Mini Carrot Cakes

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These Mini Carrot Cakes are adorable for any spring gathering. The perfect prep ahead dessert, these cakes are made like a sheet cake then cut out using a ring mold to make mini versions. A classic cream cheese frosting with 4 ingredients is the rich and creamy icing to make each bite so decadent.

If you're ready to celebrate spring, these Mini Carrot Cakes are the sweet treat for you! Full of sweetness and the perfect balance of warm spices, the batter is baked in a sheet pan - an easy shortcut for cute mini cakes. Simply assemble and layer the rounds with a rich and tangy cream cheese frosting, then garnish with your favorite toppings. These are sure to be the star of the show on your spring table!

Simple to make, fun to eat, and a foolproof 4 ingredient cream cheese frosting is the actual icing on top! This prep-ahead Homemade Carrot Cake recipe has everything you love about the classic dessert, in mini handheld form. Time to hop to it, and bake!

If you like impressive, flavor-packed desserts like this one, be sure to try a few of our other favorites: our Coconut Meringue Pie, Mini Cheesecake Bites, and Cherry Berry on a Cloud.

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Table of Contents

Why You'll Love this Recipe

Simple Dessert Recipe: These mini carrot cakes are great for bakers of all ages, and they're especially fun to make with kids.
Perfect Prep Ahead Treat: Make your sheet pan cake ahead of time so all you have to do is the fun part when you're ready to serve - assemble and decorate!
4 Ingredient Frosting: Using only 4 simple ingredients, this rich and creamy frosting is easy to whip together and tastes even better.
Easy to Customize: Whether it's with candied nuts, fresh fruit, an extra dusting of spices or edible flowers, you can serve these adorable mini carrot cakes in so many ways.

Laura Ashley's Tip: This carrot cake recipe uses a shortcut method to make several individual cakes. Bake the batter in a baking sheet and cut the cakes out using a ring mold.

Ingredients

Scroll down to recipe card for exact ingredient amounts.

Carrot Cake

All-Purpose Flour: gives the dough it's main structure and texture. For a gluten-free version, use 1 for 1 cup gluten free flour.
Baking Soda and Baking Powder: the leavening agents - these are responsible for helping the cake to rise just the right amount and keeps it tender and soft.
Salt: balances out the sweet flavors.
Granulated Sugar: gives the cake a base sweetness and creates a soft, spongey texture.
Brown Sugar: adds caramel notes and a deeper flavor to the cake.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: gives the cake those warm, spiced flavor notes signature to carrot cake. This spice mix is often made with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves.
Vegetable or Canola Oil: the fat for this cake that brings the batter ingredients together. It also is key in giving this cake a soft, moist and spongy texture.
Eggs: binds all of the ingredients together.
Vanilla Extract: adds in flavoring the cake batter, we love how this flavor pairs perfectly with the warm pumpkin pie spice and bright carrots.
Shredded Carrots: the key to all delicious carrot cakes! Shred whole carrots (skip the pre-shredded stuff!) These give the batter moisture, their signature flavor and chewy texture.
Apples and Walnuts: optional add-in ingredients to bring out extra sweet and nutty flavors and texture.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Cream Cheese: gives a richness and tanginess to the frosting, and it's the signature flavor that pairs so perfectly with sweet, spiced carrot cake
Powdered Sugar: adds just the right amount of sweetness to the frosting to compliment the tangy cream cheese
Vanilla Extract: flavors the frosting and brings all of the flavors together
Heavy Cream: gives the frosting a luxurious, velvety smooth texture

Tools You'll Need

Measuring Cups and Spoons
Spatula
12"x17" Sheet Pan
Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer
Mixing Bowls
Liquid Measuring Cups
Piping Bag and Tips
Handheld Grater or Countertop Heavy Duty Grater
Edible Grass (optional)

Expert Tips

Use room temperature ingredients for frosting. This will give your frosting a smooth, even texture. If your ingredients are cold, they won't mix together as easily, resulting in a clumpy, uneven texture.
Avoid using pre-shredded carrots. Carrots that have been pre-shredded don't have the same amount of flavor or moisture-they can be hard and dry. Freshly shred or grate your own for the best texture and flavor!
Don't overmix cake batter or frosting. If you overmix your batter, your cake will come out dense and tough - it won't be light and spongy. If you overmix your frosting, you run the risk of it breaking and having a mealy texture.
Bake a full-sized cake. Use this same recipe but skip the cookie cutter step! Just make a full-sized cake instead - just as delicious and easily serves a crowd.
Add moisture to the batter with grated apples. Freshly grated apples will add sweet flavor, texture and extra moisture to your cake batter.
Use pumpkin pie spice for extra flavor. With spices like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves, pumpkin pie spice brings big flavor notes to a classic carrot cake batter

