The Best Carrot Cake Recipe (Tested and Perfected)

This is my best carrot cake. It has a decent weight whilst still being fluffy, with a moist and tender crumb. The cream cheese frosting is generous enough to ice a two-layer cake thickly, which is exactly how carrot cake should be served. I spent a lot of time researching and testing before landing on this recipe, and I am confident it is the one

How I Developed This Carrot Cake

I had never posted a carrot cake on this blog despite it being one of my favourites. In the past, I had always adapted my hummingbird cake into a carrot cake, and the basic ratios are surprisingly similar. But I wanted a recipe that was built from the ground up as a carrot cake, not adapted from something else.

I put a call out on Instagram asking for people’s best carrot cake recipes and got an overwhelming response. I looked at every single screenshot and link and immediately spotted a trend. About 80% of the recipes shared a common formula. A few were total outliers, but the core ratios were remarkably consistent.

Anything with desiccated coconut was elininated straight away, because I cannot stand it in cake, unless it is used in my grandmother’s crunchie recipe, which is the best version you will ever find.

Quite a few people voted for Ina Paarman’s recipe from her cookbook ‘Cook with Ina Paarman,’ and Sally’s Baking Addiction. Both were very similar and in line with the common formula I had identified. I also tested Jenny Morris’s recipe, which had comparable ratios, so I knew I was heading in the right direction.

Most South African recipes included crushed pineapple and the American ones often used apple sauce. I love pineapple in a carrot cake, so that had to stay. I also added raisins because I love them in baking. If you are not a raisin person, you can leave them out, but they add a lovely chewiness and sweetness.

The amount of sugar varied across recipes from 1.5 cups to 2. I opted for 1.5 cups because I do not like aggressively sweet cake. I used 1 cup of dark brown sugar and half a cup of white, which gives the cake more flavour, colour and moisture than using all white sugar.

Three teaspoons of spice seemed to be the common amount. Ina uses 3 tsp of mixed spice, and Sally uses a combination of cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg and cloves totalling 3 tsp. I used 3 tsp of mixed spice and then added a little extra cinnamon and ground ginger too.

Tips for the Best Carrot Cake

Grate the carrots yourself. Pre-grated carrots from the shop are too dry and will not give you the same moisture in the cake. I grate one cup on the fine side of the grater and one cup on the coarse side. The fine carrot melts into the batter and keeps things moist, while the coarse pieces give the cake visible flecks and a bit of texture.

Toast your pecans before adding them. This makes an enormous difference to the flavour and the crunch. Spread them on a baking tray and roast at 150°C (300°F) for 7 to 8 minutes. I prefer pecans over walnuts inside the cake, but walnuts look beautiful as decoration on top.

Soak the raisins in boiling water for 10 minutes before draining and adding them to the batter. This plumps them up and stops them from drying out during baking.

Use weighted measurements for the flour. Cups are fine for wet ingredients and sugar, but with flour, a scale is the only accurate way to get consistent results.

What Size Tin to Use for Carrot Cake

I prefer baking in 2 x 23cm (9 inch) springform cake tins rather than one large tin. The cake bakes faster, which means less risk of drying out the edges, and you get a thick layer of cream cheese frosting in the middle as well as on top.

For a three-layer cake, use 3 x 20cm springform tins and adjust the baking time accordingly. You can also bake this in a bundt tin (55 to 75 minutes) or as cupcakes (20 to 25 minutes, filling the liners three-quarters full, which gives you about 36).

Frequently Asked Questions for Carrot Cake

Can I make carrot cake without pineapple?

Yes. Leave out the crushed pineapple and add an extra half cup of grated carrot to compensate for the lost moisture. The cake will be slightly less tender but still very good.

Can I make carrot cake without nuts?

Yes. Simply leave the pecans out. The cake works perfectly well without them. If you want to replace the crunch, try adding a handful of sunflower or pumpkin seeds instead.

Why is my carrot cake dense?

The most common reason is overmixing the batter. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet gently and stop as soon as everything is combined. Overmixing develops the gluten and makes the cake heavy.

Can I use oil instead of butter in carrot cake?

This recipe uses sunflower oil, not butter. Oil keeps the cake moist for longer and gives it that characteristic tender crumb that butter cannot quite match.

What is the best cream cheese for frosting?

Use a firm, block-style cream cheese rather than a spreadable one. Spreadable cream cheese has a higher moisture content and will make the frosting too soft and runny.

Can I make carrot cake ahead of time?

