Ginger Spice Carrot Cake Cookies

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Buttery, light and sweet cookies laced with carrots, orange zest and plenty of spices. This is a very unique cookie, barely crisp on the bottom with a slightly chewy cake-crumb center. The orange flavor comes through right along with all of the spices. The carrots are not overwhelmed with the different flavors, they are very well-matched. These cookies taste even better the second day. With a glass of milk or a cup of coffee, they are the perfect for an afternoon snack or even for breakfast.
When I saw the Carrot Pie recipe for this month's Vintage Recipe Swap, I could hardly wait to play with ideas for a carrot dessert. I knew I'd be making something different, because pies just aren't my favorite thing. I had an idea for a carrot cake cookie, but it proved much harder to actually accomplish. I'm not a fan of cakey cookies most of the time; crisp and chewy is more my style. My first two attempts at carrot cake cookies resulted in heavy, chewy, dense and very carrot-y cookies. However, the third time was the charm and these cookies were hailed as a success by all of my boys.

Ginger Spice Carrot Cake Cookies
Yield: 18-24 cookies, depending on size

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup grated carrots, packed
1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
the zest of one orange, about 1 tablespoon minced
1 cup brown rice flour *
1/4 cup tapioca starch *
2 tablespoons potato starch *
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cardamom
* if you are not in need of a GF version of these cookies, you should be able to substitute 1 1/4 cups AP flour for the items marked with an *.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the carrots and simmer over medium low heat for 2-3 minutes, until the carrots soften. Remove from the heat and add the brown sugar. Stir well to combine thoroughly. Add the egg, orange zest and the vanilla and stir to combine.

Whisk the remaining dry ingredients together and then add to the mixture in the pan. Stir to combine and then chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat or parchment and then use a medium scoop to place large (2) tablespoon scoops on the tray. The cookies will spread considerably, 6 cookies should fit on a large baking sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes, until the edges are just barely browned. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 8-10 minutes, before removing them to a cooling rack. Enjoy!



Click here for a printable recipe

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