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Carrot cake lovers – these are for you! All the greatness of a carrot cake in an easy-to-bake-up batch of blondies. With cream cheese frosting, of course. These Carrot Cake Blondies are definitely a keeper!
Carrot Cake Blondies Recipe
I simply cannot even think about carrot cake without thinking of my mom. Not because she loves it (but she does like it just fine)… but because for the first 7 years of my life we thought she loved it. We thought it was her favorite. To this day my brother and I have no idea why this is… but sure enough, come every July, there we were – buying her the biggest cake of carrot we could get our mangy little hands on. Oooops!
She was a good sport though. I was around 7 or 8 when she finally broke (the news) and let us know it wouldn’t hurt to mix it up a strawberry shortcake or death by chocolate every so often. Waaaaaaaay to be subtle mom. We got the point!
So while I won’t be making these for mom, hoo-boy will I be making them for everyone else I know! I’m pretty sure even carrot cake lovers would fall for these sweet little blonde and orange squares. They’re soft but chewy, and packed with the charming qualities of both carrot cake and a traditional blondie. They’re so ready to be loved. And devoured.
The really great thing about these carrot cake blondies is – besides the whole tasting amazing part – they are sooooo much easier than baking a whole cake. They save you on both time, and money. And I don’t know about you – but those two things are always on my “keep close” list.
More Carrot Cake Recipes:
- Chai Spiced Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- My Favorite Carrot Cake
- Pumpkin Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Are you guys up to anything fun this weekend? We’re having a dinner party tonight, and I have a ton of cooking/ CLEANING to get to. But it should be a great time. I hope you enjoy these early Spring days 🙂 I’ll see you Sunday with some supper. xoxo
Carrot Cake Blondies
Ingredients
- 8 ounces unsalted butter, melted
- 1 and 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 cup carrots, finely grated
- 1 and 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, VERY soft
- 8 ounces cream cheese, VERY soft
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups confectioners sugar
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Line a 9x9" inch baking pan with parchment paper and lightly spray with non-stick baking spray; set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla; whisk smooth. Beat in the egg and egg yolk, then fold in the carrots. Add in the flour, ginger, cinnamon, and salt and whisk just until combined. Fold in chopped pecans.
- Pour batter into prepared pan, smooth the top. Place pan in the oven and bake for 32 to 35 minutes. The edges will be brown and the center should be set. Cool completely (!!!) in pan before removing and frosting. You don't want to rush the cooling!
Make your Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese and butter and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add in the vanilla and beat smooth. Gradually add in the confectioners sugar, a 1/2 cup at a time, and whisk until smooth.
- Frost cooled bars by simply scooping the frosting onto the blondies and smoothing it evenly across the top. Sprinkle with pecans. Cut into small squares and serve!
- P.S. You can add toasted coconut or chopped nuts to the top. If I had crystalized ginger I would have added that!
Just made these for Easter – and, OMG!!! What a brilliant idea, to combine a blonde and carrot cake! Can’t wait for an excuse to make them again!
I’m honored! And so happy they were a hit at your Easter celebration!
my oven always cooks things over so I reduced time by 8 minutes. they were overcooked and a little too dry. Will definitely try again with less time. Otherwise flavors were great!
Can this recipe be doubled for a 9 x 13 pan size?
Absolutely!
Mine came out like dense fudge and sticky. Cooked 350 for 34/35 minutes in 11×7 (googled substitute for 9×9). Delicious, just was not the texture I was expecting. Frosting is amazing, it’s the same one I use on my carrot cake that I make frequently. Is the texture supposed to be dense, chewy/sticky? Wondered if I did something wrong because I was expecting a brownie texture.
My 4 year old and I baked these up last night, and I served them for breakfast this morning after chilling in the fridge all night. Ooooh man are these delicious with a cup of coffee. And rich. And heavenly. And sweet! Next time I might cut back a little on the sugar (if only so I can eat more of them at once without getting overwhelmed with sweetness) I did follow the recipe almost exactly, with the only change being browning the butter during the melting process because in my opinion browned butter makes everything better.
The texture is more like a moist and dense carrot cake than a chewy blondie, but I’m very ok with that. I will definitely be making these again this spring to fill all my carrot cake cravings!
Can u freeze these
I don’t recommend it. They’ll dry out and won’t have the chewy texture once frozen
These were a HUGE hit with my family for Easter! I almost didn’t have any leftovers to bring back home. The frosting was perfection. I thought the texture of the blondie was going to be more like a fudgy brownie than a cakey one, but it was still absolutely delicious. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Perfect recipe
Can these carrot cake blondies be frozen?
This recipe is very good. Cake was denser than I expected but good. Frosting is excellent!