Carrot Coconut Cupcakes with Maple Icing

There are cupcakes I like to be airy and fluffy, and then there are cupcakes that I want everything but the kitchen sink in. These are one of those cupcakes!

So this recipe came about when it was my parents anniversary. If you follow me on Instagram you might have seen a preview pic of these cupcakes when I first made them. Each year I like to do something for my parents anniversary, and there is usually a homemade dessert in there.

Their anniversary is in July so the usual is a vanilla cake – almost like a pound cake – with coconut whipped cream and fresh berries. The cake is delicious and perfect for summer! But I wanted to do something a little different. One of my Dad’s favorite desserts is German Chocolate Cake. So that’s what got me thinking coconut. Mom had been talking about zucchini/carrot muffins, so that’s where the carrot part came in. My parents have been trying to lessen the amount of sugar, so it didn’t want a heavy super sugar filled frosting, so then the idea of a light maple glaze drizzle came in – and there you have it! Carrot Coconut Cupcakes with Maple Icing!

I wasn’t too sure how these were going to come out and how soft they were going to be since baking has a lot of science involved, but it worked out! And since the flavors compliment more of the fall season, I waited until now to share it with y’all. So if you want a dessert that you can claim as “healthy”, try these guys out!

• Servings: 10-12 cupcakes
• Print

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup oat flour (or 1/2 cup rolled oats ground in a blender)
• 1 cup sugar (for my parents I did 1/2 unbleached sugar and 1/2 natural substitute)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 cup carrots
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• MAPLE ICING
• 1 cup powdered sugar (you can also make you own by blending 1 cup sugar (or substitute) and 1 tbsp corn starch or arrowroot powder)
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1-2 Tbsp water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large mixing bowl mix your dry ingredients: whole wheat flour, oat flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a medium bowl mix together the rest of the ingredients: carrots, coconut, pecans, cranberries, vegetable oil, and eggs.
4. In the large bowl of dried ingredients, pour in the wet mixture and combine. Don’t over mix.
5. Line a muffin/cupcake tin with liners and fill the cups 3/4 full. They will be dense and won’t rise too much, but they will a little.
6. Bake for 16-18 minutes. Or a few crumbs stick to a toothpick when inserted in the center. Let sit for about 5 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, make the maple icing: Mix together right before icing since the glaze will harden. Mix the powdered sugar, maple syrup, and 1-2 tbsp water – one at a time to get the consistency you want. Once cupcakes are out of the oven, if your glaze has hardened just add another few drops of water and stir until you have the right consistency. Drizzle over top of the cupcakes. Let them sit for a few minutes to let the glaze firm up a little.
8. You can top it off with any leftover ingredients like the pecans, shredded coconut, shredded carrots, dried cranberries, etc.

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