:
→ Cookie Dry Ingredients
01 - 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 tsp ground cinnamon
03 - ½ tsp ground ginger
04 - ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
05 - ½ tsp baking soda
06 - ½ tsp baking powder
07 - ½ tsp salt
→ Cookie Wet Ingredients
08 - ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
09 - ½ cup brown sugar, packed
10 - ¼ cup granulated sugar
11 - 1 large egg
12 - 1 tsp vanilla extract
13 - 1 cup finely grated carrots
→ Cookie Mix-Ins
14 - ½ cup rolled oats
15 - ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
16 - ½ cup raisins
→ Cream Cheese Frosting
17 - 4 oz cream cheese, softened
18 - 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
19 - 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
20 - ½ tsp vanilla extract
21 - Pinch of salt
# How To:
01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until well blended.
03 - In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes.
04 - Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
05 - Stir in the grated carrots until evenly distributed throughout the batter.
06 - Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing on low speed until just combined. Avoid overmixing.
07 - Gently fold in the rolled oats, nuts, and raisins by hand until evenly distributed.
08 - Drop tablespoon-sized mounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.
09 - Bake for 11-13 minutes until edges are lightly golden and centers are set. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack.
10 - Beat cream cheese and softened butter together until smooth. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt; beat until fluffy and well combined.
11 - Once cookies have cooled completely, spread or pipe frosting onto each cookie as desired.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- Soft, cakey texture that stays fresh for days thanks to all those moisture loving carrots
- The cream cheese frosting takes them from good cookie to cant stop eating them territory
02 -
- Overmixing the dough makes tough cookies, so stop as soon as the flour disappears
- Warm cookies will melt your frosting right off, so patience during cooling is mandatory
03 -
- Use a cookie scoop for evenly sized cookies that bake at the same rate
- Chill the dough for 30 minutes if it feels too sticky to scoop cleanly