Carrot Cake Cookies

Carrot Cake Cookies are soft and chewy cake-like cookies with a delicious homemade cream cheese glaze on top. These cookies taste just like carrot cake but in cookie form — warmly spiced with classic flavors and obviously full of carrots and walnuts.

Carrot cake lovers will love these carrot cookies. They are quick and easy to make with simple pantry staples, and require no chilling. Which means you can satisfy your cravings much faster than if you decided to bake a carrot cake. Serve spiced carrot cookies as a snack, dessert, or even breakfast on-the-go.

Why You'll Love these Carrot Cake Cookies

• It's carrot cake in cookie form. If you’re the type of person that waits all year long for carrot cake season to begin, then these thick and chewy carrot cake cookies are for you. They are loaded with real carrots and warmly spiced with the classic flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Plus, let's not forget the cream cheese glaze.
• A great way to use up extra carrots. Did you buy a bag of carrots that you need to use up before they expire? Well, look no further. These carrot cookies a whopping 1 and ¼ cup of grated carrots.
• Quick and easy recipe. If the delicious flavor wasn’t enough of a reason to get a batch of these walnut carrot cookies into the oven, then maybe the fact that they take just over half an hour to make — including prep and bake time. It’s perfect for a last minute dessert craving this spring!
• Perfect for holidays. These simple carrot cake cookies are an excellent dessert to serve at holiday parties, especially Easter (hello carrot cake season!) but the warm spices in these cookies make it great for Christmas too. These cookies are great for holiday cookie exchanges, bake sales, and cookie gift boxes.

Ingredient Notes

To make these thick and chewy Carrot Cake Cookies, you will need the following ingredients (full measurements in recipe card below):

• grated carrots - you can grate the carrots manually or in a food processor, or you can make things more convenient and buy a bag of shredded carrots from the store.
• all-purpose flour - try an equal-exchange gluten free flour to make this recipe gluten free. The texture of the cookies may change slightly but it should produce a similar result.
• quick oats
• baking soda
• salt
• cinnamon - the same goes for the cinnamon! Store bought and freshly ground work equally as well in this eggnog cookie recipe.
• ginger
• cloves
• nutmeg - you can use ground nutmeg from the grocery store or grind your own at home using a spice grinder, if you have extra time on your hands.
• butter - unsalted butter works best in these cookies, but you can use salted butter if you prefer. It will slightly alter the taste of the cookies. You can also use a plant-based butter alternative to make these cookies dairy-free.
• white sugar - you can use your favorite granulated sugar or sugar substitute here, like coconut sugar, date sugar, erythritol, stevia, or monk fruit.
• brown sugar
• eggs -
• vanilla - if you have some on hand, an equal amount of vanilla bean paste can be used in place of extract.
• chopped walnuts - we use walnuts in the cookies and also extra walnuts to add on top of the glaze (optional).
• cream cheese frosting - optional, to spread over the cookies. The glaze is made with cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla. You can swap the confectioners’ sugar for an equal measure of any powdered sugar substitute like powdered Swerve, powdered stevia, or monk fruit powder.

Baking Tools

You will also need the following baking tools and equipment:

• measuring cups and spoons
• mixing bowls
• hand mixer (or stand mixer)
• cookie scoop
• half sheet baking pan and silicone baking mat (or parchment paper)
• wire cooling rack

How to Make the Best Carrot Cake Cookies

1. Prep. Preheat the oven the 350°F, and prepare 3 large half sheet baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. You can also just prepare one and bake these cookies in batches.
2. Combine dry ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl, add flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Whisk until well combined, then set aside.

3. Cream butter and sugars. In a large mixing bowl, add the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. Using a hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat them together until the mixture looks light and fluffy, and slightly paler, about 3 minutes.
4. Add remaining wet ingredients. Add in the eggs and vanilla, and beat again until well-combined.

5. Add carrots. Add in the carrots, and beat once again until fully incorporated.

6. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ones, and beat until just combined.

7. Fold in walnuts. Use a spatula to fold in the chopped walnuts.
8. Scoop cookie dough. Using a medium cookie scoop to scoop the cookie batter onto the 3 prepared cookie sheets. You should be able to fir about 7-8 per sheet, spacing the cookies 2-inches apart.

9. Bake. Place into the oven to bake for 11-14 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (if baking in batches, your cooking time will be closer to 11).
10. Cool. Allow the cookies to cool completely on a wire cooling rack fully before topping with frosting.

How to Make Cream Cheese Glaze Glaze

1. Combine ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl and a hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in the confectioners sugar and beat until fully combined. Add vanilla and beat again for 1-2 minutes.

2. Glaze cookies. Using an small offset spatula, spread 1-2 tablespoons of frosting onto each cooled cookie.
3. Add walnuts. Sprinkle with finely chopped walnuts to garnish.

How to Serve

Serve Carrot Cake Cookies with a glass of milk, or a cozy drink like tea or coffee. Some of our favorites to pair with these cookies are:

• Chai Tea Latte
• White Hot Chocolate
• Slow Cooker Apple Cider
• Golden Milk Turmeric Latte
• Peppermint Hot Chocolate
• Matcha Latte

Storing and Freezing Instructions

How to Store

Store leftover carrot cake cookies (unglazed) in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Once glazed, these carrot cookies will need to stored in the refrigerator because of the cream cheese in the glaze. Store them for up to 1 week in the fridge.

How to Freeze

Freeze carrot cookies in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months. If possible, it is best to freeze them before icing. Then, when ready to eat, allow the cookie to thaw overnight in the refrigerator and add the cream cheese glaze before serving.

More Cookie Recipes

• 50 Best Cookie Recipes
• Carrot Cake Shortbread Cookies
• Carrot Cake Biscotti
• Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
• Soft and Chewy Ginger Cookies
• Butter Pecan Cookies

Print