Carrot Cake Raisin Muffins

We turned the classic carrot cake into muffins. They are loaded with grated carrots, walnuts, and a full cup of raisins, then topped with a real cream cheese frosting. Serve them for breakfast, set them out for brunch, or call them dessert –no excuse required.

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Raisins are controversial in carrot cake, so do not expect an apology for including them. Consider this the version that settles the raisin argument, or at least ends it in our kitchen. The frosting stays put at room temperature for an afternoon, which means these can travel for brunch or sit out on the counter without a second thought.

Key Ingredients and Substitutions

The complete ingredient list and measurements are listed in the printable recipe below.

• Carrots: We always grate our own instead of buying the pre-shredded bags at the store, since fresh grated carrots hold more moisture and give the muffins a better crumb. The bagged kind tends to be drier and takes longer to soften in the batter.
• Cream cheese: We use a block of full-fat cream cheese instead of the whipped or tub kind, since it holds its shape once whipped with the butter and sugar. That matters if you plan to pipe the frosting instead of spreading it.
• Raisins: If ours are dry, we let them sit under warm water for five minutes, then pat them dry before folding them into the batter. Want a milder flavor? Golden raisins work as a substitute.
• Walnuts: We chop ours into small, even pieces so they distribute through the batter instead of sinking to the bottom. Want more flavor? Toast them in a dry skillet for a few minutes first. Pecans can work as a substitute.

How to Make Carrot Cake Muffins

Here are the quick, step-by-step instructions with visuals; you can find the full instructions, including the exact ingredients, in the recipe card below.

Pro-tip: No piping bag on hand? Spoon the frosting into a zip-top bag, snip about half an inch off one corner, and pipe from there instead.

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. First, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, since evenly distributed spices keep each bite from tasting more like cinnamon than the rest.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, both sugars, eggs, milk, and vanilla until the mixture turns pale and slightly thickened, which means the sugar has started to dissolve into the wet ingredients rather than sitting in the batter as grit.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold just until a few streaks of flour remain, then add the carrots, walnuts, and raisins. Overmixing builds gluten, and gluten is what turns a tender muffin into a tough one, so stop folding as soon as no dry flour is visible. Fill the liners about three-quarters full. Any more and the batter overflows as it rises, and any less and the muffins bake up flat and short.

Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes. The tops should look set and lightly golden, and a toothpick (or butter knife) inserted in the center should come out clean or with a few crumbs clinging to it. Let the muffins cool completely in the pan before frosting. Warm muffins melt the frosting on contact, so if you pipe or spread too soon, it slides right off instead of sitting on top.

Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth, then add the powdered sugar one cup at a time on low speed so it doesn’t send a cloud of sugar across the counter. Once it’s incorporated, increase the mixer to high speed and beat until the frosting turns light and fluffy, then beat in the vanilla.

A piping bag fitted with a large open star tip gives the classic swirled look, but a plain round tip works fine too. Start at the outer edge of the muffin and work in a tight spiral toward the center, then finish with a small peak. If you spread with a knife instead, work from the center outward and add a little extra frosting in the middle, since a spread finish doesn’t build height the way a piped swirl does. Finish with a few chopped walnuts pressed lightly into the frosting so they stick.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: Bake the muffins up to a day in advance and store them unfrosted at room temperature, tightly covered. Make the frosting the day you plan to serve them, since it’s best used fresh.

How to Store: Keep frosted muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days, since the cream cheese frosting needs to stay cold. Let them sit at room temperature for about fifteen minutes before serving so the frosting softens back up. To freeze, wrap unfrosted muffins individually and freeze for up to three months. Thaw at room temperature, then frost once they’re fully cooled.

Recipe Tips and Notes

• Measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife instead of scooping straight from the bag. Scooping packs in extra flour, which can leave the muffins dense instead of light.
• Bring the cream cheese and butter to room temperature. Cold cream cheese won’t smooth out completely no matter how long the mixer runs, and it leaves small lumps scattered through the frosting. Set both out on the counter about an hour before you start.
• Check your oven with a thermometer. Ovens run hotter or cooler than the dial says more often than people expect, and a few degrees off can mean muffins that dome unevenly or take longer than the recipe states. An inexpensive oven thermometer takes the guesswork out.