Carrot Cake
This is the moist and expertly spiced Carrot Cake recipe you’ve been searching for! Complemented with a thick and velvety cream cheese frosting, it is a fool-proof classic.
The BEST Carrot Cake Recipe
This is my mom’s incredible carrot cake recipe! She is positively famous for this recipe and has kindly shared all of her tried and true tips for baking the best carrot cake ever.
- Make sure you grate the carrots fresh. I know it’s tempting to buy the pre-shredded kind from the store, but the fresh carrots make this so much better!
- Make sure all ingredients are completely mixed together before pouring into the pan. I know that sounds intuitive, but you’d be amazed how many bakers rush this and end up with dry patches in their cake.
- Be careful not to overbake your cake! This will dry it out and lose that moistness we crave here.
Homemade Carrot Cake Ingredients
Baked with love and basic pantry staples + some fresh carrots, here’s what you’ll need to make this beloved carrot cake recipe.
- All-purpose flour – Yep, just regular old all-purpose flour will yield the most moist and tender cake.
- Granulated sugar
- Baking soda – The baking soda helps give your cake the perfect rise.
- Cinnamon – Honestly a star of the show! This helps bring together the flavor of the cake beautifully.
- Salt
- Canola oil
- Eggs
- Grated carrots – I know it’s an extra step, but grate these by hand! Don’t buy the matchstick/shredded carrots at the grocery store for this. We want them fresh because it makes a HUGE difference.
For the frosting, check out my cream cheese frosting recipe!
How to Make Carrot Cake
This truly is such an easy homemade carrot cake. Reminder: be sure to mix the batter completely and do not overbake!
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 9×13 pan with non-stick spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
- Using an electric hand mixer, slowly add in the oil, eggs and packed carrots.
- Once the batter is mixed thoroughly, pour into your prepared pan.
- Bake at 350°F for 25-35 minutes or until the cake passes the toothpick test.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.
- Ice using your favorite Cream Cheese Frosting.
- Enjoy!
How to Make the Cream Cheese Frosting for a Carrot Cake
I have a post all about how to make my cream cheese frosting, but I’ll give you the basics here, too.
- Use either a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer to cream together the room temperature butter and cream cheese until completely combined.
- Slowly add the remaining ingredients (minus the milk) into the bowl and mix until thoroughly combined.
- If you’d like, add a little milk to adjust the thickness of the frosting to your liking.
Decoration Tips
You can decorate this easy carrot cake as simply or extravagantly as you’d like! For a simple, but elegant look, top with candied pecans or a swirl of the frosting. I personally like to pipe orange cream cheese frosting to look like carrots on the top of the cake for a festive touch.
Storing this Simple Carrot Cake Recipe
Cover your cake as tightly as you can and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. It needs to be stored in the refrigerator because of the high moisture level of this cake. But that doesn’t mean you need to serve this cake cold – it will be okay at room temperature for a little while!
Can you freeze Homemade Carrot Cake?
You absolutely can! I would recommend freezing before frosting because it makes things a little easier, but you can also freeze the completed product. Wrap your cake in plastic wrap tightly and then seal in a ziptop bag or airtight container. Place in the freezer and use within 3 months!
Other Spring Recipes
Carrot Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups (304g) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (460g) granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups (360mL) canola oil
- 4 eggs
- 3 cups (330g) packed grated carrots
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and spray a 9×13 pan with non stick spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.2 cups (304g) all-purpose flour, 2 cups (460g) granulated sugar, 2 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp salt
- Using an electric hand mixer, slowly add in the oil, eggs and packed carrots.1 1/2 cups (360mL) canola oil , 4 eggs, 3 cups (330g) packed grated carrots
- Once the batter is mixed thoroughly, pour into your prepared pan.
- Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 25-35 minutes or until the cake passes the toothpick test.
- Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.
- Ice using your favorite Cream Cheese Frosting.
- Enjoy!
Utterly awesome!
Is there any change for high altitude baking of this cake? Every time I make carrot cake it falls in the middle, but I have never adjusted for altitude. I’m at 5400 feet.
Thanks!
Hi Sharon, I test all of my recipes at 4400 feet. I believe this recipe should work at your elevation!
This also makes a lovely pumpkin cake if you switch out the shredded carrots for a 15 ounce can of pumpkin.
Made this cake exactly as directed, as well as the frosting recipe, and my dad and I both agreed it was the best carrot cake we’ve ever had. It was so moist and the flavor was on point! I also love that it is a single layer. So simple yet delicious.
I made this recipe last year for Easter and it was a hit! I’m going to make it again this year but I wanted to stray away from canola oil… do you think olive oil would work okay? Or would that change the flavor of the cake too much?
I haven’t tried other oils, but they should work as a substitute. I would try vegetable oil first, but olive oil should also work.
Hi Karli…I live at 7200 feet…do I need to adjust for my altitude? And, can I add raisins? If so, golden or regular? Thank you so much!!
You can definitely add raisins – either type will work! You may have to add a little extra flour – probably an additional 3Tbsp!
Wow! Carrot cake is my favorite. I’ve never been brave enough to make it myself. Today was the day and it came out AMAZING. This recipe is SO GOOD. I’m to the point where I will make any recipe I see from Karli and her websites are my go to for new sweets to try.
Thank you so much for sharing! I’m glad you loved it.
first time making a cake from scratch and I’m glad I chose this recipe, really good!
Great!!
You know it’s good when I take the time to leave a comment! We have made this cake several times now and everytime we make it we get asked for the recipe! Not only is this a delicious cake, it’s also easy to make! Just a little tip, last time we made it I shredded too many carrots so I figured I would try to freeze a few cakes for a quick side to take when needed. I wasn’t sure if it would be dry once we thawed it but it was as moist as the day we made them! We covered in saran wrap then foil and put them in the deep freezer. All we had to do was make the fresh cream cheese icing the day we needed it!
This recipe is a 10/10! Even if you think you’re not a carrot cake fan– make it! Your mind will be quickly changed!