With its outstanding spice flavor, super moist crumb, and velvety cream cheese frosting, this is truly the best carrot cake. Use brown sugar and toasted pecans for deeper flavor.
I don’t call it carrot cake. I call it “birthday cake.” It’s my one and only choice on my big day. I’ve adopted this tradition and make my own carrot birthday cake each year. And, of course, we never limit it to only once per year. This is always my top choice for Easter dessert recipes and I love making it for spring brunches, baby showers, and our community’s new bake sale.
In fact, this recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
And, finally, I firmly believe that the ONLY thing that competes with carrot cake is a batch of carrot cake cupcakes.
What Does This Carrot Cake Taste Like?
This carrot cake sets the standard for carrot cakes everywhere. It’s deeply moist and filled with toasted pecans (or walnuts, if you prefer). Most of its flavor comes from brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and carrots. Ginger adds the most delicious zing, but it isn’t overpowering at all. The cake is dense, but each forkful tastes super soft and extra lush. If made ahead, the flavor intensifies and the cream cheese frosting seeps into the layers, creating an even more tender bite.
So if you’re looking for a make-ahead cake whose taste and texture won’t be compromised, make this! It’s a total classic and 1 taste converts everyone, even those silly people who “don’t like carrot cake.” Who ARE you people?! 😉
Let’s Make It!
This carrot cake is pretty easy, but let’s walk through the process together. You can also use this detailed how to assemble and decorate a layer cake post and video as a guide.
Begin by toasting pecans in the oven. Spread them on a baking sheet and bake for about 6–8 minutes. Toasting the nuts is optional, but you won’t regret doing it. Toasting pecans creates an unparalleled deep nutty flavor—I love using them in my hummingbird Bundt cake and pecan pie cheesecake, too. Let the nuts cool down for a couple minutes, then start the carrot cake batter. Begin with 2 mixing bowls. Whisk the dry ingredients together in 1 bowl, then the wet ingredients in another bowl. Combine the two, along with shredded carrots and half of the toasted nuts. You don’t even need a mixer for the cake batter!
Instead of a layer cake, you can bake this recipe in a 9×13-inch pan. It’s also perfect as the bottom tier for a homemade wedding cake!
How to Make Carrot Cake Moist
If it isn’t stick-to-the-back-of-your-fork moist, it’s just not worth it. So I worked to create an EXTRA moist carrot cake. Don’t skip these ingredients:
- Brown Sugar: I’ve come across a lot of carrot cake recipes that are sweetened with mostly granulated sugar. That’s great, but granulated sugar doesn’t do much for the cake besides sweeten it. Brown sugar not only sweetens cake, it produces so much flavor and moisture. It’s just… the best!
- Oil: Cakes need fat to make them soft and tender. When preparing cakes without super strong flavors such as vanilla cake and white cake, I prefer to use butter as the fat. Butter also gives them flavor. But for cakes like chocolate cake and carrot cake that have flavor from other ingredients, I find flavorless oil is the best choice.
- Applesauce: To prevent the cake from tasting too moist (wet) and oily, I add some applesauce. You could even use crushed pineapple, too! These flavors pair beautifully with brown sugar and spices.
- Freshly Shredded Carrots: My #1 tip for carrot cakes is to shred whole carrots at home. Do not use packaged pre-shredded carrots because they are hard and dry. You need about 4 large carrots for this recipe. And when you grate them, you’ll notice how wet they are. That is PRIME moisture for your baked cake and you don’t want to skip it! Same principle applies when using zucchini in my zucchini cake, too.
Cream Cheese Frosting
The carrot cake frosting? Well, that’s easy too. It’s so smooth, tangy, and glides on the cake seamlessly. I call it spreadable cheesecake and it tastes unbelievable with this cake’s deep spice flavor.
Ingredients: You need brick-style cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. The salt helps offset the sweetness.
If you’re looking to pipe decoration with this cream cheese frosting, chill it in the refrigerator for about 1 hour first. This guarantees the creamy frosting will hold its shape.
And if you’re not a fan of cream cheese frosting, these vanilla frostings will work just as well: vanilla buttercream, Swiss meringue buttercream, and not-so-sweet whipped frosting.
There’s no emotion quite like the sadness you’ll experience when that last slice is gone!
Carrot Cake Success Tips
- Line your cake pans with parchment. Place your cake pans on a large sheet of parchment paper. Trace the bottom of the cake pan with a pencil, then cut the circles. Grease the pan and the parchment paper. Parchment paper rounds guarantee the cakes won’t stick!
- Make it ahead. One of the BEST parts about carrot cake is that it gets better with time, even after 1 full day. The flavors mingle, the moisture prevails, and the cream cheese frosting sets into the layers. It’s ridiculously good! You can make and frost the cake 1 day in advance. Keep it covered in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving.
