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flourless carrot cake muffins

April 26, 2020 by Amanda @ .running with spoons. 1,140 Comments

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Flourless Carrot Cake Muffins that are both healthy and indulgent! Subtly spiced and sweetened muffins are topped with a lightened-up cream cheese frosting in a delicious gluten-free treat that’s sure to please.

Flourless carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting.

Frosting these flourless carrot cake muffins made me think of the cake tastings we did when we were looking for someone to make our wedding cake. Not sure why, but possibly because it was the last time I had anything with frosting on it.

In any case, it was a pretty bitter sweet memory because it was the last thing we were able to plan for our wedding, and that was almost 2 months ago. After that, lockdown went into place and planning became a lot more difficult, if not impossible.

Actually, even figuring out if we’ll still be able to have our wedding is kind of tricky. It’s not until September, but right now everything is at a standstill and we have no idea when this lockdown will be lifted.

That and we have a lot of people who’ll have to travel, and I’m not sure that anyone is going to be super eager to hop on an airplane after all the fear surrounding travel.

So that’s where we’re at right now – trying to stay positive but also exploring other options like just having a tiny ceremony and then a bigger reception some time in the future when things have settled. Who knows. Only time will tell.

But enough about that. Let’s talk flourless carrot cake muffins since I’m sure that’s why you’re all here.

Flourless carrot cake muffins with frosting on a cooling tray.

How To Make Flourless Carrot Cake Muffins

Blender Method
  • The blender method works best if you have a high-speed blender like a Vitamix since a less powerful blender will most likely bog down under the ingredient load and be super annoying to work with.
  • It really helps to start by processing the oats until they’re ground down into the consistency of a fine flour. This ensures a smoother muffin that will cook evenly.
  • After you grind the oats, take the blender jar and give it a few shakes to make sure the oat flour isn’t packed too tightly under/around the blades – this helps the rest of the ingredients blend more smoothly and prevents the blender from bogging down.
  • Make sure to scrape down the sides/corners of your blender and process one more time before adding the carrots and raisins.
  • DO NOT PROCESS the carrots or add-ins! You can add them straight to the blender bowl and use a spatula to mix them in, or you can transfer the batter to a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients there. It really depends on the size/shape of your blender.
Flourless carrot cake muffins in a baking pan without any frosting.
Mixing Bowl Method
  • You’ll have to replace the oats with a pre-ground or store-bought oat flour. This recipe calls for 2 cups of oats which translates to 1 1/2 cups of oat flour – 160 grams in each case.
  • If you want to make your own oat flour, add 2 cups of oats (160 g) to any blender and process on high until the oats get ground down to a fine flour consistency. You can even do this in something like a NutriBullet… just in smaller batches.
  • Add the carrots and add-ins after everything else has been mixed together and a batter forms and give them a good mix to make sure they’re evenly distributed in the batter.
Flourless carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting on a cooling tray.
Both Methods
  • Shred your carrots before you add the wet ingredients. This is so that you don’t have to do it while the batter is just sitting around and letting the leavening agents react. You’ll get fluffier, dome-ier muffins this way.
  • I used coconut palm sugar for my sweetener, but you can replace that with brown or cane sugar as well. Maple syrup will also work, but it will change the consistency of the muffins a little bit.
  • When measuring, don’t pack the shredded carrots too tightly. Just sprinkle the shreds into your measuring cups until they are full and heaping a little bit. 2 medium-sized carrots are all you need.
  • Add-ins are completely optional. I know people are pretty particular about how they like their carrot cake, so feel free to toss in 1/2 – 1 cup of nuts, raisins, a combination of both, or nothing at all. I actually found that raisins were a really nice touch, but I know those guys can be super polarizing so feel free to leave them out.
  • I really recommend either using parchment paper liners or greasing your muffin cavities well. These muffins will probably stick to paper liners.
  • Let the muffins cool completely before frosting them. If they’re still warm, the frosting will get runnier and could potentially slip right off. Also, you don’t have to get fancy with the frosting – I just took a knife and smeared it on top.
  • This part is totally optional, but I toasted some shredded coconut and sprinkled it on top of the frosting. It didn’t add much to the taste, but it was pretty to look at.
Flourless carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting sitting on a cooling tray.

Okay, But What Are They Like?

Like a little palm-sized slice of carrot cake.

The muffins themselves are slightly spiced and not overly sweet. They’re on the denser side, but still really tender and moist. They’re pretty healthy little guys and make great snack or breakfast muffins. I found that I liked these better on day 2+ because the flavours had a chance to “marinate” and intensify, but they’re great straight out of the oven too.

