Is that a mouthful or what? A mouthful of a name for a mouthful of a cookie. When I set out to make this recipe, my intention was to simply make carrot cake cookies. The type of treat you can have when you want dessert but have no desire to bake an entire cake. So I made the cookies – which were delicious on their own – but things got a bit out of control from there…
Two cookies are most definitely better than one, and a creamy layer of cream cheese in between is quite literally – the icing on the cake. These fun treats are perfect for serving at a party or lunch, and they taste surprisingly light and fluffy despite how decadent they look.
Vegan Carrot Cake Cream Cheese Whoopie Pies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients (24 cookies or 12 whoopie pies)
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1 cup all purpose flour
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1/2 cup whole wheat flour
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1/2 cup rolled oats
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1 teaspoon baking soda
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1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
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1 teaspoon cinnamon
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1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
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1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
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1/2 cup Earth Balance spread (or butter)
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1/4 cup organic cane sugar
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1/2 cup (loose) light brown sugar
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1 ripe banana, mashed
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1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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2 tablespoons non-dairy milk
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1 cup grated carrot
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1/2 cup raisins (I used a mix of purple and golden!)
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1 tub vegan cream cheese (optional)
Instructions
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients – flour through spices – and set aside.
Using a mixer, beat Earth Balance and sugars together until it is fluffy and creamy. Continue to beat slowly as you add the banana, vanilla, and milk.
Add flour mixture to the wet mixture, and mix until just combined. Grate carrot, and then fold carrots and raisins in with a spatula. (Walnuts would also be good here!)
Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, scoop cookies evenly onto a greased sheet pan. You’ll need to do two rounds of cooking since this recipe makes two dozen.
Bake for 10 minutes or until bottoms are golden brown. Remove cookies from oven and allow them to cool completely on a cooling rack.
They are delicious enough on their own, but I’d recommend taking them one step further. If you want to keep it simple, spread (vegan) cream cheese on the top of the cookie as a frosting.
But why stop at one cookie when you can eat two? Spread a generous amount of cream cheese on the bottom of one cookie, and then top it with a second cookie – bottom side toward the cream cheese again.
Take a bite. Make sure to keep breathing.
These are everything dessert should be – sweet, light, and so satisfying. I served these at my mom’s group and the whole batch was gone within a day.
Don’t skimp on the cream cheese – you will thank me.
67 Comments so far
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Ahh, I think I need to join your Mom’s group simply for the snacks!! They are blessed indeed to have you as a friend :)
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those look so delicious! i absolutely love carrot cake!
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Oh wow, these little guys look amazing! Can’t go wrong with yummy carrot cake + cream cheese frosting!
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Yay! I love seeing your baked treats on here. This looks great! I’m doing P90X right now, so I’m not supposed to dig into these just yet… but maybe in the next phase…
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These look amazing, can’t wait to make them. Today probably. I have impulse control issues. :)
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Drooooooool! I think in the first step you mean to say beat the Earth Balance and SUGAR (not butter) together until light and fluffy. Looks amazing!!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 9th, 2012 at 10:26 am
Correct! THANK you – I fixed it. :) Would you believe I proof-read it twice? Sigh.
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Yuuuum! The fact that you used a mixture of raisins somehow makes these seem even more delicious.
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These look so good–do you have any suggestions to make them gluten free? Could you sub the WW and AP flour for oat flour?
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Therese Reply:
August 9th, 2012 at 10:36 am
See my comment a few spaces down for a GF replacement idea…
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Caitlin C. Reply:
August 9th, 2012 at 10:39 am
Thank you so much!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:35 am
I’m not very confident with GF baking so it’s hard to make a suggestion, but I am sure you could try replacement flours!
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OMG! Cannot wait to make these! I just discovered I have a dairy allergy and need some new vegan dessert recipes! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
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@Caitlin C… I tend to find that a mixture of half almond meal and half oat or brown rice flour replaces wheat flour pretty well in cookie recipes. I haven’t tried it here, but you can bet I’m going to!
And Emily, what brand of vegan cream cheese do you use? I tried Tofutti once and it was gross enough that it scared me away from future purchases. But I’d love to try this recipe in its entirety!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:34 am
Great suggestion – thank you! The cream cheese is Follow Your Heart brand – much better than Tofutti, and a slightly less scary ingredient list. :)
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Ohh, yum. I could go for that right now. Do you like that cream cheese? I don’t think I’ve had it, only Tofutti (good) and Galaxy (no).
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:34 am
I thought it was pretty good compared to others I’ve tried!
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Cream cheese and carrot cake are a match made in heaven! Those babies don’t have a chance in my house. :)
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yay–the official dessert for the state of Maine. Only a *much* healthier version!
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Betsy Reply:
August 9th, 2012 at 1:14 pm
Yay indeed! I grew up in Maine, whoopie pies are a big deal there. Looking forward to trying these!
