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    Home » Recipes » Cake

    The Best Carrot Cake Recipe (with Video)

    Updated: Mar 7, 2022 • Published: Mar 7, 2022 by Sam Merritt • 1,736 Comments

    This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy.
    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video
    The Best Carrot Cake Recipe

    You’ll love this wonderfully moist, perfectly spiced Carrot Cake Recipe. This cake is surprisingly simple to make and includes a step-by-step video for no-fail results every time. Top everything off with a simple cream cheese frosting for what truly might be the perfect cake.

    cream cheese frosted carrot cake on a white plate with one bite missing

    If I had to choose a favorite cake recipe on my blog, I think this carrot cake recipe would be it. Maybe I’m biased, but even though I’m wildly in love with my white cake, vanilla cake (a reader favorite!) and chocolate cake, this carrot cake is hands-down the one I will reach for first every time.

    There’s something about its deliriously moist crumb, the perfect amount of spices, and yes, that all-time favorite cream cheese frosting of mine. It’s sweet without being too sweet, carefully crafted with both butter and oil and just the right amount of carrots –the flavor is so good that even Zach reached for a second piece.

    I know you are going to love this one just as much as we do, so let’s dig in!

    What You Need

    overhead view of ingredients for carrot cake

    Here are a few of the key ingredients that make this carrot cake recipe the best:

    • Flour. All-purpose flour works great here. I don’t recommend using cake flour for this recipe; it tends to yield a lighter crumb, and we want our carrot cake to be on the denser side.
    • Sugar. A combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar (either light or dark) makes for a moist, flavorful cake.
    • Spices. Both cinnamon and nutmeg create the perfect spice profile that pairs so well with the brown sugar, carrots, and nuts.
    • Oil AND butter. This is the ultimate dynamic duo for cakes! Oil adds moisture (canola or vegetable oil will work) and unsalted butter adds a rich flavor. Don’t substitute one for the other–we really need both here!
    • Eggs. Room temperature eggs work best, so set yours out ahead of time. If you forget, you can just place your eggs in a bowl of warm water for 10-15 minutes before using.
    • Vanilla. We’ll add a full tablespoon of vanilla for some extra flavor. If you’ve got some homemade vanilla laying around, definitely use it here!
    • Carrots. Do not use pre-shredded or “matchstick” carrots! They are way too thick to use in this carrot cake recipe, unless you like biting into discernible chunks of carrot (I do not!). I usually need about 4 carrots for this cake, and I always peel my carrots before grating them. You could use a box grater, but I prefer to use my food processor.
    • Nuts. You can use either chopped walnuts or pecans, or you can leave them out entirely.

    This carrot cake recipe is made complete with my cream cheese frosting. It’s so simple and a big favorite on my site. Here’s what you need:

    • Butter. Since we’re adding salt ourselves, stick with unsalted butter and make sure it’s softened.
    • Cream cheese. Use the brick-style cream cheese–not the spreadable kind in a tub. Your cream cheese should also be softened so it can incorporate nicely.
    • Vanilla. A teaspoon rounds out the flavor of this frosting.
    • Powdered sugar. We’ll add this for structure and sweetness.

    Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!

    SAM’S TIP: To grate your carrots in the food processor, first use the “shred” blade. Once your carrots are shredded, switch to the standard blade and briefly pulse until the carrots are fine pieces. Don’t overdo this step or you’ll end up with carrot puree (this is also why I start by using the shred blade on my processor; I’ve found that just tossing the carrots in with my standard blade quickly breaks down the carrots too much).

    How to Make Carrot Cake

    collage of four photos showing how to make carrot cake
    1. Whisk together the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large mixing bowl.
    2. Add the oil and butter and mix well. Then, add the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each addition. Finally, stir in your vanilla extract.
    3. Fold in your carrots and nuts.
    4. Evenly divide the batter between two 8″ baking pans that have been greased, floured, and lined with parchment circles. Bake at 350F for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
    collage of two photos showing how to frost a carrot cake after baking
    1. Let the cakes sit in their pans for 10 minutes after baking, then invert them onto a cooling rack. Allow the cakes to cool completely before frosting.
    2. Prepare your frosting, frost your cake, and serve!

