Carrot Cake
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Sugar, spice, and everything nice—that’s exactly what this carrot cake delivers. It’s perfectly spiced, incredibly moist, and finished with a rich, tangy cream cheese frosting that ties it all together.
When my kids were little, I started a small baking business making cakes and cupcakes. During that time, I spent weeks perfecting my recipes for all the classic cake flavors, and this carrot cake quickly became a favorite. With a perfect blend of spices, an ultra-moist crumb, and luscious cream cheese frosting, it’s hard to beat.
The carrot cake recipe works beautifully as a 9-inch layer cake or a 9×13-inch sheet cake. And if you’re looking for more tried-and-true cake recipes, don’t miss my vanilla birthday cake, chocolate cake, and classic yellow cake!
“Absolutely the best carrot cake I have ever eaten!”
What You’ll Need To Make Carrot Cake
- Dried currants: Add little bursts of sweetness and flavor; optional if you prefer a smoother cake.
- Flour, baking soda & spices: All-purpose flour gives the cake structure, baking soda helps it rise, and a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves adds warm, cozy flavor.
- Sugars, eggs & oil: These form the wet base of the batter, adding sweetness, richness, and moisture for a tender crumb.
- Carrots: The star ingredient—adding natural sweetness, moisture, and that distinct carrot flavor everyone loves.
- Nuts: Chopped pecans or walnuts bring flavor and crunch; skip them if you like.
- Cream cheese frosting: A creamy, tangy mix of cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and confectioners’ sugar—the perfect finishing touch.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven and prep the pans. Preheat the oven to 350°F and set a rack in the middle. Spray your pans with nonstick baking spray (the kind with flour), line the bottoms with parchment, and give the parchment a quick spritz too—just to be safe.
Step 2: Soak the currants. Place the currants in a small bowl and cover them with hot tap water. Let them soak for about 15 minutes to plump up, then drain well and set aside.
Step 3: Mix the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves.
Step 4: Mix the nuts and currants. Scoop out about ¼ cup of the dry ingredients and place it in a small bowl. Add the drained currants and chopped nuts, then toss to coat. This simple step helps keep them evenly distributed throughout the cake instead of sinking to the bottom.
Step 5: Mix the wet ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until well blended. Add the oil and whisk again until the mixture is smooth and fully combined.
Step 6: Combine everything. Add the flour mixture, grated carrots, and the currant-nut mixture to the bowl. Using a rubber spatula, stir gently until everything is evenly incorporated and no streaks of flour remain.
Step 7: Prep for baking. Scrape the batter evenly into the prepared pans.
Step 8: Bake the cake. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then invert them onto a wire rack and cool completely. Unfrosted cake layers can be wrapped tightly in plastic and kept at room temperature for up to a day, or frozen for up to 3 months.
Step 9: Make the cream cheese frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt on low speed until smooth and combined. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and airy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar on low speed, then increase to medium-high and beat until fluffy, about 1 minute more.
Step 10: Assemble and frost the cake. Once the cakes are completely cool, place one layer on a serving platter and spread with half of the frosting. Set the second layer on top and spread the remaining frosting over the top, swirling it decoratively. If you’d like, sprinkle chopped nuts around the edges for garnish. The frosted cake keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days—just let it come to room temperature before serving.
Video Tutorial
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Carrot Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- ½ cup dried currants
- 2¼ cups all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¾ cup pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 4 large eggs
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup (packed) dark brown sugar
- 1¼ cups vegetable oil
- 2½ cups finely shredded carrots, from 1 pound of carrots (see note)
For the Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 4 cups confectioners' sugar
- ½ cup pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped (optional)
Instructions
For the Cake
- Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat it to 350°F (175°C). Spray two 9-inch (23-cm) cake pans (or a 9 x 13-inch/23 x 33-cm cake pan) with nonstick cooking spray with flour, like Baker’s Joy or Pam with Flour. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper; lightly spray the paper with nonstick spray with flour.
- In a small bowl, soak the currants in ½ cup (120 ml) hot tap water for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. Transfer ¼ cup (33 g) of this mixture to a small bowl and add the drained currants and chopped nuts; toss to combine.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until blended. Add the oil and whisk until evenly combined. Add the flour mixture, carrots, and the currant-nut mixture, and stir with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated.
- Scrape the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean, about 40 minutes for 9-inch layers or 45 minutes for a 9 x 13-inch sheet cake. Let cool in the pans on a rack for about 30 minutes, then invert the cakes onto the rack, remove the parchment paper, and cool completely.
For the Frosting
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and salt. Mix on low speed until combined, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until aerated and light, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, mixing on low to combine. Once all of the sugar is mixed in, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy, about 1 minute.
- After the cake layers have completely cooled, assemble and frost the cake. Decorate the edges with the nuts, if using. The cake keeps nicely for up to 3 days when stored under a cake dome in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
- To shred the carrots, simply use the small holes on your handheld or box grater. If you prefer, you can also roughly chop the carrots, place them into a food processor fitted with the steel blade, and pulse them until they're very finely chopped, about the consistency of couscous.