What really takes these little muffins to the next level is the cream cheese frosting. Not only does it add a little bit of extra sweetness and moisture, but it creates that delicious spicy/tangy combo that’s so great about carrot cake. It makes them feel so much more indulgent while still staying on the healthier side.

These muffins are also gluten-free (as long as you use certified gluten-free oats) and can easily be made nut-free by replacing the almond butter with soy nut butter and the almond milk with another non-dairy milk like rice or soy. You can also make them vegan by replacing the eggs with a banana, but some of the flavour will come through.

Happy eating!

A flourless carrot cake muffin with a bite taken out of it.

I’d love to know if you make this recipe! Leave a comment and rating down below to let me know what you think, and subscribe to our mailing list to receive new recipes in your inbox!

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flourless carrot cake muffins


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.8 from 95 reviews

  • Author: Amanda @ Running with Spoons
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 12 muffins
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Ingredients

For the muffins:

  • 2 cups (160 g) oats, gluten-free if needed
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/4 cup (64 g) almond butter
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) coconut palm sugar*
  • 2 tsp (10 ml) vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 slightly heaping cup (120 g) shredded carrots
  • Optional: 1/2 cup (80 g) raisins or nuts

For the cream cheese frosting:

  • 4 oz. light cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup (30 g) icing sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract


Instructions

Make the muffins:

  1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C) and prepare a muffin pan by lining the cavities with parchment paper liners or greasing them with oil. Set aside.
  2. Add the oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a high-speed blender and process on high until the oats have broken down into the consistency of a fine flour, about 10 seconds.**
  3. Add all of the remaining ingredients except for the carrots and add-ins, and process on high until the batter becomes smooth and creamy, about 20 seconds. Periodically stop and scrape down the sides/corners of your blender as necessary. Finally, use a spatula to mix in the carrots and add-ins by hand.
  4. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each one about 3/4 of the way full.
  5. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until the tops of the muffins begin to turn golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. As soon as they’ve cooled, transfer them to an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.

Make the frosting:

  1. Add the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla to a medium-sized bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and, using your stand or hand mixer, beat on high until all the ingredients are well combined and slightly whipped.
  2. When the muffins are cool, use a knife to spread the frosting on top of them. I recommend only frosting the muffins you plan to consume right away. Otherwise, store the frosting separately in a covered container in the fridge until you need to frost another muffin.

Notes

* You can also use brown sugar or cane sugar.

** Alternatively, you can replace the oats with 1 1/2 cups (160 g) of oat flour and mix everything by hand in a large bowl. Just whisk the dry ingredients together, then add all the remaining ingredients except for the carrots and add-ins and mix until a smooth batter forms. Finally, fold in the carrots and add-ins.

To make these gluten-free, be sure to use certified gluten-free oats.

To make these nut-free, replace the almond butter with soy nut butter and the almond milk with another non-dairy milk like rice or soy.

To make these vegan, replace the eggs with one banana. The flavour will come through a little bit though.

Nutritional information is calculated with cream cheese frosting but without any add-ins.

  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can’t wait to see what you’ve made!

A collage of flourless carrot cake muffins for Pinterest.

Looking for more healthy muffin recipes? Try one of these!

Easy Morning Glory Muffins
Healthy Banana Nut Muffins
Easy Vegan Chocolate Muffins
Banana Oat Greek Yogurt Muffins
Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Muffins

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*Disclosure: Some of the links included in this post may be affiliate links, meaning I’ll earn a small commission if you purchase through them, at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I personally use and believe will add value to my readers. Thank you so much for helping support Spoons!

Filed Under: Breads & Muffins, Gluten Free, Recipe Tagged With: carrot cake, flourless, frosting, gluten-free, healthy, muffins, recipe, snack

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ethan Vance

    October 6, 2026 at 6:07 pm

    These flourless carrot cake muffins look absolutely delicious! I love how moist they look, and the lightened-up cream cheese frosting is a wonderful touch. Thanks for sharing the detailed recipe!

    Reply
  2. SongExtender Team

    October 6, 2026 at 4:48 pm

    这些无面粉胡萝卜蛋糕麦芬看起来既健康又诱人,特别是用搅拌机处理燕麦来制作面糊的方法非常巧妙,能省去不少清理麻烦。对于这类采用全燕麦基底的烘焙点心,一个很实用的技巧是在烤好后让麦芬在模具里多静置几分钟再脱模,这样不仅能防止刚出炉时质地太软而碎裂,还能让内部的组织在冷却过程中自然收紧,口感会更加扎实绵密。

    Reply
  3. Roaring Knight Fight

    October 6, 2026 at 2:49 pm

    These flourless carrot cake muffins look absolutely delicious! I love how simple and approachable the blender method makes them, and using a lighter cream cheese frosting after they cool sounds like the perfect touch. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe!