- Use freshly grated carrots. Grate them yourself for the freshest, best result.
My Favorite Carrot Cake Recipe
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: serves 12
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With its outstanding spice flavor, super moist crumb, and velvety cream cheese frosting, this is truly the best carrot cake. Use brown sugar and toasted pecans for deeper flavor. This recipe is also in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (260g) chopped pecans or walnuts (1 cup for cake, 1 cup for garnish)*
- 1 and 1/2 cups (300g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (226g/240ml) vegetable oil (or melted coconut oil)*
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (180g) smooth unsweetened applesauce
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 and 1/2 cups (313g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups (260g) grated carrots (about 4 large)
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 16 ounces (452g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt, to taste
Instructions
- Toast the nuts: Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Spread the chopped pecans (or walnuts) on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 6–8 minutes, or until fragrant. Give the pan a shake halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10–15 minutes.
- Increase the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Grease two or three 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray, line with parchment paper rounds, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans. (If it’s helpful, see this parchment paper rounds for cakes video & post.)
- Make the cake: In a large bowl, whisk the brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, eggs, applesauce, and vanilla until combined and no brown sugar lumps remain.
- In another large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and, using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold the ingredients together until just combined. Fold in the carrots and 1 cup (about 120g) of the toasted nuts. (The rest of the nuts are for garnish.) Pour/spoon the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If using three cake pans, this takes about 20–25 minutes. If using two cake pans, this takes about 30–35 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pans set on a cooling rack for 1 hour. Run a knife around the edges to help loosen the sides, remove the cakes from the pans, peel off the parchment, and place on the rack to finish cooling. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
- Make the frosting: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes until completely combined and creamy. If the frosting seems a bit thin and runny, refrigerate it for 30 minutes before using.
- Assemble the cake: (For extra help with this step, see this video & post on how to assemble a layer cake.) First, using a large serrated knife or cake leveler, slice a thin layer off the top of each cake to create a flat surface. Place a cake layer on your cake turntable, cake stand, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with 3/4 to 1 cup (180–240g) of the frosting. Top with the second cake layer, upside down, and spread the same amount of frosting as on the first layer. Top with the third layer, right side up, and spread the top and sides with the remaining frosting. Garnish with the remaining toasted nuts. Refrigerate the cake for at least 20 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake hold its shape when cutting. If you refrigerated the cake for longer than 4 hours, take it out of the refrigerator 2 hours before serving so it can mostly come to room temperature.
- Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I like to use a cake carrier for storing and transporting.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The cake layers can be baked, cooled, covered, and stored at room temperature overnight. Likewise, the frosting can be prepared, then covered and refrigerated overnight. When ready to decorate, let the frosting sit at room temperature to slightly soften for 15 minutes, then give it one more mix with the mixer on medium speed for about 1 minute before frosting cake. Frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers can be frozen up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before decorating/serving. See this post on how to freeze cakes.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Baking Sheet | Silicone Baking Mat or Parchment Paper | Box Grater | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Wooden Spoon | Silicone Spatula | 9-inch Round Cake Pans | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Cake Turntable | Icing Spatula | Cake Carrier (for storage)
- Nuts: Feel free to omit the nuts for a nut-free carrot cake. No other changes to the recipe required.
- Applesauce: Instead of applesauce, you can use 3/4 cup crushed pineapple if desired. Slightly drain the canned crushed pineapple first. You want it the consistency of applesauce—not too watery. You could also use 3/4 cup mashed bananas, sour cream, plain yogurt, or canned pumpkin puree.
- Carrots: My #1 tip for carrot cakes is to grate whole carrots at home. Do not use packaged pre-shredded carrots because they are hard and dry.
- Oil: If using melted coconut oil, make sure all of the other cake batter ingredients (carrots included) are room temperature. Otherwise, the melted coconut oil will begin to solidify before the batter goes into the oven.
- Cream Cheese: Use bricks/blocks of real cream cheese, not cream cheese spread in a tub.
- 9×13-Inch Cake: Simply pour the batter into a greased and lightly floured 9×13-inch pan and bake for 40–45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Carrot Bundt Cake: Use a 10–12-cup generously greased Bundt pan. Bake for 55–75 minutes. All ovens and Bundt pans are different, so that’s why the bake time varies. Keep a close eye on it.
- Add-Ins: If you’d like to add raisins or coconut, reduce the pecans to 1/2 cup (or leave them out). Add 1 cup of raisins or shredded coconut. Stick to around 1–1.5 cups total add-ins. Or you can leave the cake plain without any add-ins.
