Carrot Cake Cookies
Soft and chewy Carrot Cake Cookies with a cake-like texture packed with shredded carrots, coconut and spices are drizzled with a sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting. They’re a delicious and hearty springtime or Easter treat.
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 cup shredded carrots lightly packed (about 2 carrots)
- ½ cup butter (1 stick), softened to room temperature
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup dark brown sugar lightly packed
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Cream Cheese Frosting and Garnish
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon 35% whipping cream
- 1 cup icing sugar possibly more
- Carrot shaped gummies, optional
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare two large cookie sheets by lining with parchment paper.
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Grate carrots on the large holes of a box grater. Blot them between two sheets of paper towels to remove some of the moisture.
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In a large mixing bowl with a spatula, blend butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and blend again until smooth. Fold in the shredded carrots.
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Into a medium bowl, combine flour, coconut, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and salt. Add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir just until combined and all dry ingredients are absorbed. The batter will be very thick.
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Drop two tablespoons of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets, leaving at least one inch in between each cookie. With dampened hands, press down on each cookie to lightly flatten them.
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Bake for 11 – 13 minutes, just until lightly golden and the edges are crisp, but still soft in the centre. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
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Meanwhile, make the cream cheese frosting. Add cream cheese and cream to a heat proof bowl. Microwave on medium power for 20 – 30 seconds just until the cheese has softened. Whisk it until smooth and creamy. Add icing sugar and whisk until completely smooth, adding more icing sugar as needed until a thick drizzling consistency is achieved. Drizzle tops of cooled cookies with the frosting and garnish with carrot shaped gummies, if using.
Recipe Notes
- Carrots contain a lot of water so you do need to blot them well with paper towels to remove some of that moisture.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the batter just until the flour has been absorbed; over mixing can lead to denser cookies.
- For best results use a 2 tablespoon spring loaded cookie scoop to dispense evenly sized cookies.
- Flatten cookies with your hands with equal pressure which will help them spread a little; dampening your hands with a little water helps.
- The cookies must be completely cooled before frosting otherwise the frosting will melt.
- Because of the high moisture content and the cream cheese in the cookies, they will soften after being stored; after the first day store in the refrigerator or freezer, but serve at room temperature.
- Add more or less of the spices or even add allspice in addition to, or instead of the cinnamon nutmeg and cardamom.
- These are nut free cookies but feel free to add ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans and/or add ½ cup raisins for more chewiness to the cookies.
- My carrot cake cookies are decorated with carrot shaped gummies that I picked up at my local bulk food store but they are totally optional.