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    Home » Dessert Recipes

    Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting

    Published: Mar 31, 2019 · Modified: Jul 10, 2021 by Philip + Mystique · This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Moist, carroty and perfectly sweet, our Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Icing are UNBELIEVABLE. You’re going to love it, and yes this counts as a serving of vegetables.

    Two carrot cake muffins with frosting and crushed walnuts on a wire cooling rack

    What's that old saying? Eat your vegetables. If there's any indication of what true adulting looks like, it's when you enjoy a dessert made from vegetables. Used in baking to add moisture, help with binding and sometimes even replacing eggs and fat, vegetable based desserts are a sneaky way to follow the doctor's orders and eat your cake too.

    4 carrot cake muffins, one frosted with a jar of milk and fresh carrots
    Raw carrots on a blue and white striped towel

    The perfect well-rounded dessert for any season, our Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting are moist, carroty (yes, that's a word) and subtly sweet from the vegetables. Made with brown butter, a dash of cinnamon and vanilla, it's a sweet treat that definitely counts as a serving of vegetables.

    What is Brown Butter?

    As defined by Merriam-Webster, brown butter is butter that has been heated in a pan until it has a light brown colour and a nutty flavour and aroma. The milk solids separate from the fat and it all becomes a beautifully nutty and slightly caramelized flavour that will delight your taste buds. Some also call it burnt butter, although it is not, and when used as a sauce in French cooking it’s called beurre noisette, being used in both savoury and sweet applications.

    How to Make Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting

    Ingredients for Carrot Cake Muffins

    All-purpose flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt, butter, milk, vanilla, eggs, brown sugar, carrots, icing sugar

    Ingredients to make carrot cake muffins

    Brown the Butter

    Place a package of butter in your pan and heat on medium-high. Once it has melted and starts to bubble, begin stirring. The butter will foam up and start to darken slightly. Lower heat to medium, continuing to stir and scraping any milk solids from the bottom of the pan. Once the foaming subsides and the solids at the bottom of the pan become deep brown, remove from heat and transfer to a jar to cool slightly, scraping all the milk solids into the jar.

    Pouring brown butter from a measuring cup into a white bowl

    Preparation

    Using the fine side of a box grater, grate 5-6 medium carrots to give you about 1 ½ cups. Preheat your oven to 350° F.

    Make the Carrot Cake Muffin Batter

    In a small bowl, mix together 1 cup of flour, 1 ¼ teaspoons of cinnamon, ¾ teaspoons of baking soda, ½ teaspoon of baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.

    In a larger bowl, beat 2 large eggs, then very slowly pour in ¾ cups of brown butter while continuously whisking. Add 1 cup brown sugar and mix to combine then add ¼ cup milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.

    Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until well combined. Stir in the finely grated carrots.

    Muffin batter in a bowl, next to grated carrots and a muffin pan

    Bake the Muffins

    Place muffin liners in a muffin tin. Scoop a little over ¼ cup of batter into each cup. It should fill 12 liners. Place the muffins in the preheated oven for 23-25 minutes. Check for doneness by piercing the centre of a muffin with a knife. If it comes out clean, they are done. If not, allow to cook for a further 3 minutes before checking again. Allow the carrot cake muffins to cool to room temperature.

    Four muffins in a muffin pan

    Make Brown Buttercream Frosting

    While the muffins are cooling, make the frosting by pouring ¼ cup of brown butter into a bowl. Add 2 cups of icing sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and 3 tablespoons of milk. Whisk by hand or in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add more milk or icing sugar as necessary to ensure you have very stiff peaks for the buttercream to hold its shape.

    Ice the Muffins and Enjoy

    Using a spatula or pastry bag, ice the muffins as desired. Finish by sprinkling with finely crushed walnuts.

    Styling Tip: use a pastry bag, plain tip for the perfect icing swirl. Start about a half inch in on the muffin so you can still see the base.

    Carrot muffins with brown butter frosting next to fresh carrots and milk
    Close up of carrot cake muffin with brown butter frosting

    Helpful Tools for Making Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting

    Below are affiliate links to products that will assist you in making our carrot cake muffin recipe. If you purchase an item through the links, Chef Sous Chef Inc. will receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you.

    • Muffin Pan
    • Cooling Rack
    • Whisk
    • Spatula
    • Skillet
    • Stand Mixer
    • Measuring Spoons

    Thank you for helping support us through these purchases. If you have made this recipe, please let us know in the comments below!

    Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting

    Philip Lago & Mystique Mattai
    The perfect well-rounded dessert for any season, our Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting are moist, buttery and subtly sweet from the carrots. Made with brown butter, a dash of cinnamon and vanilla, it's a sweet treat that definitely counts as a serving of vegetables.
    5 from 7 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 20 mins
    Cook Time 25 mins
    Course Brunch, Dessert, food and drink
    Cuisine Canadian, north american
    Servings 12 muffins
    Calories 363

    Ingredients
      

    Muffins

    • 1 cup all-purpose flour
    • 1 ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
    • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 2 large eggs
    • ¾ cup brown butter
    • 1 cup light brown sugar
    • ¼ cup whole milk
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 1 ½ cups finely grated carrot
    • ¼ cups crushed walnuts

    Brown Butter Frosting

    • ¼ cup brown butter
    • 2 cups icing sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 3 tablespoon whole milk

    Instructions
     

    • Place at least 1 ½ cups of butter in your pan and heat on medium-high. Once it has melted and starts to bubble, begin stirring. The butter will foam up and start to darken slightly after 5 minutes. Lower heat to medium, continuing to stir and scraping any milk solids from the bottom of the pan. Once the foaming subsides and the solids at the bottom of the pan become deep brown, remove from heat and transfer to a jar to cool slightly, scraping all the milk solids into the jar.
    • Preheat oven to 350°F.
    • In a small bowl, mix together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
    • In a larger bowl, beat the eggs. Very slowly pour the brown butter into the eggs, while whisking until fully incorporated, then whisk in the brown sugar, vanilla and milk. Add the dry ingredients and stir to combine, then stir in the grated carrots.
    • Place muffin liners in a muffin pan. Spoon about ¼ cup into each cup. Bake the muffins for 23-25 minutes until darker brown. Once baked, transfer to a cooling rack to come to room temperature.
    • While the muffins are cooling, make the frosting by pouring the brown butter into a bowl. Add the icing sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and 3 tablespoons of milk. Whisk by hand or in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add more milk or icing sugar as necessary to ensure you have very stiff peaks for the buttercream to hold its shape.  
    • Ice the muffins with a spatula or pastry bag and finish by sprinkling with crushed walnuts. 

    Notes

    • Regular butter can be used in place of brown butter, in the same amounts, if desired.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 363kcalCarbohydrates: 49gProtein: 3gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 73mgSodium: 302mgPotassium: 128mgFiber: 1gSugar: 39gVitamin A: 3206IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 56mgIron: 1mg
    Keyword brown butter recipes, carrot cake muffins, easter muffins, gourmet muffins
    Have you tried this recipe?Tag us on Instagram @chef.souschef or use the hashtag #chefsouschef and let us know how it was!
    Brown Butter Carrot Cake Muffins on a wooden board with text
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Bernice says

      April 02, 2019 at 1:19 pm

      I'm drooling over here...I haven't had breakfast yet and these are exactly what I want right now!5 stars

      Reply
    2. Jo says

      April 03, 2019 at 2:10 pm

      Browned butter definitely makes everything better! Great idea for a frosting 🙂5 stars

      Reply
      • Chef Sous Chef says

        April 03, 2019 at 5:21 pm

        You can say that again;)

        Reply
    3. [email protected] says

      April 04, 2019 at 12:53 am

      Your recipe for Carrot Cake Muffins with Brown Butter Frosting look so yummy, Philip! I need to plan a brunch immediately so that I can make some. I’ll bet that frosting is incredible - anything with brown butter is quite wonderful isn’t it? Thanks for sharing !5 stars

      Reply
      • Chef Sous Chef says

        April 04, 2019 at 8:03 am

        Thanks Denise. I think you'll love them!

        Reply
    4. Dana says

      April 04, 2019 at 8:28 am

      These are fantastic! I'm on a *huge* muffin kick right now and these are totally going on my list. I can't remember the last time I indulged in that carrot cake goodness.5 stars

      Reply
    5. Kristen says

      April 05, 2019 at 9:25 pm

      OMG you had me at brown butter frosting. These are next up on the bake list. YUM.5 stars

      Reply
    6. Rachel says

      January 07, 2023 at 4:29 pm

      These were so good! Perfectly moist and so fluffy. The brown butter icing was a perfect complement. Just wow5 stars

      Reply
      • Philip + Mystique says

        January 11, 2023 at 4:29 pm

        Thanks Rachel! Brown butter everything is the BEST! We're so glad you enjoyed the recipe and took the time to comment. Happy baking 🙂

        Reply

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