Refined Sugar-Free Maple Carrot Cupcakes with Lactose-free Cream Cheese Frosting
These deliciously moist refined sugar-free maple carrot cupcakes pair a sweet and spicy carrot cake with a tangy sugar-free and lactose-free cream cheese frosting. Maple syrup replaces refined sugar and significantly reduces the oil content in the cake batter, and just three ingredients make up the perfect pipeable frosting.
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup oil (vegetable or canola)
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups grated carrots
For the frosting
- 8 oz butter (room temperature)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 8 oz lactose-free cream cheese
Instructions
For the cake
- Sift all dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon) together into a stand mixer or large mixing bowl.
- Add oil and stir to combine.
- Add eggs one at a time, continually stirring.
- Add maple syrup, vanilla, and grated carrots and mix until all ingredients come together to form a cake batter, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary to make sure all of the dry ingredients are incorporated.
- Line one medium-sized muffin tin with cupcake liners, then fill each liner approximately halfway until all batter is used (should yield about 12 cupcakes).
- Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool completely before decorating.
For the frosting
- Remove cream cheese from the tub and place between two paper towels. Gently press excess liquid out of the cream cheese like its a block of tofu.
- Combine softened, room temperature butter and honey in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer and cream together until fully combined.
- Once the honey is completely coated in butter, add the cream cheese and whip until smooth and fluffy.
- Transfer to a piping bag and decorate cooled cupcakes.
Notes
You can use this recipe for a full-sized cake, too! The recipe above yields about 12 cupcakes, which is roughly equivalent to one 9-inch cake layer. Double the recipe above to make a two-tiered cake, and bake at the same temperature for 30-40 minutes. Don't forget to grease and flour your cake tins or line them with parchment paper!