How to Make Mini Carrot Cakes

For The Carrot Cake

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice, then set aside.
In a large bowl or in a stand mixer, beat granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract on medium speed until well combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix on low speed just until the dry ingredients are incorporated. Don't overmix!
Fold in the carrots, apples, and walnuts (if using).

Four pictures showing the steps of mixing together a carrot cake.

Grease and flour a 12"x17" half-sheet pan, or line it with parchment paper.Pour the batter into the prepared sheet pan and spread evenly with a spatula.
Bake in a preheated 350°F oven 20-25 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven, and allow the cake to cool completely in the pan.
Using a 2 ½-inch cookie cutter (or your desired shape), cut out circles and arrange the mini cakes on a wire rack. You should have 24 circles when finished.

Cutting out mini carrot cakes from a sheet pan.

Assemble the mini cakes in this order: 1 mini cake, 2 tablespoons frosting, 1 mini cake on top (lightly press), and another 2 tablespoons of frosting spread on top or piped with an icing bag.

Garnish the cakes as desired: dust with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, add candied walnuts, candied pecans, additional shredded carrots, or candied carrot strips. Top with fresh berries, edible flowers, edible Easter grass, Easter candy, toasted coconut flakes, or lemon zest. You could also color a portion of the frosting with orange and green and pipe a carrot on top.

Decorating mini carrot cakes with Cadbury eggs and edible grass.

For The Cream Cheese Frosting

Place cream cheese in a large bowl or stand mixer bowl. Whip the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and free of lumps.
Add powdered sugar. Mix on low speed until it's incorporated into the cream cheese, then increase the speed to medium high. Beat for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
Add vanilla extract and half of the heavy whipping cream. Mix on low speed until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the remaining heavy whipping cream.
Continue whipping the mixture on medium-low speed until combined, then increase the speed to medium-high. Beat until it takes shape and thickens, about 1-2 minutes. Once the mixture holds a nice peak, it's done. Don't overmix as this can break the icing down.

A 4 picture set showing how to make a cream cheese frosting.

Substitutions and Variations

Swap out the pumpkin pie spice. You can use your own spice blends or favorite warm spices here instead. Ground cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and allspice are all great in this recipe.
Garnish with coconut and chopped nuts. To add a different flavor profile and a little extra crunch.
Mix it up and make buttercream frosting. Cream cheese frosting might be the classic pairing, but a basic buttercream would also be delicious with this cake.

Another beautiful garnish for these festive cakes are these Candied Orange Slices!

Storage and Freezing

Storing the baked sheet cake in the fridge before cutting out mini cakes is a great make-ahead tip. Carrot cake gets better with time! Cover it tightly, then bring it to room temperature on the counter when you're ready to enjoy it.

Freeze baked cake before assembling with frosting. If you've got extra carrot cake, or a few extra mini cake rounds, freeze them in an airtight container. When you're ready to eat them, thaw them in the fridge, then bring them to room temperature and simply add frosting.

FAQs

Can I make cupcakes instead of mini carrot cakes?

Of course! Use this same recipe and divide the batter between 12 regular sized muffin tins. Or you can even use mini muffin tins (24-36 count) for tiny cupcakes. Use the same frosting recipe and ice away!

What spices are usually used in carrot cake?

Carrot cake gets a lot of its' flavor from sweet carrots and brown sugar. But commonly used spices to enhance the flavor are cinnamon and nutmeg, and sometimes ginger and cloves.

What are the different type of mix-ins for carrot cake?

There are so many delicious ingredients to mix into your carrot cake batter to give it flavor, moisture and texture. Some favorites are chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts), juicy raisins, crushed pineapple, or shredded coconut.

How can I make carrot cake healthier?

Carrot cake is an indulgent treat, but feel free to decrease the amount of sugar by a third or by a half, and substitute applesauce for a more natural sweetener. This will also add in moisture and flavor.

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