Carrot Cake
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
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
More Cake Recipes You May Like
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.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
This is now my go-to carrot cake recipe! Always moist and delicious…easy too! I’ve baked it in a glass pan and also as a birthday layer cake! Your recipes are always a hit Jenn!
I’ve made LOTS of carrot cakes over the years but I trust your recipes so tried this for a family birthday. Excellent and rich without the added stuff like pineapple or coconut. (Currents and pecans dance well together). Texture and flavor keep you coming back for one more bite and I really liked the idea of the 9×13 pan. Another winner👏👏👏
Jenn, this recipe has garnered me the baker of ‘the best carrot cake ever’ by some very important carrot cake experts in my family! I want to take this as cupcakes to a Christmas party but want them easy to grab so liners would be ideal. I have the kind of cupcake holders that are sturdy paper, not the flimsy thin paper ones. I saw you advised against liners because the batter is thin. I am not wanting to spend time testing and believe you will give me great advice 🙂 – would you use this type of cupcake holder? Any other thoughts? Thanks a million for elevating my respectability in the kitchen!
Hi Gina, Glad your family loves this cake! I think it’s fine to use liners – I would just spray them very lightly with nonstick cooking spray to prevent the cake from sticking.
I made the recipe exactly as written and I’d advise everyone to the same because it is perfection! The best cake I’ve ever made. My only challenge was finding currants (maybe because it was Thanksgiving week?), but thanks to my husband for going to 3 grocery stores :-). I received many compliments on this cake!
Oh my goodness! This is the best carrot cake I have ever made. I brought it to work at the hospital and the doctors and nurses all raved about it! This will be my go-to carrot cake recipe! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Made this today and added crushed pineapple and walnuts (no currants) ~ cake so so moist and delicious. Icing I changed up to cream cheese, butter, vanilla, MAPLE SYRUP, icing sugar, & a pinch of salt… so so yummy and creamy and compliments the cake. Love this recipe!
I made the recipe as cupcakes for dessert (after our granddaughter’s baptism today). This was my first time making them and they were a huge hit! Everyone there commented how delicious they were. I made the recipe exactly as written other than switching vegetable oil for avocado oil. I baked the cupcakes for about 22 minutes. We also had food catered for the luncheon but I was told this was the best thing on the menu!
Also, for friends and family that eat gluten free, I made a batch of cupcakes with almond flour (instead of white flour), coconut sugar (instead of white granulated sugar), and avocado oil (instead of vegetable oil). The batter was a lot darker than the other batch, but these were yummy as well 😋
Many thanks to you, Jenn. Your recipes are always a hit!!
Hello Jen: Can cranberries be substituted for currants in this recipe? My family are not fans of raisins. If they aren’t, can they be left out? Thank you.
Yes, it’s fine to use cranberries (as long as you’re referring to the dried ones). 🙂
I made this cake for a family get together and it was a big hit with everyone. I omitted the currants and substituted toasted pecans for the walnuts. And in order to reduce some of the oil I substituted half a cup of unsweetened applesauce for half a cup of the oil. Didn’t have allspice so used ground ginger instead. The cake was moist, tender and delicious. I will definitely make it again.
I made this for the first time and brought it to a pot-luck with about 75 people. Out of about 20 desserts, most were store-bought. This carrot cake was very quickly gone. There were so many compliments, and requests for the recipe. I directed them to this site. It was such a hit.
Most people were surprised that I made it and not my wife. I am the designated baker.
So I highly recommend this recipe!