A carrot cookie recipe from WW2 that only doesn't use any refined sugar and comes straight from Great-grandma's recipe box, yes please.
Most vintage recipes use frugal and real food ingredients, making them healthier for us and lighter on the pocket book. One of my favorite things about vintage recipes is the stories behind them. Andrea has been taking us through her great-grandmother's recipe collection from the 1930's and 1940's.
Anyone else have a love affair with this time period and all things vintage? Just like Great-Grandma’s Old-Fashioned Chewy Molasses Cookie Recipe, I can't help but love this is a WW2 carrot recipe. Often though a lowly root vegetable, carrots are a great addition to baked goods with providing both moisture and flavor.
Many of us have vegetables coming along in the garden so this a fabulous recipe to put to work with what you have. It calls for carrots, but I might try playing around with some zucchini or even pumpkin. If you missed the other parts in this fabulous series (Andrea, huge thank you for sharing your families treasures with the rest of us) check out Frugal Kitchen Tips from 1913 and Historical Recipe: Honey Date Squares
If you're looking for a carrot cake cookie recipe, you'll still want to try these, but don't expect them to taste like carrot cake. These healthy carrot cookies are more like an oatmeal cookie in texture.
Andrea~
This recipe for oatmeal carrot raisin cookies is another 1940's find from my great-grandmother's collection. Sweetened with honey, and full of raisins, nuts, carrots, and oats. Breakfast cookies are totally a thing, especially a carrot breakfast cookie because veggies, right?
And to up the health factor, though traditionally made with pastry flour, they turn out equally as well with whole wheat pastry four, spelt flour, or a gluten-free blend. Walnuts and pecans are both good choices for the nuts.
Don't be afraid to make these your own. And if you need to be nut free, feel free to leave them out.
How to use fresh ground Spelt flour in carrot cookies
I love using spelt flour in my baking because spelt is an ancient grain that has a higher protein count but less gluten,who doesn't love all that, right?
However, I've always have to increase the amount of spelt flour by an extra quarter cup to 1 cup of regular flour, so if you make this recipe with spelt flour, you may need to add an extra 1/2 cup of flour, using 2 and 1/2 cups total. I usually start with the regular amount, but if it feels to wet or doughy, I add a 1/4 to 1/2 cup until if feels correct.
Want to bake these healthy carrot cookies with fresh ground flour? Check out my Best Flour for Baking- Home Baker’s Flour Guide 101
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Carrot Cookies Recipe
- Mix together flour, baking powder, and spices and set aside.
- Cream together butter or oil and carrot. Beat in baking soda, honey, and eggs.
- Stir in raisins, nuts, and oats.
- Add dry ingredients to carrot mixture and mix until combined.
- Drop by spoonfuls on greased or lined pans and bake at 350 degrees for 12 – 15 minutes. (The original recipe calls for 15 minutes, but I found mine were done by 12 and over-browned by 15)
- Cool on a wire rack.
Print version of healthy carrot cookie recipe
Carrot Cookies Recipe WW2
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour whole wheat pastry, spelt, or gluten-free blend
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp allspice
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup softened butter or coconut oil
- 1 cup grated raw carrot
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¾ cup honey
- 2 eggs well beaten
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 2 cups rolled oats
Instructions
- Mix together flour, baking powder, and spices and set aside.
- Cream together butter or oil and carrot. Beat in baking soda, honey, and eggs.
- Stir in raisins, nuts, and oats.
- Add dry ingredients to carrot mixture and mix until combined.
- Drop by spoonfuls on greased or lined pans and bake at 350 degrees for 12 – 15 minutes.
Notes
The original carrot cookies recipe was published in a victory economy bulletin by the Lakeside Milling Company of Toronto, Canada.
Love this recipe. I took these cookies to my daughter’s swim team and they were a hit.
I wont tell u my email lol cuz hackers.(my email is [email protected])
I wont tell u my email lol
I made these cookies several times. These are so good. Hoping my carrots are large enough this year to make lots more.
