Carrot Cake
User Reviews
4.9
Carrot Cake
Description
The Carrot Cake recipe combines four large eggs, granulated and brown sugars, neutral oil, and buttermilk with vanilla and crushed pineapple for a moist base. Flour is mixed with baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and nutmeg before folding in finely grated carrots and optional pecans and golden raisins. This provides a balance of sweet spice, moisture, and crunch.
The batter is poured into prepared cake pans and baked at 350°F until a toothpick emerges clean, typically around 25-30 minutes for 8-inch pans. The multiple spices give a warm aroma and complex flavor, and the pineapple adds subtle sweetness and moisture to prevent dryness. The texture is tender but with bits of grated carrot and optional nuts creating variety in mouthfeel.
The cream cheese frosting is made by mixing softened cream cheese and butter with vanilla, then gradually adding powdered sugar to desired consistency, providing a rich and smooth complement to the spiced cake. The recipe notes provide options for substituting pineapple with applesauce and scaling for different pan sizes or cupcakes.
Instructions include freezing and make-ahead tips: the cake can be made a day ahead and refrigerated; frosting stores in the fridge for weeks; freezing wrapped cake rounds and frosting separately preserves them up to three months. This aids planning for celebrations or batch baking.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (300g)
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar (147g), firmly packed
- 1 cup neutral cooking oil 198g), vegetable or canola oil, generic cooking oil
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (114g)
- 4 large egg room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup pineapple 128g, crushed
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (281g)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 1/2 cups carrot finely grated, about 3-4 large carrots (248g
- 1 cup pecans optional (114g, chopped
- 1 cup golden raisins , optional (149g)
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 16 ounces cream cheese (454g), softened
- 3/4 cup butter (170g), softened
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar (480-600g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180°C). Prepare three 8 inch cake pans* by lightly coating with cooking spray then lining with parchment paper.
- Wet ingredients: Beat the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and pineapple together in a large bowl.
- Dry ingredients: In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and nutmeg.
- Combine: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients then mix until incorporated. Fold in the carrots, pecans and raisins just until evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Bake: Pour the batter into prepared pans. Bake on center rack until a toothpick inserted into comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Allow cakes to cool in the pans for 10-15 minutes before inverting them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, until the frosting reaches the consistency you want. Beat for serval minutes until smooth and fluffy.
- Assemble: Place the bottom layer on a cardboard round or serving plate. Spoon about 1/2 cup cream cheese frosting onto bottom cake layer, spreading evenly over the surface and out to the edge of the cake. Repeat with remaining cake layers. Spread frosting around the sides of the cake, adding more as needed, until it's covered. Use the palm of your hand to cup chopped pecans around the edge of the cake, if desired.
- Chill cake for 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Crushed pineapple adds moisture and sweetness but can be substituted with unsweetened applesauce.
- Nuts and raisins are optional; walnuts or coconut can be alternatives.
- For 9x13 pans, bake for 35-45 minutes and test doneness with a toothpick.
- For cupcakes, use liners and bake for 18-25 minutes.
- The cake and frosting can be made ahead; frosting keeps refrigerated for 3-4 weeks and both freeze well for up to 3 months.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 15Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 747 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 747kcal | 37% |
| Carbohydrates | 90g | 30% |
| Protein | 7g | 14% |
| Fat | 42g | 65% |
| Saturated Fat | 14g | 70% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 7g | 41% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 18g | 90% |
| Trans Fat | 0.4g | 20% |
| Cholesterol | 105mg | 35% |
| Sodium | 408mg | 17% |
| Potassium | 289mg | 6% |
| Fiber | 2g | 8% |
| Sugar | 71g | 142% |
| Vitamin A | 4348IU | 87% |
| Vitamin C | 2mg | 2% |
| Calcium | 104mg | 10% |
| Iron | 2mg | 11% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.9
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