Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes, Easy One-Bowl Recipe

Name: Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 78 min
Ingredients: 175 grams gluten-free flour (please click through for appropriate blends); 15 grams corn starch; ¼ teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon nutmeg; ½ teaspoon salt; 130 grams sugar; 18 grams molasses; 68 grams canola oil (or other neutral tasting oil); 2 eggs (room temperature); 1 egg white (room temperature); 72 grams horchata (or milk + 1 teaspoon sugar + 1 teaspoon cinnamon (room temperature)); 30 grams pecans (chopped); 30 grams white chocolate chips; 130 grams carrots (grated); 35 grams apple (grated); 174 grams butter (salted, room temperature); 349 grams powdered sugar; ½ teaspoon horchata emulsion; 1 teaspoon horchata (as needed); 60 grams pecans (chopped, for decorating the cupcake side)

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These gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes are the perfect gluten-free Easter dessert to please your family! All the ingredients go into one-bowl, making it super easy to prepare. The batter itself is also dairy-free, so depending on your choice of frosting, you can accommodate for many allergies. They're super fun to decorate with the right piping tips, and kiddos can help!

a gluten-free carrot cake cupcake on a cake stand, with its liner peeled off. The crumb is golden with orange carrots. The frosting is white with a round of pecans, and a glob of orange frosting on top with a piped leaf... a buttercream carrot.

The Easter bunny and carrots just go so well together. Gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes are a great gluten-free Easter dessert, but I also sell them at my cottage bakery all year round. In most states, cottage bakers aren't allowed to use cream cheese frosting, and so I've designed a shelf-stable frosting using horchata that pairs just so dang well with this recipe. You can of course choose to use any frosting your heart desires.

This recipe uses many of the same ingredients as my gluten-free carrot muffins, but is sweeter and rises less. The buttercream was inspired by my gluten-free horchata cupcakes recipe. Horchata is a Mexican rice-cinnamon drink that is absolutely delicious and I use it a lot!

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Ingredients
Instructions
Substitutions
Variations
Equipment
Storage
Top tip
FAQ
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Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Ingredients

The most important ingredient in all my recipes is always the gluten-free flour mix. Please click through the link for the DIY blend that I use, and for appropriate commercial mix recommendations.

The molasses was chosen because it adds a delightful taste AND moisture to the cupcakes. If you don't want to use molasses, you could sub out half of the sugar for brown sugar.

Horchata is my liquid of choice here, but you can use milk (dairy or plant-based) instead.

Corn starch is a great ingredient in gluten-free baking. Due to its high amylose content, it does a great job of adding structure. You can read more about amylose in my gluten-free flour guide.

Finally, the apple adds moisture. You could also use pineapple, but I have not tried it.

an overhead picture of labeled ingredients for the recipe, resting on a dark wooden table: there's a cutting board with apples, carrots, pecans, white chocolate chips and eggs. There are also eight bowls with varying flours, powders, salt, seasoning, as well as a measuring cup filled with horchata, and another with oil.

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

This is a perfect gluten-free Easter dessert because it's quick to whip up and really fun to decorate! Everything goes into one bowl: the dry ingredients, then the liquids, and finally the add-ins.

Making the cupcakes

Start by sifting the gluten-free flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. This will aerate the batter and get rid of clumps. Then, mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add all the liquid ingredients and mix. And finally fold in all the add-ins. Scoop evenly into a lined muffin tray and bake 16-18 minutes at 325F. Cool completely before frosting.

a hand holds a sifter above a bowl, where white flour is collecting.

a bowl with a black whisk, with dry ingredients. The color is mostly white, with specks of brown from the cinnamon and nutmeg.

Hint: because of all their add-ins and extra moisture from the molasses and apple, these cupcakes bake longer than regular cupcakes. I check them at the 16-minute mark, and usually keep them in an extra 2-3 minutes. They are ready when a finger leaves no print, and the cupcake bounces back with some resistance.

Making the frosting

I use my crusting buttercream, which I find makes it easier to decorate cupcakes. As in the piped carrot will be stiff and not melt on you. If you have never made buttercream frosting before, I highly recommend checking out my crusting buttercream recipe here, so you can get a feel for the consistency. The secret ingredient in this frosting is horchata emulsion (non-affiliate link). I find that simply using horchata in the frosting is not enough, and so a concentrated emulsion really brings out the best flavors.

If you're not sure about purchasing the emulsion, you can absolutely use a cream cheese frosting here, it will just be a bit softer.

a cooling rack on the counter, with twelve gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes fully decorated with piped carrots and leaves, and adorned with pecans.

