Get a head start on your spring baking with this fun and delicious twist on carrot cake – carrot cake cookies! Soft and chewy cookies filled with grated carrots, oats, and cinnamon sandwiched with sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.
This is a fabulous recipe for Easter, Mother’s Day, or any Spring occasion. These carrot cake cookies are always met with rave reviews. Prefer a more traditional carrot cake? We have that, too: Carrot Cake with Brown Butter Frosting.
These cookies are
- Soft and chewy: A combination of oats, coconut, and brown sugar help make these cookies soft and chewy.
- Perfectly sweet: Brown sugar, granulated sugar, sweetened coconut, and powdered sugar make these cookies deliciously sweet.
- Filled with cream cheese frosting: This delicious treat is two cookies plus a generous portion of sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.
- Easier than traditional carrot cake: These cookies have a rustic-homemade element that keeps them from being fussy (no fancy layer cake frosting techniques needed). They’re a delicious grab and go treat; no forks or plates needed!
Recipe overview
Cookies
Beat butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar.
Add egg and vanilla extract.
Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
Add oats, carrots, and shredded coconut.
Chill the dough for 60 minutes. Scoop and place dough balls on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for 9-11 minutes.
Frosting
Once the cookies have cooled, proceed with the frosting:
Beat butter and cream cheese. Add powdered sugar and vanilla.
Assembly
Spread frosting on the underside of half of the cookies and top with another cookie.
Recipe tips
- Butter should be softened just slightly, but still cool to the touch.
- Do not use carrots packed in water.
- Use a cookie scoop so that all of the cookies are the same size (I use a 2 tsp scoop).
- Make the cookies a little bit on the smaller side (2 tsp works great) since each sandwich includes two cookies and frosting.
- Bake the cookies on parchment lined baking sheets.
- Pull the cookies from the oven when the center is still slightly underdone. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet. This will ensure a chewy cookie.
- Use my tips below for getting perfectly round cookies.
Baking with carrots
Type of carrots: It’s important that you grate full size carrots for this recipe. Do not use baby carrots or carrots that are packed in water. They will add too much moisture to the dough.
Grating carrots: Grate the carrots using the small holes on a box grater. This ensures that the carrot pieces are fine and they will soften during the short bake time.
Remove excess moisture: I recommend briefly squeezing the excess moisture out of the carrots using a clean towel or paper towels.
Measuring: Fluff the shredded and drained carrots with a fork and scoop them into the measuring cup loosely. Do not pack them in.
How to get perfectly round cookies
Option 1: Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven place a round glass, bowl, or cookie cutter (larger than the cookie) upside down over the top of the cookie. Gently but quickly swirl the glass/bowl/cookie cutter in a circular motion. The edges of the cookie will bump against the inside of the glass creating a perfectly round shape. Note: This only works when the cookies are hot, straight from the oven, and still on the warm baking sheet.
Option 2: Immediately after the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a perfect round shape.
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Recipe
Carrot Cake Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened slightly but still cool
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup old fashioned rolled oats not quick oats
- ¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut
- scant ⅔ cup finely grated carrots not packed, see note
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts optional
Cream cheese frosting:
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar plus more, if needed
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Cookies:
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper (do not place the cookies directly on the baking sheets, they will spread too much).
- Beat butter and sugars for 1minute until light and creamy. Add egg and vanilla and beat to combine, scraping the bowl if necessary.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat on low until just combined. Add the oats, coconut, carrots and walnuts (if using) and mix until just combined.
- Place the dough in the refrigerator for 45-60 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F.
- Scoop the dough into 2-teaspoon sized mounds and place a couple inches apart on the cookie sheets (make sure they are mounded and not flat). Ensure that the cookie dough mounds are similar in size so that cookies will bake up the same size.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes, until golden brown and still slightly underdone in the center (they will be very delicate). If necessary, rotate your cookie sheets halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. Follow notes below for shaping the cookies to get them perfectly round.
- Cool the cookies completely on the baking sheets placed on wire racks. Repeat with remaining dough, chilling the dough between batches and allowing the baking sheets to cool completely before adding the next batch of dough.
- Once the cookies have cooled to room temperature, proceed with the frosting
Frosting:
- Beat cream cheese and butter until well combined. Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and creamy, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. If the frosting appears too thin, add a little more powdered sugar or place it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to firm up.
- Spread frosting on the underside of half of the cookies and top with another cookie. Transfer to the refrigerator to firm up.
Video
Notes
Carrots:
Type of carrots: It’s important that you grate full size carrots for this recipe. Do not use baby carrots or carrots that are packed in water. They will add too much moisture to the dough. Grating carrots: Grate the carrots using the small holes on a box grater. This ensures that the carrot pieces are fine and they will soften during the short bake time. Remove excess moisture: I recommend briefly squeezing the excess moisture out of the carrots using a clean towel or paper towels. Measuring: Fluff the shredded and drained carrots with a fork and scoop them into the measuring cup loosely. Do not pack them in.How to get perfectly round cookies:
Option 1: Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven place a round glass, bowl, or cookie cutter (larger than the cookie) upside down over the top of the cookie. Gently but quickly swirl the glass/bowl/cookie cutter in a circular motion. The edges of the cookie will bump against the inside of the glass creating a perfectly round shape. Note: This only works when the cookies are hot, straight from the oven, and still on the warm baking sheet.
Option 2: Immediately after the cookies come out the oven use the back of a spoon to gently push the edges inward to create clean edges and a perfect round shape.
UPDATE: After several reviews that these cookies spread too much, I have added an additional 3 tablespoons flour to the recipe and added a 60 minute chill time. This makes for a sturdier cookie which will be a tiny bit thicker than the cookies pictured. If you live in a very dry climate (like me!), you could probably get away with 1 cup flour.
Recipe adapted from Cooking ChannelNutrition
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