- Carrot Cake Cupcakes: Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 20–22 minutes. Yields about 24 cupcakes. Or try my carrot cake cupcakes recipe.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Thank you for such a great recipe. I have made it so many times in last few years but now I’m trying to go the healthy route and wondering if you can share any guideline for swapping all purpose flour with coconut flour. What would ratios be for same 9×13 cake pan.
Hi Tooba, we haven’t tried this recipe with coconut flour, but let us know how it turns out if you do! See recipe notes for instructions on baking this cake in a 9×13 dish.
Hello Sally thanks for always sharing your great yummy recipes .I was wondering if I could omit the applesauce and had pineapple instead? If yes how much crush pineapple ?
Thanks again !
Hi Colette, 3/4 cup crushed pineapple, mashed bananas, sour cream, plain yogurt, or canned pumpkin puree can be used in place of the apple sauce. See recipe notes for more details. We hope you love this one!
Great texture, tender and moist, but I’d call this a spice cake, not a carrot cake. Spice dominates everything else. I’ll make it again but next time cut the spice amounts in half and skip the ginger and clove entirely. I didn’t include nuts but otherwise made the cake as directed.
The frosting tastes good but is too soft. I mixed the center layer with shredded coconut to make it sturdy enough to hold up the top layer. (2 9″ pans). Added more powdered sugar and it was still very soft but that was less of concern because it was going on the outside of the cake. I’m leaving it to chill solid (I hope) overnight in the fridge.
For those using a thermometer to test cakes, mine registered about 200 degrees in the center. Top of cake sprung back when pressed gently.
The recipe says use either 2 or 3 round 9″ pans. Too much batter for 2 pans! The tops
over baked and burnt before the inside tests done. I’d advise using 3 pans!
For some reason my 3 9″ pans did the same thing, I had to cook them well done on the outside because the center was taking a longer time to bake. I finally just took them out of the oven, I hope they are not too overbaked. I think I’m going to use a 9×13 the next time because I now remember having the same problem the last time I made this recipe. I do like the flavor though.
I made the carrot cake for my daughter-in-law’s birthday. It is by far the best carrot cake I have ever made. I used Gluten Free FLour since she is gluten intolerant. Everyone agreed it is the best they have ever eaten.
Carrot cake is my absolute favorite cake. Your recipe is tried and true, easy to make, and off-the-charts delicious. It’s also my favorite recipe for this cake! I confess that I make one minor tweak by doubling the spices, because I love those warm spices so much, but I stay true to everything else. I really enjoy the not-so-sweet frosting. The tang of the cream cheese offsets to sweet of the cake beautifully. Thank you for the fantastic recipe. Made it tonight for a colleague ‘s birthday tomorrow. They are going to be so excited!
We’re so glad this recipe is a favorite for you, Judy!
I am using this recipe to make my wedding cake! I am going to use two 10 inch heart shaped pans to make a heart shaped cake. Do you think the baking time would be less than 30 minutes with a slightly larger pan? I am also wondering how stable the cream cheese icing is – my wedding is in August and the cake *may* be outside for an hour or so (will refrigerate as long as possible!). I’m going to do a test run as soon as my pans I’ve ordered arrive so I will report back! Love your recipes Sally!!
Hi Liz! We’re unsure of the baking time for a heart shaped pan. Let us know how your tests go! The frosting should be OK for an hour or so, as long as it isn’t *too* hot and not in the sun.
fantastic recipe…. i will always use this one…. everyone wants me to make it!!!
Hi! Was wondering if I can half this recipe?
Hi Madison, yes, feel free to halve this recipe. Or here are our recipes for 1 layer carrot cake or carrot cake loaf.
I added 3 tablespoons of molasses. Put it over the top
Great recipe! I had to use significantly more powdered sugar to get the frosting the right consistency, and I also added some orange zest to it to add interest and cut the sweetness. Turned out sooooooo good! Thanks for a delicious recipe!
Have you tried this with King Arthur’s gluten free flour?
Hi Joy, we haven’t tested this recipe with any gluten-free flours, but some readers have reported success using a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour. Let us know if you do give anything a try!
This recipe was great LOVE the amount of spices
I made it 3 layers
It tasted amazing! And looked amazing too
Next time I make it the only thing I’m doing differently is adding 1/2 the amount of frosting again for the three layers
The frosting was perfect consistency
While the cake is delicious I found the bake time off for 2 – 9in rounds. I have an LG oven with true convection bake and needed 40 – 45 min on convection setting.
The icing recipe uses 2 – 8 oz blocks of cream cheese and was very runny when made. I increased the amount of confectioners’ sugar to nearly double to try and achieve some firmness. I ended up making double the amount of icing needed for this cake and froze the left over icing.
