Vegan Carrot Cake Cookies

Carrot cake is one of the best ways to celebrate all things spring, but have you ever had carrot cake in the form of cookies? I made these Carrot Cake Cookies, but wanted to make a vegan version so that vegans can enjoy them too. These Vegan Carrot Cake Cookies are packed with cinnamon, nutmeg, and a hint of cloves and have freshly grated carrots in them. They're firm around the edges but still soft and almost cake like in the center, and they have the most delicious spice filled flavor.

These Vegan Carrot Cake Cookies are really easy to make and come together quickly. You'll need to make sure you have flaxseed on hand so you can make a flax egg by mixing it with water which will help bind together the dough.

You'll also want to make sure you use whole carrots instead of baby carrots and that you wash, peel, and grate them until they are fine. Do not use pre-shredded carrots as they'll be too large. You’ll need about 2-3 large carrots.

A FEW NOTES BEFORE WE GET STARTED.

• Measuring Your Ingredients: I strongly encourage that you use a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients and ensure that you have the most accurate measurements possible.
  • However, if you don’t have a scale on hand and will be using cup measurements, make sure to use the “spoon and sweep” method when measuring to avoid packing in too much of any dry ingredient.

• Oven Temperature: Make sure to preheat your oven for at least 15 minutes before you start baking.
  • I recommend purchasing an oven thermometer to get to know your oven so you can adjust your baking temperatures accordingly. Some ovens run slightly warmer or colder so its important to know yours to make sure your baked goods come out right.

• Check out My Favorite Baking Tools to see what I use when I bake.

Now let's bake! Preheat your oven to 350° F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and spices and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the flaxseed and water and mix together. Let that sit for 5 minutes. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and both sugars on medium speed for 2-3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

With the mixer on low, slowly add in the flax egg followed by the flour mixture. Add in the carrots and scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure it is fully incorporated, being careful not to over mix.

Using a 2 tablespoon scoop, form cookies into balls and place them a few inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes. Round cookies out with a round cookie cutter or glass and then continue to let them bake for another 6 minutes until they are slightly firm around the edges but still a little soft in the middle.

Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. Enjoy!