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
Awesome recipe! Do you think apple butter would make a good applesauce substitute?
Hi Lexus! Apple butter is sweetened and may not be the best substitute.
I love this recipe! So simple and delicious. It is always a hit when I make it.
This was ok. It was moist, however no were lik the description.over 3/5 stars.
BEST Carrot Cake. My family doesn’t like carrot cake but they loved this! The flavor and texture is out of this world!
Fabulous recipe!!! I just made it for Easter it is moist and delicious, I made a few changes- No eggs due to allergies, no nuts because I was bringing to a big gathering and wasn’t sure if anyone had a Nut Allergy, I added one shredded apple to add moisturizer and binder!! It was a huge hit. Will be adding this to my favorites!! Thank you again.
Oh, this looks so good! I am making this in a Bundt pan today, should I half the frosting recipe?
Hi Nancy! You can use the cream cheese frosting recipe from our hummingbird Bundt cake for the proper ratios.
Another winner! Easy and tasty. Sally’s is my first choice for trying recipes for the first time.
This cake was absolutely delicious. I made it in a 9×13 dish and it took 55 minutes to bake. I halved the icing. It’s a perfect recipe and one that I’ll continue to make. Thank you!
Absolutely perfect, didn’t change a thing! I made ahead of time for my son’s 39th birthday, froze it and brought it up north for our ski weekend. I left out the nuts (were optional) and kept in the raisins which we all like, including 3 little boys 6 & under. Everyone scarfed it down and duked it out for the leftovers! Made the cream cheese frosting and frosted it after it thawed and kept it out on the deck with an eye on it so no critters ate it before dinner. So happy to have discovered this website, I love baking and happy to find someone dedicated to making the best baked goods!
The ads on this page literally make the recipe impossible to use. I wish I could review it, but I couldn’t keep a McDonalds pop up off my screen long enough to see half the ingredients when I tried to bake.
Pop up ads are blocked on my site, so I wonder if there was a spammy ad campaign that somehow got through. Thank you for letting me know it was McDonalds, as now my ad network can look into it. Appreciate the feedback; nothing should be blocking my content.
This recipe says to use 16oz cream cheese for the frosting, but your regular cream cheese frosting recipe says to use 8oz, why is that? Asking because I used 16oz and it’s pretty wet for frosting, not stiff at all.
Hi Kelly! This recipe makes more frosting to cover a 3 layer cake.
Hello Sally,
I was wondering if I could use melted butter instead of oil?
We recommend following the recipe with oil. It makes for an ultra moist cake and really lets the spice flavors shine through. We do not recommend butter in this cake batter.
I do not have apples so I used sea buckthorn- really good. Sally’s recipes and tips are amazing
I’d love to make this following the 9×13 directions! I will only need to frost the top to take it for our family celebration; will I need the full amount of frosting? Half?
Hi Lauren! Half the frosting should be enough for a sheet cake. Happy baking!
This cake is amazing, so moist and delicious, even non carrot cake fans loved it!
Could I use cake flour instead of all purpose?
Hi Heleena, cake flour is much too light to use with a heavier cake batter like this. Best to stick with all-purpose flour here!
Awesome recipe and really easy to follow. I’ll cut the sugar next time but everything else was perfect.
I had carrot cake at Cheddars restarant… Delicious! Got home and found your recipe in my phone. Will make it after I go for groceries!!!
How long do you bake if using 9x 13 glass pan and do you need to parchment paper or grease pan?
Hi Kelly, see recipe Notes for 9×13 pan baking details. It may be closer to 45 minutes for a glass pan. Yes, you still want to line or grease the pan.
Hi Sally! I want to use this recipe to make a bunny cake, however, I want to use a 6 inch cake pan since we’re only a household of 2 people. I figured I could use extra batter to make cup cakes. How high do you recommend I fill the 6 inch pan and how long should I bake?
Hi Marie, we recommend filling the pan no more than half way. This allows room for the cake to rise properly without overflowing. Bake time will be similar to our vanilla 6 inch cake, but keep a close eye on it and use a toothpick to test for doneness. If you’re interested in having less batter, you can use our carrot cake cupcakes recipe instead! It makes the perfect amount for 3, 6-inch rounds. (Or 1, 6-inch round and some cupcakes on the side.)
I did this in 2 x7″ round tins for a taller cake. Took approx 50 minutes to cook at 160c
I will never use any other carrot cake recipe! I am wholly and thoroughly tied to this recipe for life. It is my holy grail, my go-to and an absolute family favourite. Thank you very much, Sally, for making special occasions, birthdays and regular Sundays ever more flavourful.
I am very intrigued by this recipe! One question I have is, do you have any recommendations for high altitude? I live above 6000ft and bakes are definitely affected a bit at this altitude. I know that adding a bit of flour usually does the trick, but would hate to ruin this recipe or any hard work made with baking this.
Hi Angela, we wish we could help, but we have no experience baking at high altitude. Some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
I am sooooo in love with your recipes! From the potato salad the coconut cream pie, EVERY recipe I’ve made of yours has been a huge hit. Thank you for making me look good at my work functions……:)
Can you substitute the eggs with more applesauce or crushed pineapple?
Hi Francesca! The eggs provide moisture and structure in this cake. For best taste and texture (and so you don’t waste your time trying to adapt this recipe since it may not work properly), it may be more useful to find a recipe that is specifically formulated for vegan ingredients. But let us know if you give anything a try!
Hi Sally I would love to make the carrot cake for my 60th. I was wondering if used 3
9.5” cake tins would it make a big difference. Thanks in advance
Hi Fiona, that should be just fine! Bake time may be just a minute or so quicker, but keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness. Hope the cake is a hit for your birthday!
I made this recipe exactly as written and it turned out beautifully. I hardly bake and this was such a hit with my family and work that I will definitely make again!
The recipe is great and crushed pineapple as a substitute for the applesauce is a fantastic twist. However, the recommended amount of sugar, both in the cake and in the frosting, is a way too high. I’ve halved it, and although I have a sweet tooth, it was still too sweet. I actually like it more with cream-cheese spread (like Philadelphia), and even the light one with less fat (and no butter added) works fine.
Is it possible to do this recipe with three eight-inch pans?
Hi JJ, you can divide this batter between three 8 inch pans. Your layers will be a bit thicker so might take an extra minute or two in the oven. Enjoy!
i had skipped over this recipe many times because i never buy apple sauce. i decided to make my own by zapping chopped apples for a couple of min and then mashing them. worked out great