The Best Carrot Cake Recipe
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If you’re looking for a carrot cake recipe thats perfectly moist, warmly spiced, and guaranteed to impress, you’re in the right place. My version is easy to make with pantry staples and produces consistently excellent results. Top it off with my popular cream cheese frosting for truly the best carrot cake recipe.
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’ve shared some fun and flavorful cakes like my pistachio cake, lemon blueberry cake, and tiramisu cake, this carrot cake is hands-down the classic I will reach for first every time.
There’s something about its unbelievably moist crumb, the perfect amount of warm, cozy spices, and yes, that all-time favorite cream cheese frosting. 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 reaches for a second piece.
I know you are going to love this one just as much as I do, so let’s dig in!
What You Need
Here are a few of the key ingredients that make this carrot cake recipe the best carrot cake:
- Flour. All-purpose flour works best here. Avoid cake flour whichi s lighter and finer and doesn’t give us the structure required for this heartier cake.
- Sugar. A blend of granulated and brown sugar is best. For the brown sugar, you can use light or dark (makes the cake a bit richer and sweeter) or use a blend of both (my preference, also what I do in my brown butter chocolate chip cookies and chocolate chip cookie recipe).
- Oil AND butter. This combo is key for maximizing the flavor and texture of the cake. While oil adds moisture (and helps keep the cake soft and moist, even after refrigeration) butter adds rich depth of flavor. A blend of these two ingredients balances flavor and texture (and it’s a trick I use in many of my cakes, like my vanilla cake recipe and chocolate cake recipe!).
- Eggs. Since we’re working with room temperature ingredients (and possibly even slightly warm butter, your eggs should be room temperature to ensure a batter that combines evenly (cold eggs can “shock” the batter and make it difficult to combine properly).
- 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 (I do the same thing for my carrot cake cookies). 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.
- Cream cheese. This is for the cream cheese frosting. Make sure you’re using brick-style cream cheese, as the tub-style can make for a frosting that’s too runny.
As always, 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 My Carrot Cake Recipe (Step-by-Step)
- Whisk together the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large mixing bowl.
- Add the oil and butter and mix well, until the dry ingredients (and sugar) are well-moistened (an electric mixer makes this easier). Then, add the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each addition. Finally, stir in your vanilla extract.
- Fold in your carrots and nuts (if using) and make sure they are well distributed through the cake batter.
- Evenly divide the batter between two 8″ baking pans that have been greased, floured, and lined with parchment circles (key for keeping cakes from sticking!). Bake at 350F for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- 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.
- 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 decorative piping on top.
Frequently Asked Questions
While you could, I personally found this carrot cake recipe to be a bit too heavy for cupcakes, causing them to be a bit trickier to eat in hand-held form. 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.
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.
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). The baking soda in my recipe is well balanced so that is not an issue you should run into if you bake my carrot cake recipe.
More Frosting Options:
Instead of cream cheese frosting, this carrot cake recipe would also be excellent with my brown butter frosting, Swiss meringue buttercream, ermine frosting, whipped cream frosting, or vanilla frosting.
More Spring Recipes to Try:
Enjoy!
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The Best Carrot Cake Recipe
Equipment
- 2 8" round cake pans (see notes for using different sized pans)
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 table 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
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 table 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 37-40 minutes (a 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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
This recipe was originally published August 22, 2018. Recipe is unchanged, but has been updated with new photos and more helpful information and a video.
What do I do if the batter is thick after blending eggs in ….. HELP !!!!!
Hi Heather! I’m sorry I didn’t see this sooner. How did it turn out for you?
So I followed directions to a T. I was making the cake for my boyfriend who loves homemade carrot cake. I am more of a chocolate cake chocolate frosting kinda girl lol. So I was watching the video follow along. As I was making it. After the eggs I saw your batter and then mine and was like…. that doesn’t look right. So I was like CRAP! WHAT now lol . 😆
I added a extra egg. It turned out good still he loved it. He just asked me to put extra carrots in it next time .
This really is a great recipe. I loved the frosting and he hates cream cheese which is funny cause he likes the frosting (he’s a wierdo lol). Thankyou for giving me 1 more recipe on my belt for baking.
Hey, Heather. In comparison to your boyfriend, when I was growing up I never liked peanut butter — as is, on saltine crackers, as a PB&J, on celery, etc. — but I liked Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and I liked home-made peanut butter fudge, so by the time I was in my 30s, I had consumed enough of those over the years that I began to also like peanut butter on Club Crackers and PB&Js made with high-fiber whole wheat bread (but still not on white bread). So, apparently the gateway for both of us [to PB for me, cream cheese for him] was the powdered sugar!
