Carrot Cake Cookies with Orange Cream Cheese Filling

carrot cake sandwich cookies with cream cheese frosting.

5 from 3 votes

Carrot Cake Cookies with Orange Cream Cheese Filling

These carrot cake cookies are like bite-sized carrot cakes, sandwiched together with a bright and tangy orange cream cheese filling. The cookies are soft, slightly chewy, and packed with warm spices, making them the perfect twist on a classic carrot cake.

Prep Time15

Cook Time14

Total Time29

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: sandwich cookies

Author: Krissy Allori

Equipment

Ingredients

Cookies:

2 cups shredded carrots packed
3 tablespoons brown sugar packed
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg slightly beaten
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar packed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Filling

4 ounces cream cheese softened
2 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Make the cookies:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare baking sheet by lining with parchment paper.
Place 2 cups shredded carrots in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons brown sugar over the carrots and stir to coat. Allow them to sit for at least 15 minutes to make the carrots tender. You should get at least 1/4 cup of brown liquid that drains out. Give them a squeeze to remove any excess liquid. Discard the liquid and set the sweetened softened carrots aside.
Melt 4 tablespoons unsalted butter in medium sized bowl. Add 1 teaspoon orange zest and 1 teaspoon vanilla. When the butter cools, but is still liquid, add 1 large egg. Stir well to combine.
In a large separate bowl, combine 1 cup all purpose flour, remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda. Stir to combine. Add the sweetened carrots and the egg mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir to combine (you may need to use your hands). Dough will be very sticky.
Divide dough into two equal portions. Using half the dough, make 14 balls of equal size on cookie sheet in three rows of 5-4-5. Use fingers to flatten each ball into circles that are about 1/4 inch thick.
Bake in preheated oven for about 12-14 minutes or until set. Allow cookies to rest on the hot baking sheet for an additional 3 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. Repeat with the second half of the dough.

Make the frosting filling:

To make the filling, add 4 ounces cream cheese and 2 tablespoons unsalted butter to the bowl of a stand mixture and beat with the paddle on medium high speed for about a minute until light and fluffy. Add 1 cup confectioner's sugar, 1 teaspoon orange zest and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Scrape down sides and mix on low for about 30 seconds until well combined.
Match cooled cookies into pairs of like sizes. Either spread filling with a knife or add filling to a plastic bag and cut the corner off to squeeze it out. Distribute filling evenly onto 14 cookies, placing filling on flat side of cookie. Top with second cookie, flat side against cookie.

Notes

Nutritional information based on one sandwich cookie.

I prefer to use peeled whole carrots instead of baby carrots. They have much better flavor and are less watery.
You can shred the carrots using a cheese grater or a food processor with the grater blade attachment (my preference).
The cookies will look under done when you take them out of the oven. You will need to trust your nose to determine if they've cooked long enough. Allowing them to sit on the hot baking sheet for a few minutes will ensure they get fully cooked.
If you want perfectly round cookies, you can take a ring from a mason jar lid and put it around each warm cookie to move it around in a circular fashion. This will round out the edges before they cool. I prefer them more rustic looking so I don't do this step.
Make sure the cookies have cooled completely before adding the filling.

Nutrition