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Carrot Cake Blondies are what happens when you take a blondie and combine it with carrot cake! Made with shredded carrots, spices, and cream cheese frosting, these carrot cake cookie bars are perfect for spring.
Two facts: I love blondies, and I love carrot cake. So, why not combine the two and make an ultimate dessert bar? I can promise you the match is made in heaven.
Blondies, as you probably already know, are all about the brown sugar and butter. Carrot cake is all about freshly shredded carrots, cinnamon spice, and cream cheese frosting. Why wouldn’t you combine those things? I think these might be my new favorite carrot cake creation.
Of course, these are amazing all year, but especially during the spring season for Easter and other celebrations. They’re part blondie, part cookie bar, and part carrot cake. Basically, all the good things wrapped up in one dessert!
Table of Contents
Carrot Cake Cookie Bars Ingredients
- Baking powder: while many cookie bars use baking soda, mine blondie recipe has always used baking powder.
- Salt and Vanilla Extract: for flavor
- Ground cinnamon and ground ginger: the flavors of carrot cake!
- All-purpose flour and Egg: typical for blondies
- Softened unsalted butter: learn how to soften butter quickly
- Brown sugar: this keeps them so moist and flavorful
- Shredded carrots: be sure to shred your own – don’t buy the prepackaged shredded carrots.
How to Make Carrot Cake Bars
1. Dry Ingredients: Whisk the baking powder, salt, spices, and flour in a bowl.
2. Mix: In a separate bowl, cream the sugar and butter in a large bowl. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Stir in the dry ingredients followed by the shredded carrots. The dough will be very sticky.
3. Press and Bake: Press the dough into a prepared 8×8” baking pan and bake the bars for 25 to 30 minutes or until they are still a little jiggly in the center. Cool the bars completely before frosting.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Melted butter: learn why I use unsalted butter
- Softened cream cheese: make sure it’s room temperature
- Powdered sugar: typical for frosting
- Vanilla
- Cinnamon: adds a nice warm flavor to the frosting!
1. Mix: In a large bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese together. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Add the vanilla and cinnamon and mix until smooth.
2. Frost: Once the carrot cake blondies are cooled, smooth the frosting over the top.
Recipe Tips
Carrots: If you’re going to make carrot cake anything, I highly recommend using fresh carrots that you grate yourself. Pre-shredded carrots are often dried out and, well, not great.
Measuring: For the flour, use the spoon and level method. For the shredded carrots, be careful not to pack them too tightly in the measuring cup.
Optional decorations: If you want to get fancy, sprinkle some finely chopped walnuts over the top of the frosting. Or, add a light dusting of cinnamon.
Make these for all the spring events – Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, or graduation parties. I can guarantee they’ll be a hit. If you love carrot cake cookies or cake, you will love these carrot cake blondies!
Other Carrot Cake Recipes
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Carrot Cake Blondies Recipe
Ingredients
Blondies:
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 ½ cups (186g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (94g) shredded carrots (see note)
Frosting:
- ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, melted
- 4 ounces (113g) cream cheese, softened
- 2 cups (226g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×9-inch pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and flour in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Cream brown sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Mix in dry ingredients. Stir in carrots.
- Press into prepared pan (dough is sticky, spray your hands with cooking spray to avoid it sticking to your hands).
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes. (Be careful not to overcook – the center will still be jiggly when you take these out of the oven and they will finish cooking and firming up as they cool. They stay super soft though!)
- Cool completely in pan before frosting.
- Make your frosting: beat cream cheese and butter together with an electric mixer. Slowly mix in powdered sugar. Add vanilla and cinnamon and mix until smooth. Frost bars in pan.
Recipe Notes
Recipe Nutrition
Carrot Cake Blondies are the best of both worlds – carrot cake and blondies! I especially love the cream cheese frosting.
Last Updated on February 26, 2022
What kind of a pan do you use? Does it have to be metal or does glass work?
Also, once it is listed as a 8×8 pan and then later a 9×9 pan so I am assuming either works?
These sound so delicious, I really want to make them with the carrots I just got out of my garden.
Yes 9×9 or 8×8 will work. Glass or metal, either one!
I only have salted butter at this time. Is that OK to use if I eliminate salt elsewhere ? I normally bake with unsalted ALL the time but let myself run out. I’m going to skip the frosting entirely since I don’t have any cream cheese on hand. I might just put a powdered sugar lemon or orange glaze on them. I think that would work out just as well for us. Thank you.
Yes the rule of thumb for salted butter substitution is to reduce 1/4 tsp salt per 1/2 cup salted butter used in place of unsalted.
I’ve tried and failed many times to master the perfect cream cheese frosting and now thanks to you I have finally succeeded!!!! Even my 11yr old approved!! Thank you so so much!!!!
How long can these be stored at room temp?
I would say a few hours is fine, even a work day. But overnight I’d chill them!
Thank you so much! These are incredible by the way!
Thanks for sharing. I like to substitute the butter with coconut oil.
By the way, your photography is really rocking!
Daniel
Thanks Daniel!
I am pretty much dying over the cinnamon cream cheese frosting!
Love love love the carrot cake blondies!!!
I am dying to try these!! They look amazing!
I don’t think I could resist these if they were around me!! And lez be honest only a cray cray person would skip the frosting!! 😉
Just stop it! I want to run in the kitchen right now and make a double batch of these….AND maybe a little extra frosting…just for quality control…
These look so moist! What an ingenious idea making a carrot cake blondie…they pair so well together!
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