The BEST Carrot Cake Recipe

Finding a really great tasting carrot cake in the supermarket is difficult, so I make my own which always moist and less sweet.  For my go to fall dessert and  the best carrot cake recipe, read on.

Preparing the Carrot Cake Batter

In a large bowl mix together the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Next add the carrots, eggs, and oil.  Beat for about 2 minutes on the low setting to get everything mixed up then fold in the chopped nuts, raisins and currants.

One of the things that makes my recipe a bit different from most others is I don’t use nutmeg or allspice, I prefer the flavor of just using cinnamon.  My Carrot cakes is in my opinion the best ever, but most certainly is NOT low fat or low calorie.

The most labor intensive part of this recipe is grating the carrots.  To quickly grate the carrots, use a small food processor, the prep time listed is based on this method. 

The dried fruit needs to be moist, if the dried fruit is well, too dry, it’s a good idea to soak them in hot water for a couple of minutes before adding to the batter.

Preparing to Bake

Cakes pans should be well buttered and floured. A moist cake like this one will stick if the pans are not floured.

Divide the cake batter between the cake pans and cook on the middle rack for about 40 minutes.  Halfway through the baking, rotate the pans in the oven. 

Check your cakes for doneness, I use a thin metal cake tester but a small knife inserted into the middle that comes out clean also works well.  You’ll see that when the cake is done it will just begin to come away from the edges of the cake pan.    

When the cakes are done set aside and let cool for about 10-15 minutes before turning the cakes out onto a cooling rack.    Next, wait and don’t do anything until the cakes are cooled down.

Make Ahead Tip

If you’re making the cake ahead, wrap the unfrosted cake layers tightly in plastic wrap, use 2-3 layers to ensure you have a nice tight seal. The cake can be frozen for up to one month.  When ready to use, defrost completely before frosting.

Time to Make the Frosting

Using a hand mixer, beat on a low-medium setting, beat the cream cheese, butter, and eggs in a large bowl until creamy and smooth. Next gradually add in the sugar, ½ cup at a time and to beat until the frosting is smooth.  Add in the vanilla extract and mix until combined, also lemon extract work well if you prefer a bit of a lemony flavor.

Frosting the Carrot Cake

If the bottom layer of the cake is domed a bit, just take a sharp knife and slice off enough off the tops to even out the cake. 

Frost the top and sides of the bottom layer then place the top layer on and frost the top and sides with the remaining frosting. An offset spatula works wonders and makes it easy to get a nice even layer of frosting on the cake. 

Serving the Carrot Cake

The cake is ready to serve when the frosting is set. To set just chill the frosted cake in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.  Personally, I like a more chilled carrot cake so will chill for about an hour before serving.  It can also be served at room temperature and has a shelf life of 2 days.  The cake is small, so it will most likely be gobbled up way before that time.  

The cake is perfect on its own, or you can serve with a scoop of Lemon ice cream or Gelato.

Storing the Cake

If you have any left over, the covered cake can be stored at room temperature for 2 days.  To freeze the frosted cake, set in freezer uncovered, then when completely frozen, wrap tightly for an airtight seal.  The wrapped cake will last for about a month in the freezer.  To serve, defrost the wrapped cake overnight in the refrigerator.

Try the recipe and let me know if you agree that this is the BEST ever carrot cake recipe!

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The Best Ever Carrot Cake

Yield: 4-6 slices

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Chill Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

The only carrot cake recipe I have because it's the best. This recipe can be made in muffins, individual cakes or in a casserole dish for a potluck.

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Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
• 2 cups grated carrots (about 6 carrots)
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup currants (optional)
• 1/4 cup raisins (optional)
• 1/4 cup walnuts (optional)
• 1/4 cup pecans (optional)

Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese
• ¼ cup butter (softened)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups powdered confectioner sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350ºF

Lightly coat 2 6 inch cake pans with butter and dust lightly with flour

In a large bowl mix together flour, sugars, baking soda, baking powder, salt and
cinnamon.

Mix in the carrots, eggs and oil

Using an electric hand mixer beat on high for 2 minutes.

Fold in the currants, raisins, pecans, and walnuts

Pour into a prepared  cake pans

Bake at 350ºF for 30-35 minutes

Let cake cool before removing from cake pans

Ice the first layer then place 2nd cake on top and finish icing.

!Frosting

Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla with electric beaters until well-blended.

Gradually add the sugar 1/2 cup at a time, and beat until smooth and creamy.

Spread the cream cheese frosting on top of cooled cake.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 998 Total Fat: 58g Saturated Fat: 16g Trans Fat: 1g Unsaturated Fat: 38g Cholesterol: 152mg Sodium: 899mg Carbohydrates: 112g Net Carbohydrates: 0g Fiber: 4g Sugar: 74g Sugar Alcohols: 0g Protein: 12g

The nutritional information provided here are estimates and are not calculated by a registered dietician.