The BEST Carrot Cake Recipe (2024)

by Danielle on October 19, 2023 2,500 comments »

This is my favorite homemade carrot cake recipe! This cake is so easy to make, perfectly moist, and topped with an easy homemade cream cheese frosting.

I feel like carrot cake is a dessert most people tend to only make around Easter. But honestly, carrot cake is such an incredible dessert and I think it should be enjoyed all year long. Especially when it comes to this recipe!

I know it can be a bold statement to call a recipe the best, but I truly mean it with this one. In fact, over the last 6 years this recipe has received nearly 600 5-star reviews – and counting!

Originally posted in 2017, I decided it was finally time to update this popular recipe with more step-by-step photos and tips to ensure that it turns out perfectly for you. I guarantee that once you learn how simple it is to make your own carrot cake from scratch, you’ll want to make it over and over again.

What You Will Need

While there are quite a few ingredients in this recipe, I promise it’s fairly simple. I won’t cover every single ingredient, but I wanted to touch on a few important ones:

• Spices: There’s a mix of ground cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. All three spices add such a wonderful flavor to this cake, but aren’t too overpowering. Feel free to add more spices, if you prefer though.
• Oil: Any kind of neutral-flavored oil is fine to use here, but I typically use vegetable or canola oil. You may also use melted coconut oil, just make sure all of your other ingredients are at room temperature so that it doesn’t solidify.
• Applesauce: This adds the perfect amount of moisture, so you end up with a moist cake that isn’t greasy. I always use unsweetened applesauce whenever I make this recipe. If you can only find sweetened applesauce, just reduce the granulated sugar by 2 to 3 tablespoons.
• Sugar: I use a bit more brown sugar than granulated sugar because it adds more moisture and flavor to this carrot cake.
• Carrots: I don’t like to skimp on the carrots when it comes to this recipe, sothere’s 3 cups of grated carrots. Make sure to use freshly grated carrots here too. Avoid using a bag of pre-shredded carrots as they are often too dry and thick for carrot cake.
• Cream Cheese: Make sure to use a block of cream cheese. Avoid using cream cheese that’s either whipped or in a tub, it’s typically too thin and will result in a runny frosting.

How To Make A Carrot Cake

Make The Cake Layers

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray two 9-inch round cake pans well with nonstick cooking spray, then line the bottoms of each pan with a parchment paper circle. This will make it much easier to remove your cake layers from the pan!
2. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt to a large mixing bowl and give it a good whisk.
3. In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together your oil, eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract.

4. Add the grated carrots to the wet ingredients and stir to combine. Adding them at this point will ensure that they are fully incorporated into your batter and prevent you from over mixing it later on.
5. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Make sure not to over mix your batter! This can overdevelop the gluten and cause the cake to turn out dense/gummy. Trust me, no one wants that.

6. Divide the cake batter evenly between both cake pans. Tip: If you want to get perfectly even cake layers, I recommend using a food scale to weigh your cake batter.
7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the tops of the cakes are set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly in the pans, then remove the cake layers from the pans and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Mix Together The Cream Cheese Frosting

8. Beat the cream cheese until smooth, then add the butter and continue mixing until well combined.
9. Lastly, mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. If needed, stop and scrape down the sides of your mixing bowl to ensure that all of the frosting ingredients are thoroughly mixed together.

Assemble & Frost The Cake

10. Level the tops of each cake layer. You may use either a large knife or a cake leveler for this step, I personally love this cake leveler. It’s a great option for beginners too!
11. Place one of the layers on a cake stand and scoop a little over 1/2 cup of the frosting on top, then smooth it out evenly.
12. Place the other cake layer on top and use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. An angled spatula or even the back of a spoon works great for this step! If you want to add a little something extra, feel free to toast some chopped pecans or walnuts and sprinkle them around the top of the cake.

Frequently Asked Questions

Adjusting Your Pan Size

One of the most common questions is whether or not this recipe can be baked in another pan. The answer is YES!

Here are a few more commonly used baking pans that you can bake this cake in:

• 9×13: Pour the batter into a greased 9×13 pan and bake for 35 to 45 minutes.
• 8-inch round pan: Grease two 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a parchment paper circle. Pour the batter evenly between the two pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.
• Cupcakes: The fullrecipe will make 28 cupcakes. Only fill each liner about 2/3 of the way full so that they don’t overflow and bake for 16 to 20 minutes. I also recommend doubling the frosting to have enough to cover all of the cupcakes. If you prefer a smaller batch, try my carrot cake cupcakes instead.

Video Tutorial

Adapted from Better Homes & Garden

published on Oct 19, 2023

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