- This recipe provides just enough frosting to ice a 9-inch (23-cm) layer cake (or to generously frost a 9 x 13-inch/23 x 33-cm sheet cake). For an extra generous layer of frosting on a layer cake, consider leaving the sides bare—it's pretty that way—or boost the frosting amount by 25% for fuller coverage. (The adjusted quantities would be: 10 oz of cream cheese, 10 tablespoons of butter, 1¼ teaspoons of vanilla extract, a generous pinch of salt, and 5 cups of confectioners' sugar.)
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cake layers can be frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze, wrap the unfrosted cake layers individually in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you're ready to use them, thaw the layers overnight on the countertop before frosting and serving. Note: It's best to freeze the cake unfrosted, as the frosting may not maintain its quality once frozen and thawed.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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can I use sweetened coconut flakes in this recipe?
Sure, Lisa, I think it would be fine to add some coconut to this. Enjoy!
Hi, I made this cake yesterday for my brother, it is delicious! My brother -and the neighbors, loved it! I used melted butter, as per your previous recommendation, since I prefer it instead of oil. I have a question, can I add more carrots, and how much more?
So glad it was a hit! I wouldn’t recommend adding more carrots to it though — it will make the cake too wet.
Hi. I usually weigh my flour instead of using a measuring cup. How much would 2 1/4 cups weigh? Thanks
Hi Celeste, It’s the equivalent of 293 grams of flour. And just a heads up that the great majority of my recipes (including this one) include conversions to metric/weight measurements. To view them, scroll down to the recipe, and immediately under the recipe title on the right side, you’ll see a little toggle. If you move it from “cup measures” to metric, you’ll see measurements that will work for you. Hope that helps!
Thanks! One last question: Are the “dried currants” true currants, or Zante currants, which are tiny grapes?
I actually didn’t know that there was a difference! Either one will work nicely here.
Hi Michele, While it varies by brand, most salted butter has approximately 1/4 tsp. salt per stick, so you can use the salted butter and reduce the salt in the recipe as needed. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the cake!
Hi Jenn,
I’m a huge fan of yours. Your recipes are so well written and very detailed. I love it. I have a question regarding the frosting. I am not a huge fan of very sweet frosting. Will it be okay to cut down the sugar to 1 cup instead of 3 cups?
Thanks.
Lucy
Hi Lucy, It’s fine to reduce the sugar, but keep in mind the frosting may not stiffen up adequately. I would just add it until the consistency seems right. Hope that helps!
Thanks Jenn.
Hi,
I have made your banana loaf many times and it was so delicious, with amazing banana flavour, and light airy texture. It was so so good the first day and ate half of it straight out of the oven. It even tastes much better the next day !!! I would like to bake the carrot cake in a loaf pan, 5 by 9 by reducing half the portion. What temperature would you bake it and how long?
Hi Helen, so glad you like the banana bread! If you’d like to halve this recipe and bake it in a 9 x 5“ loaf pan, I’d reduce the temperature to 325°. Bake time will be different but I’m not sure by how much; I’d start checking it at about 55 minutes. Please LMK how it turns out!
Once again….I can’t give this cake enough stars..10 stars would be good. I made the layer cake and made the extra frosting. It was just enough.
My cake looks just like the picture but with a little extra frosting.
Thanks Jenn!
Thank you Jenn for this awesome recipe! It was amazing! I made a layer cake and decorated it with toasted nuts on top for a retirement party. Didn’t have currants so used regular small raisins. People went crazy for it! Definitely one of the best carrot cakes I’ve ever tasted! Super moist and not overly sweet!
Can I leave out BOTH the nuts & currants? Will I totally ruin the cake that way?
Sure, L, that shouldn’t be a problem. Enjoy!
Can you add chocolate chips?
Hi Dana, I’ve never added chocolate chips to carrot cake, but I think it’s fine if you’d like to. Hope you enjoy!
How many people does the 9×13 cake serve? I’ve made it before as a 3 layer cake which was off the charts delicious. I want to make it for graduation night of a class that I am taking. There will be other desserts. Do you think this would feed 20 people? Jenn I love your step-by-step instructions.
Hi Barbara, it serves 18 to 24. Hope everyone enjoys!
If I halve the ingredients will it fit in a 9″ loaf pan? I just don’t want to make such a large cake.
Hi Andi, that should be fine. The bake time will be different so keep a close eye on it. Hope you enjoy!
I love your recipes and just juiced a bag of carrots and I was wondering if I can substitute the food processed carrots and instead use the carrot pulp from the juicer. The logical part of me says that this won’t work because all it is has pulp and there’s no longer any juice in the carrot, but I thought maybe someone else can provide some professional and experienced insight. Thanks so much.
Hi Tania, My gut says it wouldn’t work — I’m sorry!
Hi Tania, I think you need the juice to be IN the carrots to add moisture to the cake, but I’m no expert.
And Jenn, like everyone here, I love your recipes, and get compliments every time I make them. I can depend on them to make and serve the very first time, without needing to practice. (My late mother always told me never to serve a new recipe to guests if you haven’t tried it first.) Well, definitely NOT with your recipes! I will be making this carrot cake for Easter, and can’t wait to try another great recipe!