Servings
Font
Back
4.5 from 1,110 votes

J. Alexander's Carrot Cake

This copycat version of J. Alexander’s Carrot Cake is every bit as perfect as the original: full of carrots, pineapple and coconut, and soaked with a buttermilk syrup for a melt-in-your-mouth slice of cake.

Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Additional Time
2 hrs
Total Time
3 hrs
Servings: 12
Course: Cake

Ingredients

For the Cake:
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 2 cups sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • ¾ cup canola oil plus more for pan
  • ¾ cup buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 8 ounces crushed pineapple drained
  • 2 cups shredded carrots
  • 3 ounces shredded coconut about 1 cup
  • 1 cup pecan pieces
For the Syrup:
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • 12 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the Frosting:
  • 12 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
  • 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
  • 2 cups confectioners' sugar

Instructions

Make the Carrot Cake:
    Cup of Yum
  1. Generously grease a 9x13-inch cake pan, set aside. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Mix remaining cake ingredients in a separate medium bowl. Combine the wet ingredients with the flour mixture, mixing well.
  3. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake approximately 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cake should be 1 ½-inch thick.
  4. While the cake is still hot, poke holes all over the top with a large fork. Pour the Cake syrup over the top, allowing cake to soak up the syrup. Refrigerate cake until completely cool.
  5. Frost with Cream cheese frosting. Refrigerate cake to let frosting set.
Make the Syrup:
  1. Using a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine ingredients. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.
Make the Frosting:
  1. Using the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium speed, combine ingredients, mixing until smooth and free of lumps.

Notes

  • From the Sun-Sentinel