Carrot Cake Baby Bunnies
Happy Easter! Tis the season for carrot cakeβ¦specifically these carrot cake baby bunnies. Sure, carrot cake is just fine as a sheet or in cupcakes, but letβs be honest. It obviously tastes WAYYYY better when itβs shaped like an adorable small rabbit. And if the looks of these werenβt enough to sell you, then the carrot cake itself is. Moist and tender with the perfect amount of spice and a tangy cream cheese frosting.
The pan
Doesnβt have to be the baby bunny pan. I know that not everyone gets into niche pans like these, even though they make things more fun. If thatβs you, then just evenly distribute the cake batter into a 12 cavity cupcake pan and start checking the cupcakes at 20-22 minutes.
The carrot cake
A sweet and simple 2 bowl recipe that doesnβt require a mixer. The batter is a bit thick, but the end result is very moist and it just melts in your mouth. Once all the dry ingredients have been sifted together, whisk the liquid/wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Doing it this way rather than dumping everything together in one bowl does two things. It keeps the dry ingredients lump free and makes it so the eggs are evenly beaten in before theyβre added to the dry stuff. If you add the eggs whole, then you have to mix the batter longer to incorporate them, and you risk having a tougher cake.
If you donβt want to use olive oil, then switch it out for vegetable or canola oil.
Cream cheese frosting
I dusted these carrot cake baby bunnies with a little powdered sugar and added a small dollop of cream cheese frosting to the tails. A little flake coconut made for cute, fluffy tails. However, I think that using a pastry tip to create a βfurβ on the bunnies would also work, youβd just lose some of the finer details and shape of the bunny.
But only using frosting for the tail is perfect, because this carrot cake is SO GOOD on its own. If youβre making the cupcakes rather than the bunnies, youβll obviously use more frosting to top them.
PrintCarrot Cake Baby Bunnies
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 bunny cakes/12 cupcakes 1x
- Category: Dessert, Seasonal
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Tender and perfectly spiced, these adorable carrot cake baby bunnies are almost too cute to eat.
Ingredients
For the carrot cake:
- 1 2/3 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp salt
- 3/4β1 cup finely shredded carrots
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For the cream cheese frosting:
- 4 oz full fat cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softenend
- 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 TB heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut (for the tails, optional)
Instructions
- To make the bunny cakes,Β preheat the oven to 350F/176C. If using the baby bunny pan, coat the inside cavities with a baking spray that includes flour, such as Bakerβs Joy. Donβt use regular cooking/baking spray. If buttering, dust with flour. If using the cupcake pan, line the cavities with paper liners and set aside.Β
- Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg together into a large mixing bowl (large enough to hold all the finished batter.) Whisk in the granulated and brown sugars, the salt and the carrots until well incorporated. Set aside. In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk the olive oil, butter, sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract until blended and smooth.
- Pour the liquid ingredients into the flour/carrot mixture and fold the batter together until evenly moistened. The batter will be thick. Divide among the bunny cavities/cupcake liners. If using the bunny pan, rap the pan on the counter 2-3 times to make sure the batter really gets down into the detailed areas of the bunny shapes.Β
- Bake for 25-30 minutes (bunny pan) or 22-26 minutes (cupcake pan), until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean from the center of the cakes. Let the bunnies cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack. You can let the cupcakes cool in the pan.
- To make the cream cheese frosting,Β beat the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract and salt together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Adjust sugar to thicken or cream to thin the frosting as needed. Decorate cooled bunnies/cupcakes as desired.
- Cakes/cupcakes will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days, and in the fridge for about a week.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bunny cake with frosting
- Calories: 690
- Sugar: 56.3 g
- Sodium: 752.8 mg
- Fat: 39.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 19.6 g
- Trans Fat: 0.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 79.4 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 6.9 g
- Cholesterol: 128.6 mg