    SAM’S TIP: While a single batch of frosting will cover this cake, I typically increase the recipe by 50% (or even double it!) to allow for a thicker coating and decoration.

    cake pans filled with carrot cake batter

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Can I use this carrot cake recipe for cupcakes?

    While you could, I personally found this carrot cake recipe to be a bit too heavy for cupcakes. Because of this, I developed a carrot cake cupcake recipe that I would recommend using instead. It’s still flavorful and delicious, but not so moist that it requires a fork for eating.

    If you’re interested in more carrot cake variations, I also have a carrot cake cookie recipe you can try out, too.

    Can I add raisins to my cake?

    Yes, you can. I’d recommend stirring in a heaping cup when you add the carrots and (optional) nuts. The amount is up to you, about a cup should be a good amount.

    Why did my carrot cake turn green!?

    The best way to prevent a green carrot cake is to peel your carrots before shredding. If this step is skipped, the peels sometimes take on a green color after baking. This is harmless and the cake can still be enjoyed, but it’s not quite as attractive.
    Some sources also claim that your cake may turn green if you accidentally use too much baking soda or if you don’t mix your dry ingredients well enough (and the baking soda isn’t evenly distributed).

    a slice of frosted carrot cake on a white plate with the rest of the cake in the background

    Enjoy!

    Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook.

    cream cheese frosted carrot cake on a white plate with one bite missing

    The Best Carrot Cake Recipe

    A wonderfully moist, perfectly spiced carrot cake recipe.  This cake is surprisingly simple to make and includes a step-by-step video for no-fail results every time.
    Be sure to check out the how-to video!
    4.94 from 766 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Course: Cake
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes
    Servings: 14 slices
    Calories: 533kcal
    Author: Sam Merritt

    Ingredients

    • 2 ½ cups (315 g) all-purpose flour
    • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
    • 1 cup (200 g) light or dark brown sugar¹ firmly packed
    • 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
    • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • 1 cup (235 ml) cooking oil use canola, avocado, or vegetable oil
    • ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter melted
    • 4 large eggs room temperature
    • 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
    • 3 cups (340 g) grated carrots² peel before grating
    • 1 cup (125 g) chopped walnuts or pecans optional

    Cream Cheese Frosting³

    • ½ cup (1 stick) (113 g) unsalted butter softened
    • 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese softened (brick-style, not spreadable)
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 4 cups (500 g) powdered sugar

    Recommended Equipment

    • 2 8" round cake pans (see notes for using different sized pans)
    • Mixing bowls

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and prepare two 8-inch pans⁴ (see note for using different sized pans) by lining the bottoms with parchment paper and lightly greasing and flouring the sides.
    • In a large bowl, whisk together your flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
      2 ½ cups (315 g) all-purpose flour, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, 1 cup (200 g) light or dark brown sugar¹, 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
    • Add your canola oil and melted butter and stir well (batter will be pretty stiff and thick at this point, I usually use an electric mixer or my stand mixer to combine everything nicely).
      1 cup (235 ml) cooking oil, ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
    • Add eggs, one at a time, stirring well after each addition.
      4 large eggs
    • Stir in vanilla extract.
      1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
    • Stir in carrots and nuts (if using) until ingredients are well-combined.
      3 cups (340 g) grated carrots², 1 cup (125 g) chopped walnuts or pecans
    • Evenly divide carrot cake batter into prepared baking pans and bake on 350F (175C) for 40 minutes (toothpick inserted in center should come out mostly clean with only few moist crumbs).
    • Allow cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge and invert onto cooling rack to cool completely.
    • Allow cake to cool completely before covering with cream cheese frosting.

    Cream Cheese Frosting

    • Combine butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until creamy, well-combined, and lump-free.
      ½ cup (1 stick) (113 g) unsalted butter, 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese
    • Add vanilla extract and sprinkle salt into the bowl and stir well to combine.
      1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon salt
    • With mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until ingredients are completely combined (be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula).
      4 cups (500 g) powdered sugar
    • Once your cake has cooled completely, cover with frosting.

