If you only make one thing this Easter or Springtime, it HAS to be these Mini Carrot Cakes! The only other exception is my stuffed carrot cake cookies, but if I were you I would make both!

These mini carrot cakes are beautiful and perfect for Spring. The cake is soft and pairs perfectly with the cream cheese frosting. Also, making them mini and stacking them together makes them feel even fancier and cuter! So these mini cakes basically have everything going for them.

Here are a few tips for making these mini carrot cakes:

• Don’t use pre-shredded carrots. Pre-shredded carrots are usually pretty dry, and we don’t want that. Buy large carrots and grate them yourself.
• This tip connects to the last one! To save time, instead of grating your carrots one by one with a cheese grater, throw them in a blender and pulse a few times. This will quickly shred the carrots to a perfect size and save you a lot of time.
• The applesauce is needed in this recipe. It really helps to soften the cake. Just make sure you’re using unsweetened!
• I used all brown sugar in this cake. You can use light or dark brown sugar. I used dark but either will work just fine.
• If you want a normal sized cake, instead of the mini cakes, cook the batter in three round 8″ cake pans instead of a baking sheet. You may need to decrease the bake time by 2-4 minutes with the smaller cakes.

I cannot wait for you to try these mini carrot cakes! If you make them, I’d love to see your creation. Please tag me @thepalatablelife !

mini carrot cakes

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ingredients

  

Carrot Cake

• 3 cups flour
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup applesauce unsweetened
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 3 cups shredded carrots

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1/2 cup butter at room temp
• 8 oz cream cheese at room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 4 cups powdered sugar

instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350(F). Shred carrots and transfer them to a bowl lined with paper towels. Let them sit while you make the batter.
• Combine all the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt) in a bowl and mix to combine.
• In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, vegetable oil, and applesauce. Whisk until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and mix again.
• Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until almost combined. Squeeze any remaining juice from the shredded carrots and add them to the batter. Fold the batter until the carrots are just combined.
• Grease a baking sheet (18"x13") and pour the batter in. Spread the batter out so it is equally distributed in the pan. Bake at 350 for 20-23 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the middle should come out clean.
• While the cake is cooling, make the frosting. Add the butter and cream cheese to a bowl. Using a stand or hand mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese for 2 minutes, until lighter and fluffy. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat an additional 3 minutes. The frosting should be well combined and smooth.
• Using a lid or small bowl (something round), cut out small circles of cake. Place the lid on top of the cake, then cut around it with a sharp knife. Repeat with the entire cake. You should have about 24 small rounds of cake.
• Pipe frosting onto one small cake. Top it with another small cake and pipe more frosting on the top. Continue with all the cakes. If desired, crumble extra cake on top of the prepared cakes and top with edible spring flowers! Enjoy!