    Reply
  4. fitrooted

    October 5, 2026 at 12:48 am

    These flourless carrot cake muffins look like a great option for anyone looking for a healthier treat, and the tips about not over-processing the carrots and letting them cool before frosting are really useful. For those just starting out with healthier baking, this [url=https://fitrooted.com/]beginner fitness guide[/url] could be a helpful resource too.

    Reply
  5. The Bra Size Calculator

    October 4, 2026 at 1:47 pm

    The blender method makes these feel much more approachable. I also appreciate the note about adding the lighter cream cheese frosting after the muffins cool; that sounds like a lovely way to finish them.

    Reply
  6. ABV Calculator

    October 4, 2026 at 1:15 pm

    These muffins look absolutely delicious! I love how they’re both healthy and indulgent. Your wedding story adds such a personal touch to this wonderful recipe.

    Reply
  7. AI object remover

    October 3, 2026 at 2:11 pm

    Offering both a blender method and a bowl method makes the recipe accessible to more kitchens. A note about the expected batter texture would be useful for readers comparing those two approaches before portioning it into the muffin tin.

    Reply
  8. Rayopix

    October 3, 2026 at 12:26 pm

    The instruction to scrape the blender’s corners is a small detail that makes the method more practical. Showing the oat flour before and after loosening it around the blades would make a useful two-image explanation alongside that step.

    Reply
  9. AI manga translator

    October 3, 2026 at 12:18 pm

    It is helpful that the blender method explains the equipment limitation instead of assuming every blender will handle the same load. That kind of detail lets a reader choose a preparation method before they have all the ingredients in the jar.

    Reply
  10. Remove Text

    October 3, 2026 at 12:04 pm

    Separating the blender instructions from the rest of the recipe makes the preparation easier to follow. A brief visual cue for the finished batter consistency would be especially helpful for someone deciding whether it needs another scrape and blend.

    Reply
  11. AnimateImg seedance 2.5

    October 3, 2026 at 11:50 am

    Grinding the oats before adding the other ingredients, then loosening the flour around the blades, is a particularly useful detail. It explains why the order of blending matters instead of just listing everything to put into the jar.

    Reply
  12. ToviStory

    October 3, 2026 at 11:25 am

    Giving the oat conversion in grams as well as cups is a helpful bridge between the blender and mixing-bowl methods. The instruction to fold in the carrots afterwards also makes it clear which part of the texture is meant to remain in the finished muffins.

    Reply
  13. Hotel Lobby AI

    October 3, 2026 at 11:01 am

    Grinding the oats first and then loosening the flour around the blades is a particularly useful detail in the blender method. It explains the sequence instead of treating every ingredient as a single dump-and-blend step; a short comparison with the other method would help readers choose based on their equipment.

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  15. Zac

    October 3, 2026 at 4:19 am

    The oat conversion is especially helpful: 160 grams stays the same even though the volume changes from 2 cups of oats to 1 1/2 cups of oat flour. I also appreciate the reminder to fold in the carrots rather than blend them. For freezing, would you leave all the muffins unfrosted and make the cream cheese topping after thawing?

    Reply
  16. thesiftjava

    October 3, 2026 at 1:55 am

    These flourless carrot cake muffins sound like a lovely treat—healthy yet indulgent. The subtle spices and gluten-free base are appealing, and that lightened-up cream cheese frosting? I’d love to bake a batch soon.

    Reply
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    October 2, 2026 at 4:19 pm

    The description separates the muffin’s dense texture from the contrast added by the cream cheese frosting, which also helps explain the shape shown in the photos. An original photo of a decorated bake could be a starting point for a decorative miniature concept with Pictostl. The estimated 3D model would represent its appearance, not provide a food-contact mold or capture the recipe’s taste and texture.

    Reply
  18. Image-to-Image AI

    October 2, 2026 at 11:55 am

    These flourless carrot cake muffins sound delicious and I appreciate the detailed instructions for both the blender and mixing bowl methods. It’s great that they are also gluten-free and can be made nut-free and vegan. I’ll definitely have to try these out soon!

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  22. Hotel Lobby AI

    September 30, 2026 at 4:47 pm

    the “DO NOT PROCESS the carrots” in all caps made me laugh bc that’s 100% what I would’ve done in my blender. def trying these this weekend, tho ngl I’ll probably skip the frosting cause I’m lazy like that

    Reply
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    I really enjoyed this carrot cake muffin recipe, especially the flourless approach and simple ingredients. The recipe looks like a great option for anyone interested in trying something different in the kitchen, and I also enjoy exploring platforms like 88DD Game.