    Notes

    1Brown sugar

    Either light or dark brown sugar will work fine, dark brown sugar will make your cake slightly more moist and rich, but light brown sugar works perfectly if you don’t have dark on hand.

    ²Carrots (& how to grate them)

    For me, this usually requires about 4 large carrots. I always peel my carrots before grating. Make sure to use the small shred of your box grater. Another way I like to prepare my carrots is to use the “shred” setting on my food processor and then switch to the blade and briefly pulse the carrots so that you have fine pieces of carrot (don’t over-do it though, or you’ll have carrot juice!). Whatever you do, don’t use store-bought “matchstick” carrots, they’re not nearly thin enough!

    ³Frosting

    A single batch of my cream cheese frosting recipe will cover this cake, but because I like a lot of frosting and will usually pipe decoration on the top of the cake, I sometimes increase the recipe by 50% or even double it.

    ⁴Cake pans, different sizes

    The following bake times have been reported by readers who have tried making this cake in different sized pans. Keep in mind bake time will generally be longer when using a glass pan, and very dark pans may require less time. The best way to test that your cake is finished baking is to use the toothpick test: a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake should come out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter) or clean.
    • Two 9″ pans: bake for approximately 30-33 minutes. 
    • 9×13″ pan: bake for approximately 45-50 minutes
    • Bundt pan: bake for approximately 55 minutes.
    • Four 6″ pans: bake for approximately 40 minutes
    • Cupcakes: See my carrot cake cupcake recipe.

    Storing

    If you’re eating this cake the same day you make it or within 48 hours of making it, and you are able to store it somewhere cool and dry, you do not have to refrigerate it–though you do want to store it in an airtight container. Any longer than that I would recommend storing in an airtight container in the fridge where it will keep for about 5 days.
     

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1slice (calories calculated with frosting but without optional nuts) | Calories: 533kcal | Carbohydrates: 86g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 448mg | Potassium: 195mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 65g | Vitamin A: 4283IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 84mg | Iron: 2mg

    Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

    Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Elizabeth

      July 13, 2019 at 12:03 pm

      5 stars
      This is by far one of my favorite cakes and I now make this a lot because it is very delicious though you might think it contains a lot of carrots and pecans it fits perfectly in and adds a nice crunch to the cake.

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 14, 2019 at 12:44 pm

        I’m so glad you like the carrot cake, Elizabeth! Thank you so much for commenting! 🙂

        Reply
    2. Soso

      July 11, 2019 at 12:13 am

      5 stars
      Best carrot cake recipe I’ve tried. And I used gluten free flour. Still turned out rich and moist. Big hit with the family. Thank you so much!

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 11, 2019 at 8:21 am

        Thank you for the feedback! I am so glad everyone enjoyed the carrot cake. 🙂

        Reply
    3. Hart

      July 09, 2019 at 7:00 pm

      5 stars
      This isn’t THE BEST it cake I have ever eaten. I made it fir a birthday with the nuts and it was phenomenal!

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 09, 2019 at 9:21 pm

        I am so glad you enjoyed the cake so much. 🙂

        Reply
    4. Vee

      July 09, 2019 at 1:01 pm

      This is my second attempt at making carrot cake..The first one didn’t turnout to good..I’m gonna try your recipe tomorrow..Do you packed the shredded carrot in the measuring cup or just fill to the top..

      Vee

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 14, 2019 at 12:42 pm

        Just fill to the top. Enjoy! 🙂

        Reply
    5. Angela

      July 09, 2019 at 5:51 am

      Do you have to add the melted butter? What does it do for the caje?

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 09, 2019 at 10:58 am

        Hi Angela! I definitely recommend using the melted butter. It helps give the cake its flavor, and makes it moist. I wouldn’t skip it. 🙂

        Reply
    6. Linda

      July 02, 2019 at 12:48 am

      I have never remotely liked carrot cake, but my boyfriend’s dad wanted one for his birthday. I used your recipe, and now I can no longer say I hate carrot cake because it was soooooooo good! Thank you so much for sharing this excellent recipe!

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 02, 2019 at 9:32 am

        I am so glad you enjoyed the carrot cake, Linda! 🙂

        Reply
    7. Leila Angeles

      July 01, 2019 at 10:18 am

      Can the tiny cupcakes be made from this recipe?

