Moist Carrot Cake Recipe

This Easy Carrot Cake is made with fresh carrots, a blend of perfect spices, and topped with a sweet cream cheese frosting. Perfect for beginner bakers and unbelievable flavor and a crowd favorite. One of the most requested cakes I make and for good reason!

Be sure to try some of my other carrot recipes like my carrot cake cookies!

Recipe Features

• Perfect For Beginners: This cake is what I like to call “fail proof.” It produces a light and fluffy cake that is super moist.
• Freezer Friendly: You can make this cake in advance and freeze it before you frost. You can keep it frozen for up to 4 to 6 months.

I loooooove this recipe!! I love it so much that I have remade it dozens of times. It is so perfect for almost every occasion. There is something magic that happens when you shred carrots, toss with the perfect blend of spices, and bake them into a cake. The result is the BEST Carrot Cake you’ve ever eaten.

See those thick layers? They are oh-so moist and make your home smell incredible while they are baking! Top things off with a beautiful and creamy cream cheese frosting and you have got a dessert fit for a king.

Carrot Cake Ingredients:

If you are new to baking, you’ll likely have a few ingredient questions. Let’s breakdown what you need to make this homemade carrot cake and some substitutions. For a full list of ingredients and measurements see the recipe card below.

• All-purpose flour– Building your base with a good flour is key! All-purpose is what is used in this cake recipe. 
• Baking soda and baking powder– Baking soda and baking powder are leavening agents. They help give the cake its light and airy texture.  
• Salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg– These three ingredients boost the flavor and compliment the carrot perfectly.
• Eggs– Large eggs at room temperature. 
• Oil– Deciding which oil to use in a cake can be tricky. I have made this particular recipe with coconut, vegetable, and canola oil with great success. 
• Applesauce– Sounds odd, but it helps with producing a moist cake. Don’t skip!
• Sugar– Both white and brown sugar are going to add to the richness of this cake flavor. 
• Vanilla extract– Try to stick with pure vanilla extract. 
• Carrots– I purchase whole carrots and peel and shred them on my own. However, you could also pick up a bag of pre shredded carrots and they should work fine. 

The best oil to use in cake:

The most common oil used in cake baking is canola oil. The price is low and it doesn’t have an overwhelming flavor which is ideal when baking. You can also use vegetable oil, coconut oil, and avocado oil. All of those have a more mild flavor, which is exactly what you want. Olive oil’s tend to be more robust which will have an impact of the finished cake flavor.

How to make Carrot Cake from scratch:

From scratch cakes can be intimidating, but don’t let that stop you from trying! This cake is perfect for beginners. Follow the steps below for a perfect carrot cake.

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease and line two 8 inch pans or a 9×13 pan. Set aside.
2. Whisk together the flour, soda, powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Mix the eggs, oil, applesauce, sugars, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer. Stir in the dry ingredients and carrots. Divide between your round pans or pour all of the batter into your 9×13.
4. Bake 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Frosting for Carrot Cake

Cream cheese frosting!! I was trying to decide if there are other flavors that will work, and there definitely are, but cream cheese is king.  The slightly tang and less sweet flavor compliments the carrot in the most perfect way. Add in that dash of cinnamon and you have a drool worthy dessert that is hard to resist! 

I have the BEST Cream Cheese Frosting recipe that you can find here! 

Tips for this recipe:

• Cut a circle of parchment paper to line the bottom of your cake pan. This is probably the BEST cake baking tip I can ever offer you. After you grease your pan, place the parchment circle on the bottom and top with your batter. After baking, this makes removing from the pan a breeze! 
• Use room temperature ingredients to help with easy mixing. An over mixed batter makes a tough and chewy cake. 
• Test your oven temperature. Over baking your cake can cause tough and chewy dessert. Knowing how your oven cooks and adjusting your baking time can be the key to a perfectly baked cake recipe. 

More Carrot Recipes:

• Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies
• Tomato Soup (the secret ingredient!)
• Carrot Cupcakes
• Easy Chicken Stir Fry

More Cake Recipes:

• Flourless Chocolate Cake
• Best Ever Chocolate Cake
• Chocolate Whipped Cream Cake
• Spicy Chocolate Cake

5 from 2 votes

Carrot Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

Created by: Jesseca

Course Desserts

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

14 servings

his Easy Carrot Cake is made with fresh carrots, a blend of perfect spices, and topped with a sweet cream cheese frosting. Perfect for beginner bakers and unbelievable flavor and a crowd favorite. One of the most requested cakes I make and for good reason!

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Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

Cake

• ▢ 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ▢ 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• ▢ 4 eggs
• ▢ 3/4 cups canola or vegetable oil
• ▢ 1/2 cup applesauce
• ▢ 1 cup sugar
• ▢ 1 cup brown sugar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 3 cups grated carrots

Cream Cheese Frosting

• ▢ 8 oz cream cheese soft
• ▢ 5 tablespoons soft butter
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla
• ▢ 3½ cups powdered sugar
• ▢ 3 tablespoons heavy cream

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease and line the bottom of two 8 inch round pans with parchment. Or mist one 9×13 pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
• Whisk together the flour, soda, powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Mix the eggs, oil, applesauce, sugars, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds at medium speed.
• Stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture along with the carrots.
• Divide between your round pans or pour all of the batter into your prepared 9×13 pan.
• Bake 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Top with cream cheese frosting once cooled.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Combine the cream cheese and frosting in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
• Whip until fully combined and smooth, about 1 minute.
• Scrape the sides of the bowl and stir in the powdered sugar, 1/2 a cup at a time, until combined fully with the butter.
• Add the cream and whip for 5 minutes at medium speed.
• Spread onto the cooled cake.

Notes

You can purchase shredded carrots in most grocers in the produce section.

Make sure you use room temperature ingredients.

Equipment

Scoop

Brown Cupcake Liners

Cupcake Pan

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 369kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 80mg | Sodium: 450mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 46g

The nutrition facts provided are calculated using a third-party tool and are estimates only. Actual nutritional content may vary based on the ingredients and brands you use, as well as portion sizes. For accurate results, please consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.

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