Hi! My grandmother made carrot-gingerbread in the 1940’s with no sugar. It was sweetened only with carrots because they could not afford sugar! I haven’t been able to find the recipe. Could this be adapted to make a gingerbread instead of cookies?
Love the cookies but I found the a bit sticky and the dough had to be rolled into balls and flatten leaving me with dough all over my hands. Wetting the heads helped. Anyone else have that issue. I used Bobs Redmill one to one.
Everyone loved these! I did use the gluten free blend she mentioned, equal parts, almond, coconut, and flax meal. Turned out perfect! 🙂
So happy to hear that worked well.
MADE THE COOKIES SO DD MY FAMILY THANK YOU
I made these and loved them!! Mine were a bit on the dry side and I used the spelt and also used quick oats – any suggestions? Thank you.
I was really excited to see this recipe, but then disappointed that it contains rolled oats, now that we know they have RoundUp in them. Is there a source that is pesticide free?
I use organic oats and because I never use quick oats, I’ve frequently subbed in steel cut and old-fashioned oats in recipes. I only purchase organic. I’ve purchased Bob’s Red Mill organic and the organic brand at our local food co-op.
Bob’s Red Mill organic oats were contaminated & pulled from the market in late 2018. I no longer trust the brand. There are other organic producers that require growers field test for soil for contaminates multiple times before they accept the grains & they again test for contaminates before they put out their products. (The Canadian co I emailed will share the testing results if requested. I am happy to pay more for real organic grains.
I love seeing and reading all these old recipes and then trying them out. Thanks a bunch for sharing them we us.
I enjoy reading your blog, especially the recipes. I was wondering if you use aluminum and gm cornstarch free Baking Powder?
Deb,
Thank you, yes, I buy aluminum free baking powder. 🙂
I can’t wait to try this recipe. I was wondering if I could use coconut flour or would it be too dense? Thank you for sharing!
Hmm, if you used coconut flour, I’d cut back the amount by say a couple of tablespoons per cup. Coconut flour tends to absorb more moisture than others. Or add in more liquid. 🙂
Could you use White Whole Wheat flour or any other type flour?
Hi Julie! Yes, I imagine white whole wheat and other flours would work as well. Enjoy!
The reason for 15 minutes is people used to dunk their cookies in coffee in the morning for breakfast and this could very well be the dunking kind. I used to eat cookies for breakfast with my great grandparents. Such good memories. Mom would never let us have cookies for breakfast.
Darlene,
Thanks for that bit of history and knowledge. I love that kind of stuff and oh, dipped in coffee, yes!
Wondering if I can use quick oats instead of rolled oats. I don’t mean to sound ignorant but I don’t use oats very often and when I do, it’s the quick oats. Also and most important, I and others close to me can not have nuts, can they be omitted and and if I do omit should I add more oats? or maybe add more raisins. I’m thinking more oats since it’s more a dry ingredient. Thank you for this recipe. I look forward to hearing from you. Oh! I’m making these for a family gathering the middle of July. I’ve been looking for a good cookie recipe.
Hi Shirley,
I would think you could use the quick oats, but the texture of the cookies might be a little different. I haven’t tried it this way so I am not sure how they will turn out, although I think they would still be good. As for the nuts, you could substitute seeds (sunflower seeds are nice in cookies) or more raisins. I wouldn’t add more oats as they soak up moisture and would make the cookies too dry. You might want to give them a try before the family gathering, to see how they turn out for you! (Nothing worse than making a recipe for a group of people and then being disappointed with the results.) Please let us know how they turn out!
They look yummy. I love carrot cake so I imagine I would like carrot cookies as well. I am marking this recipe so we can try it. Thanks for sharing.
Blessings,
Deborah
Deborah,
I totally had the same thought! I’m going to make them for breakfast bites this weekend (because bites just sounds healthier for breakfast than cookies, right?)