The best Carrot Cake Recipe you will ever try. This homemade carrot cake is bursting with flavor and moisture! But one of my favorite things about this cake is (in my opinion) the best cream cheese frosting on the planet. For the same delicious flavors, try my Carrot Cake Cruffins, too!
Homemade Carrot Cake
Trying to find a real carrot cake recipe is not as easy as you would think. My Mother-in-Law was having a big birthday party last Sunday and her only request was a carrot cake from scratch.
Real carrot cake. With real ingredients. (No box mixes allowed!) After testing out several recipes, I finally found one that everyone loves and that is now a tradition in our home.
For the exterior, I did a version of my original Rosette Cake.
Why Rosettes on a Carrot Cake?
My beautiful mother-in-law was turning 67 (she really doesn’t look a day over 45!) and so piped out 67 flowers. Some are with the 1M tip (remember you can always use a 2D tip in place of the 1M) and the rest are with #27 tip from Wilton. (It brought her to tears… if you ever have the opportunity to replicate this for a loved one I highly recommend it!)
How to Make the Best Carrot Cake
Once you have added the flour to the wet ingredients you want to be very gentle with the batter. I recommend removing the bowl from the stand mixer and mix all dry ingredients in by hand.
If you do not want to add pineapple, you can add 1/4 more oil and omit the pineapple. You can also make other substitutions or changes like adding sweetened coconut (1/4 cup should do!) or using a little brown sugar.
Allow the cakes to cool completely before assembling the cake. I like to use a chilled cake for assembly and room-temperature frosting. You may need to level your cake prior to assembly. (Get detailed instructions on that here.)
BONUS: One way to make this cake AMAZING (and for the 21+ crowd) is to plump up your raisins in rum or brandy.
Cream Cheese Frosting
This cream cheese frosting is amazing for a few reasons. First, it’s amazingly sweet AND you can pipe with it. If you do not want to pipe out 67 rosettes, you can simply spread it over the cake in glorious swoops. This recipe and a “rustic” design are a match made in heaven! For a fun twist on frosted carrot cake, try my Cream Cheese Filled Carrot Cake Cupcakes where the cream cheese is inside!
How to Store Carrot Cake
If you chose to decorate a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, it should be stored in the refrigerator. Refrigeration can dry out baked goods, but cream cheese frosting does need to be refrigerated. It will last 2-3 days. Save a piece of cake to crumble up for my Carrot Cake Milkshake!
Can I Use a Different Sized Pan?
Yes! This works great in a 9×13 pan. Bake at 350°F for 36-42 minutes. The cake is done when it no longer appears wet on top or when an inserted toothpick is removed with crumbs, but no wet batter.
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ cups (250 g) vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 ¾ cups (352 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
- 2 ¼ cups finely grated carrots
- ½ cup pineapple, drained from a can or freshly diced
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup (1 stick / 113 g) butter, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups (512 g) confectioners' sugar
Instructions
Carrot Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Prepare two 8-inch round baking pans. (You can also use three 7-inch round cake pans.) Generously butter the pans or spray each with baking spray.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs until light yellow, about 3 minutes.
- In a separate bowl sift together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. (Double sifting is recommended)
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly and gently add in the dry ingredients. Mix until JUST combined.
- Remove bowl from mixer and fold in the raisins, nuts, carrots, and pineapple.
- Divide the batter equally between the pans. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. A few crumbs are what you want for a MOIST cake!
- Allow the cakes to cool completely on a wire rack.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Place room temperature butter, cream cheese, and vanilla into mixer and blend for 1-2 minutes on medium until fully incorporated.
- Add confectioners' sugar, one cup at a time, until the frosting is light and creamy. Whip cream cheese frosting for 3-5 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Frost the cooled cake with the cream cheese frosting.
Video
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What a beautiful cake! Chunky and crumbly? Sounds perfect!
Thanks Sarah!
You should try it with Marzipan carrots, not only are they visually appealing, the flavor combination is pleasing as well.
you think I can used muffin pan ? thank you
Gorgeous! And thank you, because I have been looking for THE carrot cake recipe.
Yay!!! If you try it I hope you will love it!