Decorating the cupcakes

To decorate this perfect gluten-free Easter dessert the way I did, you'll need chopped pecans (or raisins, if you have a tree nut allergy), a butter knife, two piping bags, gel food coloring, and a leaf tip, like Wilton 352 (non-affiliate link), which you can find for less than $2 at your local craft store.

Once a portion of the frosting has been colored orange, and green, we need to transfer the frosting to a piping bag. First, cut a small hole in the piping bag to insert the piping tip (for the orange frosting, no tip is necessary). Then set the piping bag in a tall bag and transfer the frosting. Squeeze the frosting all the way to the tip.

on the counter, there is a tall glass with a piping bag inside, and inside the bag is green frosting. In the background is a cooling rack with gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes.

a hand holding a piping bag filled with green frosting, with a leaf tip. In the background are the gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes on the cooling rack.

Using a knife, frost each gluten-free carrot cake cupcake with white buttercream, and roll the sides into chopped pecans so they stick to the buttercream. Next, with the orange piping bag, cut about a 1-inch hole, and pipe a dollop on the top of the cupcake. Finish the decoration with a green leaf or two. You can watch the video below for a visual of these steps.

Substitutions

The allergens in this recipe are: eggs, milk, tree nuts, soy.

Dairy-free - milk is in two places in this recipe: in the white chocolate chips and in the frosting. You can use Pascha white chocolate chips (non-affiliate link) which have no allergens, or simply swap the chocolate chips for more pecans or even raisins. In the frosting, use a vegan butter.
Tree-nut free - omit pecans, and replace them with raisins.
Soy-free - the soy is found in the lecithin in most brands of white chocolate. You can either use Pascha white chocolate chips (see link in the dairy-free section above) or replace the white chocolate chips with more pecans, or raisins.
Egg-free - I have not tried making this recipe without eggs, and I'm not sure it would work as written with flax eggs. If you're looking for egg-free recipes, check out my gluten-free vegan lemon cake, and gluten-free vegan strawberry cupcakes.

Variations

I'm using a few ingredients in this recipe that most people don't necessarily have in the kitchen. Here's a few ideas of what you can use instead.

Horchata - you can get horchata at your local taqueria, or at the grocery store, in the same place you would find almond milk. If you can't find it, you can replace it with milk (or vegan milk) with a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of cinnamon.
Molasses - you can omit the molasses, and replace half the sugar with brown sugar.

Other fun variation ideas for these gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes:

Pineapple - instead of the apple, use a pineapple
Walnuts - you can replace the pecans with walnuts for a more earthy taste.

Equipment

To make the buttercream, you'll need a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or you could also use an electric mixer.

For the cupcakes, a standard muffin tray and liners are necessary.

For decorating, you'll need piping bags, and a Wilton 352 leaf tip, available at most craft stores.

Storage

If you make the recipe as is, it is shelf stable at room temperature for up to three days. However, with cream cheese frosting, it will be best eaten the same day, or refrigerated (which could unfortunately dry gluten-free cupcakes). You could also keep the frosting in the refrigerator, and frost the cupcakes as you eat them!

If you have leftovers, you can flash freeze the gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes for 5-10 minutes to harden the buttercream, then wrap in plastic, and store in an airtight container for up to 1 month in the freezer. When ready to eat, simply thaw at room temperature.

a gluten-free carrot cake cupcake on a cake stand, with its liner peeled off. Half the cupcake has been eaten, and we can see an airy golden crumb with pieces of carrots.

Top tip

Is your oven calibrated? I had no idea my oven ran 25 degrees hotter than the dial, until I purchased an oven thermometer. This really helps ensure that you are baking at the correct temperature, a common pitfall!

FAQ

Holy macaroni, why is my cupcake green?!

Carrots contain certain pigments that are very sensitive to an alkaline environment. When carrots come into contact with baking soda, they undergo a reaction which produces a green color! Don't be alarmed, it's not mold, it's completely safe to eat, it's just green!

Can I bake this recipe into a cake instead?

I have not done it, but I think you could! If you double the recipe, you should have enough batter for an 8-inch 2-layer cake.

Why not use butter in carrot cake?

I love butter. But this recipe does not require creaming butter and sugar. The reason we use oil is because it's a liquid at room temperature, which helps keep the cupcakes moist longer. In fact, because of that reason, I use a small amount of oil in all of my gluten-free cakes and cupcakes.

Should I use raisins in carrot cake?

You certainly can! They add a little chewiness and sweetness. This recipe does not contain raisins, but you can definitely swap the add-ins for raisins.

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