      Reply
      • Sam

        July 02, 2019 at 10:31 am

        Hi Leila! That should work fine, but I am not sure what the bake time would be. 🙂

        Reply
    8. Robyn

      June 30, 2019 at 8:50 pm

      5 stars
      I don’t usually make layered cakes, but this was a special birthday with a carrot cake request. Made no alterations to recipe and added the optional nuts (walnuts for us) and even added fine particles to the side to make it extra fancy. The cake was a hit; everyone loved it! Flavor great; dense, moist! Since I piped extra frosting, I doubled the frosting recipe too. I’m a busy corporate gal, so I made the cake layers earlier in the week, let them completely cool, wrapped each and froze for several days. Then, frosted one evening, placed in airtight plastic cake taker in refrigerator overnight; served next day. Still moist & yummy. Thanks for sharing your recipe! — my birthday boy husband loved it.

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 30, 2019 at 9:07 pm

        I am so glad everyone enjoyed the cake, Robyn! I really appreciate you taking the time to leave feedback. 🙂

        Reply
    9. Sofia

      June 29, 2019 at 9:12 pm

      Honestly I never left any comments before for anyone! But this recipe is the BEST the combination of the nuts with cinnamon and carrots, and the moist of it.. this cake is just AMAZING! Thank you for sharing!!

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 29, 2019 at 9:51 pm

        Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment, Sofia! I am so glad you enjoyed the carrot cake. 🙂

        Reply
    10. rachel

      June 27, 2019 at 5:47 am

      hi! can i half the recipe to make a smaller batch?

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 27, 2019 at 10:10 am

        Hi Rachel! That will work just fine. 🙂

        Reply
    11. Susan Finnegan

      June 26, 2019 at 9:29 am

      hi, I made this for my granddaughter’s first birthday! It was a HIT….
      Two things:
      I think I discovered that I’d rather not have any nuts in my carrot cake – too distracting. Next time, I will make this without the nuts.
      Second thing, I did think the icing was a tad too sweet…I did not taste the butter and cream cheese as much as the sweetness. Maybe I would add a half cup less sugar and to compensate for the creaminess, add a bit more cream cheese?
      Seriously tho, I am just analyzing for my next one of these babies!!!
      This cake was amazing!!!
      ~S

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 26, 2019 at 3:59 pm

        I’m so glad you enjoyed overall, Susan!! Thank you so much for commenting 🙂

        Reply
    12. Richard Dixon

      June 21, 2019 at 11:41 pm

      Made this cake first time, best arrow cake ever hands down thank you for a real treat.

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 22, 2019 at 11:17 pm

        I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed, Richard! Thank you for commenting!

        Reply
    13. Georgina

      June 21, 2019 at 3:21 pm

      Hi,am a amateur baker can I bake it in 1 cake pan instead of 2 like you did?

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 22, 2019 at 11:27 pm

        Hi Georgina, it can be baked in a 9×13 pan but there is too much batter for a single 8″ or 9″ round pan. If you do bake it in a 9×13, please keep in mind that the baking tie will vary.

        Reply
    14. Tasha

      June 20, 2019 at 10:11 pm

      Can I follow these steps and make it a Bundt cake?

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 22, 2019 at 11:29 pm

        Yes, but the baking time will vary and make sure you grease and flour the pan thoroughly. I haven’t baked it in a bundt pan to be sure how long it will need to bake.

        Reply
    15. Kate McDonough

      June 19, 2019 at 12:12 am

      5 stars
      I used this recipe for a wedding cake. IT WAS AMAZING!!!!
      Moist and flavorful. I quadrupled the recipe and it made a 75 serving 3 tiered perfectly. Thank you!!!
      -Kate

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 19, 2019 at 9:26 am

        Wow that’s a big cake! I am so glad everyone enjoyed it. Thank you for commenting. 🙂

        Reply
      • Caroline palmer

        June 23, 2019 at 2:20 pm

        How far in advance did you make it? I’m making one for my sons wedding and am worried it won’t keep. I need to make it on Thursday for a Saturday wedding.

        Reply
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