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–+ servings
Carrot cake cookies with cream cheese frosting on a piece of parchment paper topped with marzipan carrots and nuts.
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5 from 1 vote

Carrot cake cookies with cream cheese frosting

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Servings: 19 cookies
Author: Aleksandra

Ingredients

for the cookies:

  • 1/2 cup (115g) soft butter
  • 1/2 cup (100g) light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups (155g) flour spooned and leveled
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 cup carrots grated on the small holes of a box grater 120g, lightly packed, 1 large+1medium carrot
  • 1/2 cup (50g) roughly chopped walnuts
  • 1 cup (100g) rolled oats not quick/instant

for the cream cheese frosting:

  • 4 tablespoons (60g) soft butter
  • 1 cup (120g) powdered sugar
  • 8 oz (230g) cream cheese at room temperature

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F / 180°C / Gas Mark 4, no fan (if you have a convection/fan oven reduce the temperature by about 20° or follow the manufacturer's instructions).
  • Add both types of sugar and room temperature butter into a mixing bowl. Beat for about 1-2 minutes until well-combined. You can use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle-shaped attachment.
  • Add the egg and vanilla extract. Beat for 1-2 minutes or until well-combined.
  • Stir flour with baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl. Mix over low speed until half-combined (the flour shouldn’t be fully incorporated at this point).
  • Roughly chop walnuts, peel the carrots and grate them on the small holes of a box grater.
  • Add oats, grated carrots, and chopped nuts to the cookie batter. Mix over low speed until evenly distributed. Don’t mix the cookie dough for too long.
  • Scoop the dough with a 2-tablespoon scoop (each cookie dough ball should weigh about 35g, they should be rather small!) and place about 2-inches (5 cm) apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake the cookies in batches for about 15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are golden and the tops just very slightly golden (the cookies should be soft! - they will finish baking on the baking sheet). Leave the cookies for about 5 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a cooling rack using a spatula.
  • Make the cream cheese frosting: Beat the butter and powdered sugar (should be sifted!) with a mixer (fitted with a whisk attachment), for about 2-3 minutes, until fluffy (it will look crumbly at first, but just beat it until it's creamy). Add the cream cheese and mix until the frosting is smooth and fluffy. The order of adding ingredients is important!
  • When the cookies are completely cooled, spread the frosting over them.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • If you frosted warm cookies and the frosting starts to look runny but it quickly in the fridge to chill.
  • What is room temperature butter: when you press it with your finger, it should make an indent, but your finger should not slide all the way down. It’s also slightly cold to the touch.
  • How to quickly soften butter: I usually cut butter into small cubes and leave it on the counter for 10-15 minutes, it’s usually enough. Another option is to beat the butter with the mixer for about 1-2 minutes, then wait about 5 minutes.
  • How to measure flour: Fluff the flour by stirring it in the bag/flour container with a spoon. Spoon the flour and sprinkle it into your measuring cup. Sweep off the excess flour with the back of a knife. Note: using a scale yields perfect and consistent results.
  • Calories = 1 cookie (1/19 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!

Nutrition

Calories: 237kcal