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  25. Rocky

    September 30, 2026 at 7:47 am

    Love that these are flourless — carrot cake flavor without the usual fuss is right up my alley. The muffins look moist and the spice level sounds perfect for fall. Bookmarking for meal prep this week.

    Reply
  26. songspot

    September 30, 2026 at 4:55 am

    These muffins sound delish, but do they really hold up without flour? I mean, oats are great, but come on. By the way, if you’re into other recipes, check this out for some inspo: .

    Reply
  27. migos ai

    September 30, 2026 at 1:44 am

    These muffins sound great, but you gotta be careful with the blending. It’s all about the consistency. By the way, if you’re into cool tech, check this out .

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  28. スイカゲーム

    September 29, 2026 at 5:36 pm

    These flourless carrot cake muffins turned out so moist and flavorful! Blending the oats directly with the wet ingredients made the batter come together effortlessly, and the Greek yogurt cream cheese frosting is delicious.

    Reply
  29. Arcadle Online

    September 29, 2026 at 1:47 pm

    Including the oat-flour weight for the bowl method is really helpful, and the reminder to shred the carrots before mixing saves an awkward pause. For a make-ahead batch, would you keep the cream cheese frosting separate and add it just before serving to preserve the texture?

    Reply
  30. BeatAPI Agent Toolkit

    September 29, 2026 at 8:11 am

    The 160 g note for whole oats versus oat flour makes the two methods much easier to follow. I also appreciate the reminder to fold in the carrots after blending so they keep their texture. If the shredded carrots seem unusually wet, would you squeeze them first or leave the recipe as written?

    Reply
  31. Alex Reed

    September 29, 2026 at 1:49 am

    Grinding the oats down first instead of dumping everything in at once is the tip I needed — my blender would definitely have bogged down otherwise. The bit about 160 grams staying the same whether you measure whole oats or oat flour is exactly the kind of detail I hoard in a notes file at aliensfireteamelite-2.online, so that one is going in.

    Reply
  32. huebloomart

    September 29, 2026 at 12:51 am

    Keeping the frosting separate is a useful tip for a batch that will last a few days. Does the three-month freezing advice apply to the unfrosted muffins only?

    Reply
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    September 28, 2026 at 3:48 am

    Giving both the oat and oat-flour amounts by weight makes the two methods much easier to compare: 160 grams stays the same even though the cup measurements differ. The reminder to prepare the carrots before mixing the wet ingredients is another useful detail, since readers can organize everything before the batter is ready.

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    September 28, 2026 at 2:30 am

    The 160 g measurement for both whole oats and oat flour is especially helpful because their cup measurements differ. The instruction to fold in the carrots and raisins after blending also makes the intended texture clear, and keeping the frosting separate sounds practical for preparing a batch ahead.

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  37. Remove People from Photo

    September 27, 2026 at 11:46 am

    These muffins look incredible! I really appreciate that you included both the blender and mixing bowl methods — not everyone has a high-speed blender sitting around, so it’s nice to have options. And the tip about NOT processing the carrots and raisins is so important. I made that exact mistake with a blender muffin recipe once and ended up with a weird veggie puree situation… never again. Folding them in by hand it is!

    Also, just wanted to say I’m sending good thoughts your way with all the wedding uncertainty. Honestly, a tiny intimate ceremony now with a bigger celebration down the road sounds like a beautiful way to do things — sometimes the smallest gatherings end up being the most meaningful ones. Whatever happens, I hope it all works out exactly as it should.

    The lightened-up cream cheese frosting is what really sold me on these. Carrot cake without frosting just feels wrong, so I love that you found a way to keep it in while staying on the healthier side. Can’t wait to bake a batch this weekend!

    Reply
  38. Image to Image AI

    September 27, 2026 at 9:10 am

    the tip about not blending the carrots saved me, i turned a batch of blender muffins into baby food once lol. also hope the september wedding works out, honestly a tiny ceremony now and a big party later sounds kinda nice anyway

    Reply
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    The details in “flourless carrot cake muffins” were useful, especially the way the page keeps the main idea concrete. I run Colony Flow, a game guide site with strategy content and online play for quick game-focused breaks.

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  40. RandomPokemon

    September 26, 2026 at 3:03 pm

    I appreciate how the recipe turns oats into a fine flour before blending, which keeps the muffins from becoming gummy. The light cream‑cheese frosting adds a sweet contrast without overpowering the subtle carrot spice, making the whole treat feel both indulgent and health‑conscious.

    Reply
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Hi & Welcome to Spoons!

Amanda

I'm Amanda - health coach, cookbook author, recipe developer, photographer, makeup junkie, and the blogger behind Running with Spoons - a blog dedicated to proving that healthy snacking doesn't have to be tasteless or boring, one delicious recipe at a time. More about Amanda →

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