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.
they were right the best carrot cake I have ever made the recipe is wonderful and I will make it again thank you for posting it
Very moist, light, fluffy, and just the right amount of spice. Me and my family loved it!
Hi, I’ve made this recipe before and it’s amazing. This time I was wanting to substitute the 4 eggs for a cup of applesauce, do you think that would work out? thanks 🙂
Hi Savanna! I haven’t tried the applesauce replacement so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out.
Made the carrot cake for Christmas and it was absolutely amazing!!! And so easy to make!!!
I use to add pineapple to my carrot cake or raisins I’m going to try this recipe making one for my birthday
Hi Suzanne! We haven’t tried adding crushed pineapple, but others have done so successfully. And raisins shouldn’t be an issue either. We hope you love it!
can I add crushed pineapple?
Hi Sharon! I have not personally added pineapple here, but others have reported doing so with success. 🙂
I have made this cake 5 times and each time it’s amazing! The 6th time I poured the batter into cupcake tins. Did not disappoint at all! Still the great taste and easy to distribute. Also—I added a 1/2 tsp of ginger and used vanilla paste in the frosting to get the little black vanilla bean specks
I’m so happy to hear this, Mima! Thank you so much for trying my recipe and letting me know how you enjoye dit, I really appreciate it! I hope you find more recipes around my website that you love just as much!
Hi 🙂 I was wondering if it would be okay to bake one thick layer in a 26 cm (around 10.24″) springform pan, and after it cools down to slice it into two layers.
Thanks!
Hi Marsia! I would worry about the outside over baking and then the inside not being done enough. I think your best bet, if that’s the only pan you have, is to bake it in two batches. 🙂
Love this recipe.
Have you baked this and froze it ahead of an event? If so, what is the best way to do so and then how long to take out before the event?
Hi Michelle! It can be baked ahead of time. It is good for several days. With the cream cheese frosting, it’s best to keep this in the refrigerator. 🙂
Can I use olive oil or another healthier oil instead of the oils listed?
Avocado is probably best. 🙂
My go-to carrot cake recipe. Absolutely delicious, moist, can’t say enough. And on top of it all, it’s very easy to make!
I was wondering has anyone ever used shredded frozen carrots? I have some carrots that I shredded and put in the freezer but I’m not sure if it will change the texture of the cake.
Hi Emily! I find that previously shredded carrots are not shredded fine enough and you end up biting into large chunks of carrot in the middle of your cake so I wouldn’t recommend it.
I shedded the carrots and they are very thin. I shedded them and froze them with hopes to make carrot cake with them. But then questioned my decision to freeze them.
I had an over abundance of carrots and was running out of things to make with them.
That should work just fine then. I would thaw them first though. 🙂
I love this recipe! Does anyone have suggestions for baking this at a high altitude of 6,000 ft? Most high-altitude recipes say to add applesauce, which I don’t care to do. Thank you!
Hi Mindi! Unfortunately I’m not very familiar with high altitude baking so I cannot personally advise.
I bake this at 9,000’ and don’t add any applesauce to it or anything to keep it moist and it turns out just fine! I bake it in smaller 6” pans for exactly 40 mins if that helps!
Hi Sam, I wonder if I could make this as a sheet pan cake (just one layer)? How should I adjust the ingredients for both the cake and the frosting?
Thanks!
Hi Dana! I have not personally done it, but others have reported a 50 minute bake time in a 9 x 13.
I’ve made this recipe 3 times now as carrot cake is my husband’s favorite! Sometimes I switch it up and make your carrot cake cupcakes! Both recipes are delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipes with the rest of us! ☺️
Could I add crushed pineapple to this recipe? It’s a favorite part of carrot cake for my husband…
Hi Shannon! I have not personally added pineapple here, but others have reported doing so with success. 🙂
Good recipe, just way too sweet with this amount of sugar. I halved both the white and brown sugar and the cake is still sweet enough.
Can you add unsweetened apple sauce to add moisture?
Hi Valerie! I’m not sure how that would work. Just so you know, this cake is already pretty moist. 🙂
My family loved this recipe, thank you so much!.
Can I use brown sugar only?!
Hi Carla! The cake will be richer and maybe a slightly more likely to sink but it will work. 🙂
is this good without the frosting too? I was looking for a carrot cake that can be enjoyed by itself without frosting. can we add orange zest?
The frosting really adds something to this cake, but the cake itself is good. I’m not sure how orange zest would go with the carrot flavor, but you could give it a shot. 🙂