Yes. The unfrosted cake layers freeze well. Wrap them tightly in cling film and freeze for up to three months. Defrost at room temperature, still wrapped, and frost once fully thawed.

What size and type of pans should you use for a carrot cake?

I prefer 2 x 23cm (9 inches) cake tins vs. one 23cm. The cake bakes for a shorter amount of time and you get an opportunity to spread a thick layer of icing in the middle vs. only having it on the top. One-layer cakes bake for a lot longer and tend to dry out on the edges due to this.

If I were to make this into a 3-layer cake, I would use 3 x 20cm springform cake tins. Ina suggests using a loose-bottomed chiffon or bundt cake pan which I think could also be lovely. Ensure you adjust your baking time to around 55-75 minutes when using a larger single-layer tin.

To make these into cupcakes – fill greased or lined cupcake pans 3/4 full with the batter and bake for around 20 – 25 minutes and you should get around 36 cupcakes.

Serving Suggestions

This carrot cake is at its best served at room temperature. The cream cheese frosting firms up in the fridge, so take the cake out about 30 minutes before serving. It is perfect for birthdays, afternoon tea, or just because.

My Best Carrot Cake Recipe

A moist, spiced carrot cake with crushed pineapple, toasted pecans, raisins and cream cheese frosting.

Print Recipe

Prep Time:25 minutes mins

Cook Time:30 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 1 cup pecan nuts toasted and roughly chopped
• 1 cup or 200gms densely packed dark brown sugar such as demerara or muscovado
• ½ cup or 100gms white granulated sugar
• 4 large free-range eggs
• 1 cup or 250ml sunflower oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or essence optional
• 1 cup or 250ml crushed pineapple drained from tin 432gm tin/net weight 281gm
• 2 cups or 500ml grated carrots half finely grated and half coarsely
• ½ cup raisins or sultanas presoaked in boiling water and then drained
• 2 1/2 cups or 312gm cups cake or all-purpose flour 
• 3 tsp mixed spice
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarb baking soda

Cream cheese frosting:

• 200 grams butter at room temperature
• 350 grams icing sugar
• 3 Tbsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 230 – 250 grams cream cheese a solid kind

Instructions

• Heat the oven to 150C/300F and spread the pecan nuts on a baking tray. Roast for 7 – 8 minutes until toasted. Allow to cool.
• Turn the oven up to 180C/350F and line 2 x 23cm (9inch) springform cake tins with baking paper.
• Using an electric mixer, beat the two sugars with the eggs, until fluffy. Add the oil and vanilla extract and continue to beat until well combined.
• Fold through the drained crushed pineapple, grated carrots, presoaked, and drained raisins until well mixed.
• In a separate bowl, sieve all the dry ingredients twice and then fold this through the wet cake batter until well incorporated.
• Divide the batter equally between the two cake pans and bake for 35 – 40 minutes. The cake is done when a sharp knife is inserted into the middle and comes out clean. Loosely cover the cakes with tin foil for about 25 minutes if necessary and to prevent over-browning.
• Allow the cakes to cool in the pans on a cooling rack. They should be completely cool before icing/frosting them.

To make the frosting:

• It’s very important to prevent the cream cheese from splitting or becoming too runny that you only add it right at the end and do not over mix it.
• Using an electric mixer, beat the butter, icing sugar, milk, and vanilla until pale and fluffy, about 4 – 5 minutes. At this point you cannot overmix the frosting and beat it for a longer time makes it softer and more fluffy.
• Add the chilled cream cheese and mix very briefly and only until it is incorporated and smooth.

Notes

A moist, spiced carrot cake made with dark brown sugar, crushed pineapple, toasted pecans and raisins, topped with a generous cream cheese frosting. Tested against dozens of recipes and perfected.

Grate the carrots yourself, half fine and half coarse, for the best texture and moisture.

Toast the pecans at 150°C (300°F) for 7 to 8 minutes before adding them. This transforms the flavour.

Soak the raisins in boiling water for 10 minutes, then drain before adding to the batter.

Use block-style cream cheese for the frosting, not spreadable. Spreadable cream cheese is too soft and will not hold.

For baking, use weighted measurements for the flour. Cups are fine for wet ingredients but not reliable for dry.

Storage: Keep the frosted cake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days. Bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

Reheating: This cake is best served at room temperature, not warmed.

Freezing: Wrap unfrosted cake layers tightly in cling film and freeze for up to three months. Defrost at room temperature, still wrapped, and frost once fully thawed. The frosted cake can also be frozen whole for up to one month. Defrost overnight in the fridge.

Servings: 12

Author: Sam Linsell

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