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Those look so yummy! I was wondering that once you went to the veggie lifestyle do you still count calories or find that you didn’t need to as much? Thanks and hope that isn’t to personal!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:33 am
Hey Katie! Nope, no more counting calories for quite some time. More just because I eventually found the natural balance and got a good feel for how much I should eat in a given day. That was when I was looking to lose weight, and now I’m just interesting in staying around the same weight/size I am now!
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SO good! Carrot cake is the one cake I can never say no too! These look incredible :)
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I was just thinking that I want to bake something new tonight! I have all of the ingredients on hand, so carrot cake cookies it is. Thanks!
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These look delicious! I’ve made Martha Stewart’s carrot cake sandwich cookies (and they’re delicious), but these look awesome yet healthier :)
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Yum! Those sound and look so good!
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the cookies alone sound like a dream!
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Oh my goodness! Next time you come to Ohio will you cook for me? LOL!
Absolutely love your blog and have tried multiple recipes. Can’t wait to give this one a whirl!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:32 am
Haha sure! I’ll be there in a few weeks. :)
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Aly Miazga Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 12:29 pm
I would love to meet you and chit chat! Let me know :)
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I am officially requesting these for our upcoming get-together:)
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:32 am
Haha DONE. :)
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These look incredible! I love that you’ve been focusing more on dairy free recipes lately as I’m a severely lactose intolerant vegetarian!
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Carrot cake is my favorite! I am making these tonight!!
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I’ve actually found that I like vegan carrot cake better than traditional carrot cake. I’m not sure why? And cream cheese makes almost everything better!
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Oh my sweet carrot gods these look incredible! Wll be making these when I get home. Thanks for sharing!
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OMG, these look so good! Carrot cake is my favorite, so what a fabulous idea to have it as sandwich cookies! :)
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Oh darn, I have all of the ingredients on hand… Guess I am going to have to make these!! And I love that your recipes are dairyfree/vegan but also can use dairy as an easy replacement! Not always d-free but am nursing a reflux-y baby!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:31 am
Haha hope they turned our well!
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I am normally not a fan of Carrot Cake (What???!) but those look delicious!!! Wow!
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oh my god, i LOVE carrot cake and these look SO GOOD! you’re amazing emily! cannot wait to make these immediately.
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Oh, these look so good! What a cute idea.
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Hi! Do you think it would work (and taste good) to make these gluten free by using GF All purpose flour? Thanks!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:31 am
I think it would probably be fine, but GF baking can be tricky. Definitely worth a try!
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My boyfriend wanted carrot cake for his birthday back in July but the weather was so hot I kept putting off turning on the oven. Now the idea of making a cake two months later seems silly but I love the idea of turning it into cookies!
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Can I use all white whole wheat flour in this recipe? I just don’t have extra if it doesn’t turn out and I don’t want to waste the flour…
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:30 am
Yes, definitely.
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Yum! Sounds like a great recipe!!!! I have to try these!!
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I absolutely adore carrot cake! My mom makes the best cake, and I finally gave up trying other recipes and just posted her recipe on my blog :)
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These look so good! I can’t wait to try them. Last fall I had a whoopie pie obsession and bought cookbooks about them.
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I was wondering what (if anything) could be used to replace the 1/2 cup of Earth Balance? My diet is very restrictive when it comes to oils and fats (digestive issues), but I would love to bake these!
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Michaela Reply:
August 11th, 2012 at 7:54 am
I have done these with just 1T of oil and mashed bananas for the rest (works also with applesauce) and the results were fab!!
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Arcelia Reply:
August 11th, 2012 at 12:44 pm
Thank you! I will try baking these with your suggestion :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:28 am
Great suggestion!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:29 am
You could try a different oil or butter, or mashed banana or applesauce if that works better for you!
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Looks like a nice, healthy treat for moms and little ones alike! I really minimize sugar intake with my 13-month-old (i.e., fresh and dried fruit is usually as sweet as it gets — no juice, no added sugars), but every once and awhile, it’s fun to share some nibbles of a special treat with him.
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Wow. Just wow.
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your blog is my favourite when it comes to recipes. I mean it.
I also love it because of other topics though!!
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:29 am
Thanks so much, Michaela!
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These look really great! I bet they made your house smell fantastic!
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Wow, these look delicious! Do you think coconut oil/butter would work instead of butter?
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Emily Malone Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 10:28 am
It won’t cream as well, but I think the final product would be just as good.
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Carrot cake is one of my favorite desserts and this looks easy enough for me to make :)
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Hi! I made these this weekend since I was carbo-loading for a race on Sunday, and I thought they would also make a delicious race day breakfast… I made a few modifications to fit what I had at home: replaced the banana with 1/2 cup of pumpkin pie filling, replaced the raisins with chopped dates and added unsweetened coconut. It turned out amazing!
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Jess Reply:
August 13th, 2012 at 1:09 pm
Oups, forgot to add, I also cut down on the sugar a bit, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/3 cup cane sugar.
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Wow! Those look unbelivable! What a great recipe!
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These look delicious! I normally ice carrot cake, but I like the idea of doing a filling instead. Yum!
x
stylequandary.com
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