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4.60 from 5 votes

Carrot Cake

This is the best Carrot Cake recipe! It's a perfectly moist carrot cake with homemade cream cheese frosting that is easy but impressive.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Cool2 hours
Total Time3 hours
Course: Cake, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 10 slices
Author: Kristin Maxwell

Ingredients

Cake

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 3 cups grated carrots

Cream cheese frosting

  • 1/3 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts optional

Instructions

Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray or line with parchment paper to just fit the bottom of the pan.
  • In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar and oil together until well blended. Stir in eggs and vanilla.
  • Stir dry ingredients together, add to wet ingredients and blend well. Stir in carrots.
  • Pour into greased 9-inch round cake pans and bake for 35-45, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting with cream cheese frosting.

Cream cheese frosting

  • In a large bowl and with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and cream cheese.
  • Add the vanilla extract and salt, then carefully beat in the powdered sugar until you get to your desired sweetness level.
  • Place the bottom layer of the cake on a serving plate. Optional - skim off the top of the bottom layer to make it flat, then do a crumb coat (light layer of frosting) and let it chill in the fridge for 30 minutes. Frost just the top of the bottom layer. Add the second cake, then frost the top and optionally the sides as well. Garnish with chopped walnuts.
  • Chill in the fridge, covered, up to 2 days.

Notes

  • Make into one large cake instead of layers: Depending on the cake pan size, the bake time will vary. For a 9x13 inch cake pan, the bake time will be similar to the two layers. Use a toothpick to check for doneness.
  • Make Cupcakes instead: Add the cake batter to a greased or lined muffin pan and bake at the same temperature for about 14 to 18 minutes. They are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Raisins and Nuts are optional. This carrot cake recipe is great with or without them. You can add 1/2 cup chopped nuts to the batter itself or 1/2 cup raisins.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 950kcal | Carbohydrates: 108g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 56g | Saturated Fat: 36g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 107mg | Sodium: 521mg | Potassium: 267mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 84g | Vitamin A: 7008IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 69mg | Iron: 2mg

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