I made this with a Bundt cake and my family loved it I added an extra egg for high altitude. I was wondering what you would recommend for mini bundts
Hi Trinity! The batter should work in a mini bundt pan your bake time will just be a bit different. 🙂
I don’t rate recipes very often, but this cake is superb on all counts. Perfect amount of spice, ideal moisture level, frosting is just right – just sweet enough. I followed the recipe exactly, which is rare for me, and it came out great….nice high loft cake with a tender moist crumb. My husband said it was the best carrot cake he’d ever had, and he’s tasted a lot of them as it’s his favorite. Five stars all the way!
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, Sandy! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake so much! 🙂
Can coconut oil be used in place of canola?
Hi Kristin! We haven’t tried this recipe with coconut oil, so we’re not sure how it would turn out. We think it could work though 😊
Why a different recipe for cupcakes? Can I just use this cake recipe for cupcakes if I need to make a big batch?
Hi Cathy! We actually answer your question in the FAQ section of the post 😊
Hello, can I add pinch of ginger and clove? Or will that ruin the flavour? Thanks
That would be delicious, Tina! Enjoy 😊
I have made this cake several times now and the only thing I add is 1/4 tsp of allspice. I love the depth it adds to the flavor!
Hi,
Can I use crushed pineapple in this recipe? How would I go about it?
Scott
Hi Scott! We haven’t experimented with it ourselves, so we can’t say for sure how much would work here. Others have added it with success though 🙂
Your note says to bake 4 6 inch pans for 40 minutes, is this a typo?
Hi Debbie! This is not a typo, this is what others who have baked the cake in this size pan have reported to us.
This truly is The Best Carrot Cake Recipe! I made it for Easter. My granddaughters loved to help peel the carrots and use the food processor to shred the carrots. (they thought it odd to put carrots in a cake. The same day we put mashed potatoes in your Old Fashioned Easter Egg Candy. We had a unique baking day) Made it again for a co-workers birthday, everyone loved it. Making it again today for Mothers Day. It is such an easy recipe to make, and made with pantry staples! I add coconut flakes and raisins to the batter. Yum!
Thanks so much for commenting, Nancy! We love that our recipe has become a staple for you ❤️
Next time you cook with your granddaughters, blow their minds again by putting sweet potatoes in biscuits. Delicious! And my family prefers my sweet potato sausage balls to regular sausage balls. [I don’t even keep up with the recipe between uses, I just search for it on the internet when I want to make either.]
Just made this carrot cake and frosting… can’t eat to cut into it. It was simple and I had all of the ingredients on hand. I did use the 9 inch rounds and it is fabulous! I’m definitely making it again! Thanks.
We’re so happy it turned out so nicely for you, Rhonda! Thanks for using our recipes ❤️
Hi there! I have used this recipe many times and love it. It’s my go-to carrot cake recipe. This time, however, the cakes came out extremely oily and hardly rose. I followed the recipe exactly. The only thing I did differently was line the pan with parchment. Any ideas on why the cakes might have been so oily and did not rise? Thank you!
Hmmm that’s very interesting. I wonder if they needed more time in the oven?
I made this cake yesterday for my husbands birthday and he loved it! I’ll definitely be making this cake again. The icing and cake really work well together and isn’t too sweet. Thank you for sharing!
I have been using your recipe for this amazing carrot cake for years… I sometimes do the cheesecake layer version too!!! But I have made this cake 4 times this year by special request from relatives because they’re absolutely obsessed!!! 🤣 just want to send a special thank you as your cake has been the highlight of our family gatherings xo
I’m so glad everyone has enjoyed it so much, Sety! 🙂
Delicious! Very moist and just the perfect amount of spice. Definitely a keeper! Used two 9″ pans and it took about 45 minutes.
Thank you for sharing.
Your recipes do NOT disappoint!! Made everything exactly as the recipe called for and added a little caramel drizzle on top. It was such a hit for Easter that I made it again, not even two weeks later, for my husband’s birthday. Everyone loves this carrot cake. I also appreciate the ease of the recipe and not needing to take out the stand mixer for this one. Go make it now!
The flavors of both the cake and the frosting are amazing! And I got rave reviews!! My only disappointment is I felt my cake was too dense, not at all light and fluffy. Any thoughts as to why?
Hi Perry! This carrot cake should be a bit on the denser side. It shouldn’t be dry and dense but it’s not going to be light and fluffy. 🙁
Well then I guess I nailed it, my cake was exactly as you describe!! Thanks!!
That’s just the way I like carrot cake — moist and dense! Not working and not having much family anymore, I never make a carrot cake as I would just eat the whole thing myself, but I am saving this recipe “just in case” because I have tried buying just one piece at various bakeries, restaurants, and grocery bakery departments over the last several years and have not liked any of them — all too light, too dry, and often too spicy, mostly merely (and barely) studded with tiny chunks of carrot.