I DO have the perfect carrot cake recipe. No nuts in it, or raisins (raisins belong in fruit salad and lunch boxes!) Shredding carrots, it is the most moist carrot cake recipe I have ever eaten. Let me know if you want the recipe. It makes 3 layers. And yes, the cream cheese frosting it what makes it!
If you are willing to share, then sure! I love trying new things! 🙂
Hi Jackie, is it possible to get the recipe for your Carrot Cake? I would love to try it. Thanks, Mary
was wondering about getting your recipe Jackie would love to try this one out as not all family members will eat raisins and nuts….But I will be trying out Amanda’s recipe as well 🙂
Thanks in advance
Jay
I love the 67 roses … so pretty! There is nothing like a real homemade chunky carrot cake … with the cream cheese frosting, of course … it’s the best! I have a very similar recipe with the addition of pineapple … it’s a family favorite.
Thank you Brenda! Sounds like your family has a great recipe.
Your carrot cake is the most beautiful carrot cake I have ever seen! Here is my mother’s carrot cake recipe that I love….. no raisins or pineapple. And the nuts are in the frosting. I know you like to make your cakes beautiful, but please…try it with the nuts in the frosting. Maybe you could make two batches of frosting and pipe some flowers over the frosting with nuts. Mom’s recipe made it into last year’s Mary Engelbreit Fanfare Cookbook !!
Mimi’s Carrot Cake (3 layer cake)
(A favorite recipe of: Anna Marie Penix)
* Cut waxed paper circles for the bottom of the cake pans & grease and flour the sides of the pans.
Cake:
3 c. grated carrots
2 c. flour
1 c. Crisco oil (or canola oil)
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
4 eggs, beaten
2 c. sugar
Mix sugar, flour, baking soda, cinnamon & salt.
Add eggs & oil, then mix.
Stir in grated carrots, mixing well.
Pour into 3 waxed-paper lined (& greased & floured on sides) 9” round cake pans (or 8” will work, too).
Bake at 325 – 40 minutes (or until done & springs back from the middle).
Turn out layers onto cooling rack & immediately peel off waxed paper circles from the bottoms.
Cool layers completely before icing.
Icing:
8 oz. cream cheese, room temp
1 lb powdered sugar (plus a little more to add, if needed)
1 c. pecans, chopped
1 stick butter (or margarine)
1 tsp vanilla
Cream butter, cream cheese & sugar.
Add vanilla & nuts, stirring well.
Frost the cake, using small blobs and smearing them around, between layers and outside of cake.
Store in the fridge when done and between servings.
Thank you so much Anna. I would love to try this cake just as you have specified!
I love carrot cake and have the best recipe for it! I use cinnamon applesauce in place of the oil to keep healthier. It takes a bit longer to bake, but it is worth it.
http://s801.photobucket.com/user/ASwedishElf/media/CarrotCake_zps6d1e45b6.jpg.html
You cake is so pretty. You are so talented when it comes to cake decorating!
Sounds great Laurie! I will definitely try this! 🙂
Is omitting the pineapple the only change you made to the original? Did you add any liquid to account for the moistness lost by not including the juicy pineapple?
I also changed the amount of carrots… while it didn’t exactly equal the amount of pineapple omitted, it did come close. My cake was no where even close to being dry… VERY moist and yummy!
Oh my! From your comments in this post, we could be the same person! No raisons, EVER, NEVER, EVER; it’s all about the frosting anyway, and there are some absolutely delcious boxed cake mixes out there. 🙂 If I add nuts at all to homemade carrot cake (I use the old fashioned Betty Crocker cookbook recipe) I use pecans. Not a fan at all of walnuts. But, that all said, I can’t wait to try this recipe! Your cake was beautiful, as usual. Thanks for sharing and being a delight in my day.
lol Exactly Brenda!And thanks for the kind words. 🙂
I love chunky carrot cake but yes it’s mostly about the cream cheese frosting! Glad you found a recipe you love – it looks amazing. I love Shaina’s site too 🙂 Beatiful pics.
Thanks Liz! Totally agree… Shaina’s picture are lovely!
Un millon de gracias.
Por estos regalos tan precioso y exquisitos…
Bienvienida a GRAN CANARIA