For the cupcakes: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and set out 2 standard muffin tins. Line 18 of the wells with cupcake liners and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, beat together the oil, granulated sugar, molasses, vanilla and eggs. Stir in the carrots and juice or water. Add the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk just to combine, scraping down the bowl a few times to ensure that everything is evenly mixed.

Divide the batter among the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters of the way to the top. Bake the cupcakes until springy to the touch or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes. Set the cupcakes aside to cool completely to room temperature.

For the chocolate cream cheese buttercream: Beat the cream cheese and butter together in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, followed by the vanilla. Beat the buttercream until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add in the melted chocolate and beat just until combined.

To decorate, transfer the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip and pipe a large dollop of the buttercream onto each cupcake. Alternatively, you can just use a butter knife or the back of a spoon to ice the cupcakes.