Description
These Carrot Cake Muffins are moist, flavorful, and feature a luscious cream cheese filling that adds a delightful surprise in every bite. Perfectly spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, these muffins are great for breakfast or dessert and are easy to prepare with a balanced baking technique for an ideal texture.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups (300g) all purpose flour
- 1 cup (198g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (107g) brown sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves
Wet Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup (158ml) buttermilk
- ½ cup (118ml) vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 2 cups (198g) grated carrots
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 oz (226g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk
- ½ cup (99g) granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
Instructions
- Prepare Cream Cheese Layer: Place the room temperature cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Add the egg yolk, sugar, and vanilla bean paste, then beat again until well combined. Place this mixture in the freezer to chill while you prepare the muffin batter to help prevent melting during baking.
- Grate Carrots: Using a box grater or cheese grater, finely grate the carrots and measure out 2 cups ready to be incorporated into the batter.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Stir thoroughly with a spoon and set aside.
- Combine Wet Ingredients: In a separate larger mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil, and vanilla bean paste, either manually or with an electric mixer on low speed for about 30 seconds.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring just until incorporated. Using a spatula, gently fold in the grated carrots. The batter will be thick.
- Rest Batter and Preheat Oven: Cover the bowl with a towel and let the batter rest for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 425ºF (220ºC).
- Assemble Muffins: Line muffin tins with paper liners. Fill each liner with 1-2 tablespoons of the carrot muffin batter, then add 1-2 tablespoons of the chilled cream cheese mixture on top. Cover the cream cheese layer with more muffin batter to fill the cup completely. Sprinkle the tops lightly with sanding sugar.
- Bake Muffins: Bake the muffins at 425ºF for 7 minutes. Then reduce oven temperature to 350ºF (175ºC) and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The cream cheese may create some hollow pockets, which is part of the charm.
- Cool and Serve: Allow muffins to cool in the pan for 15 minutes before gently removing them to a wire rack. Repeat baking with remaining batter, reheating oven to 425ºF before each new batch.
Notes
- Chilling the cream cheese filling before assembling helps prevent it from melting and oozing out during baking.
- Be sure to only add the cream cheese filling after placing a small amount of batter in the muffin cups to create a well; this layering prevents leakage.
- Use fresh carrots for best texture and moisture.
- Resting the batter allows the flour to hydrate, resulting in a tender crumb.
- You can substitute buttermilk with ¾ cup milk plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar as a buttermilk substitute.
- Sanding sugar on top adds a nice crunch and sparkle but is optional.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes
- Category: Baking
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