Hi Darlene, thanks so much for making this recipe—we’re glad you enjoyed it! Our recipes are tested and written for conventional settings, which could be the slight discrepancy in bake times. All ovens are different, so you can use a toothpick to test for true doneness. Was you cream cheese perhaps too soft? That could be causing the runnier consistency. It is a “softer” frosting than traditional American buttercream, but feel free to add more confectioners’ sugar as needed to help thicken it up as you mention. Thanks again!
Hi, I don’t have several 9inch cake pans and was wondering if I could bake the batter altogether then slice it into individual layers. Would I need to alter any cooking temp/time?
Hi Ivy! The cake would be much too thick to bake through properly in one thick layer. You can bake each layer individually if you only have one pan, let the better sit covered at room temperature as you wait to use it.
Do you have nutritional information for this recipe?
Hi Stacey, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Hello!!! I am soooooo excited to give this a try! Your recipes do not disappoint!!! Any chance you can share your favorite carrot cake cookie recipe soon?
Hi Adriana, Not sure if you have a copy of Sally’s Cookie Addiction, but there is a recipe for carrot cake cookies in that cookbook!
Oh my gosh, Sally, this cake is sooo good. I made it tonight, exactly according to the recipe, but halved, and it’s just beautiful. That cream cheese icing is so perfect. I love the spices of the cake. I can’t wait to eat more tomorrow. It will probably be even better after it chills. Thank you! Everything I make from your website is IDEAL!!!
Made this for my son’s birthday. Everybody loved it. Could have made a smaller amount of frosting but nobody thought it was too much
Hello!
I have a question about substitutions. Sally’s recipe says you can swap the apple sauce for sour cream but I’m confused about that. Apple sauce is water and sugar and sour cream is fat. How will using sour cream affect the recipe texture and taste wise?
Thanks a bunch!
Hi Jenny, for this you really just need another wet ingredient. Sour cream will yield a slightly richer tasting cake. (But it’s already so rich and tender anyway!). Obviously applesauce, crushed pineapple, or mashed banana add some extra flavor.
Thanks for the reply, Sally! So applesauce and others for flavor, sour cream and other fats for richness. Makes sense. Seems like fun to try this cake multiple ways. 🙂
Love this carrot cake. Can I make it into a Chocolate carrot cake?
Hi Elisabeth, we haven’t tested a chocolate version of this cake, and unfortunately cocoa powder can be quite a finicky ingredients so we’d have to do some recipe testing before offering any advice. If you do decide to experiment, let us know how it goes!
This recipients perfect, I didn’t change a thing. So delicious!! I made it for my dad’s birthday and the whole family loved it, thank you!
If I wanted to make a different frosting for this carrot cake, what would you recommend? Thank you!
Hi Debbie, vanilla buttercream or Swiss meringue buttercream would both be delicious here!
Oh. My. Word. This cake is *delicious*!
An amazing recipe. I used a tin of crushed pineapple instead of apple sauce – works wonderfully well with decorated dried pineapple slices tinted with food colouring.
This carrot cake was absolutely delicious! I have tried countless other recipes and this is by far the best. I used raisins, coconut and pecans as my add-ins and and made it a day ahead and it turned out great! I will definitely make this again and have already passed on the recipe to friends.
First off, I absolutely love Sally’s recipes and I recommend her website to all my friends!
Question, when I combined the wet and dry ingredients I had flour lumps in my batter. I tried to smash them out but didn’t want to over mix. After baking the layers I see white spots in the layers. I baked the cake for a church fundraiser and I’m out of time. I sure hope the cake is ok. What are your thoughts for the future.
Hi Liz, for next time, you can whisk the dry ingredients together to rid of any lumps before adding with the wet ingredients. Sifting the flour can help, too. Hope this helps!
This is a great recipe
This is one of my favorite of Sally’s cakes. Hands down the best carrot cake I have ever had. It’s my boyfriend’s favorite cake and he ALSO said it was the best he had ever had. Possibly the best cake he’d had period. It was rich, moist, fluffy yet dense, not overly sweet, aromatic, spicy, and absolutely delicious. I don’t even like cream cheese frosting (or so I thought) but I found myself eating leftover frosting with a spoon! My advice is to make it for a party and leave it there. Otherwise you might need larger pants. Ask me how I know!
What is the difference between this loaf recipe and your carrot cake recipe, are they equally as good?
Both are fantastic! Just slightly altered for a loaf vs. cake pans.
Same amount of cream cheese frosting if making in a 9×13 pan?
Hi Barbara, you could use the same amount of frosting for a 9×13 sheet cake if you enjoy a thick layer of frosting, but feel free to halve it if you’d prefer a thinner layer.