The Best Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
This is hands-down the best carrot cake ever! Simple, with no secret or special ingredients, this delicious carrot cake with whipped cream cheese frosting is soft, tender and unbelievably moist.
Since I’ve successfully been making this carrot cake recipe for more than ten years now, I’m taking it from its “unbelievable” status straight up to “best ever.”
I have tried so many variations of carrot cake over the years, it isn’t even funny, and every time, I come back to this tried-and-true favorite when I want a wonderful, classic, no-fuss, best carrot cake.
With Easter quickly approaching and carrot cake season in full force around my house, this amazing and simple carrot cake needed a little moment in the spotlight again.
I’m a little particular about how I like my carrot cake (shocker, I know – me? having opinions? who knew).
And actually, carrot cake itself can be quite polarizing. I’ve received some very, shall I say, animated emails and comments over the years about how carrot cake SHOULD and SHOULD NOT be made.
For instance, if I offered this short 3-survey questionnaire to the public, I know for certain the responses would be passionate and varied:
1) Does pineapple belong in carrot cake?
2) What about nuts? Should they be in carrot cake batter or not?
3) Sorry to even bring this up, but I have to ask: how do you feel about raisins in your carrot cake?
Some of you long-term readers could undoubtedly tell everyone how I feel about #’s 1-3 up there.
In short: I’m a carrot cake purist. For me, personally, I’d rather leave out the frilly, lumpy, distracting ingredients and have straight up, classic, moist carrot cake all the livelong day.
And don’t forget the cream cheese frosting, of course.
It’s a pretty basic cream cheese frosting, as far as cream cheese frostings go, but I learned a decade ago when I first started making it, that the hint of sour cream in the frosting is what sets it apart from all of its cream cheese frosting competitors.
Ultra-creamy, it has that very slightly hint of tanginess that offsets the sweetness and makes you want to dive headfirst into the bowl of frosting.
Even though I often find ways to keep nuts out of the inside of *most* of my desserts, there’s something a little magical about the toasty crunch of pecans garnishing the outside of cream cheese frosted carrot cake.
See? I can be open minded. Sometimes.
Just don’t go take a mile where I gave an inch, and throw those pecans farther than they need to go. As long as they stay on the outside of the cake, we’re good.
I suppose the great news in all of this is that because this carrot cake is so amazing, it will do well with whatever add-in you choose to toss in the cake batter (within reason, of course).
If you are more open minded than I am, go crazy and make this your own! I’m actually quite interested to hear what you consider to be the perfect carrot cake.
Thankfully there’s enough carrot cake variations to go around for all the carrot cake opinions and lovers in the world (even you pineapple people).
For me, though, this is hands-down the best carrot cake ever!
You can see from the comments that I’m not the only one who feels that way, either.
I’ve added notes to the recipe to answer many commonly answered questions about this cake, but overall, the recipe hasn’t changed over the years (although I have made notes to make the method simpler).
FAQs for The Best Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Yes, that should work!
Yes, many people have done that and it works out well!
If it’s frosted, yes. I usually take it out a couple hours before I want to serve it.
The Best Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 ½ cups (355 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 pound medium carrots, 6 to 7 large carrots, ends trimmed and peeled or unpeeled (I never peel them)
- 1 ½ cups (318 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (106 g) packed light brown sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups vegetable, canola or other neutral-flavored oil (see note)
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 8 ounces (227 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 5 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 tablespoon sour cream, light or regular
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups (143 g) powdered sugar
- Toasted, chopped pecans, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position.
- Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking pan with cooking spray or lightly grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt; set aside.
- In a food processor fitted with large or fine shredding disk (or using a box grater and shredding by hand), shred the carrots for about 3 cups total.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in large bowl using a hand-held mixer OR by hand with a whisk), beat the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and eggs on medium-high speed until thoroughly combined, about 45 seconds.
- Reduce the speed to medium and with the mixer running, add oil in a slow, steady stream, being careful to pour oil against the inside of the bowl.
- Increase the speed to high (or just whisk like crazy) and mix until the batter is light in color and well emulsified, about 45 seconds to 1 minute longer.
- Stir in the carrots and dry ingredients by hand until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain (don’t overmix).
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake until a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 32 minutes for 9-inch round pans and 40 minutes for a 9X13-inch pan.
- Let the cakes cool for about 10 minutes in the pan and then invert them onto a cooling rack to cool completely (the 9X13-inch cake can be cooled completely in the pan if you don’t plan to invert and ice all the sides).
- For the frosting (see note below about doubling for a layer cake), mix the cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla at medium high speed in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl using handheld mixer) until well combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl with rubber spatula as needed.
- Add the powdered sugar and mix until very fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Frost the cake and garnish with toasted, chopped pecans, if desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: Cooks Illustrated (with my notes included)
Recipe originally posted March 2008; updated with new photos, recipe notes and commentary.
395 Comments on “The Best Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting”
Hey there! I’m thinking about making this for my husbands birthday – he LOVES carrot cake! Two questions… is the texture of the carrot very noticeable? We both prefer carrot cake when you can’t “feel” the carrots.
Second question… do you have any idea how using cooked and mashed carrots instead of shredded would affect the recipe? I’m just comparing making carrot cookies (the kind with orange frosting) and the carrots are cooked and mashed, and they don’t stay stiff at all, which is what I’d like texture-wise, but not sure how it’ll affect the wet:dry ratio. Any insight would be appreciated!
Hi Mary, I shred the carrots finely which makes them less noticeable…but they are still *there* if that makes sense. I have never tried this with cooked carrots so I don’t know what to suggest – might be a good starting point to google “carrot cake with cooked carrots” and see what that turns up as you experiment. Good luck!
Amazing cake
My grandmother looooves carrot cake and I found this recipe a couple years ago and it’s her favorite.
I make it for friends and family too at her request.
I do add a little lemon and a dash of lime to the frosting. Not too much and another little tweak of a secret ingredient.
I made this cake for Easter and it was fabulous and so well received by the guests.Someone said it tasted better than something you’d get at a high end restaurant. I followed the recipe as noted. The only change I made was I omitted the cloves/nutmeg. In replace I just added another 1/4tsp cinnamon.The only reason I didn’t give this a 5star is because of the icing. While it tastes fabulous it can be a bit challenging to work with. I did note it was verrry soft after making. I placed it in the fridge for an hour and it was still very soft but i was able to assemble the cake and put a thin crumb coat on it. I put the cake back in the fridge another hr to firm up more before I added a little more.Even with these steps I was only able to very thinly coat the sides of the cake. I believe it would’ve just slide down had I iced it thicker. Its definitely not an icing you can pipe with.I had leftover icing in the fridge and even by the next morning it didn’t thicken much. That being said I’d use it again because it tasted so good. Thank you for sharing this great recipe with me. I will definitely make it again.
Just want to thank you again for including weighted measurements!
Do you recommend squeezing out the excess liquid from the grated carrots?
I don’t squeeze out the liquid before using the carrots in the cake.
Yes,Amazing Carrot cake.
So moist and delicious
Jim
This is the best and easiest carrot cake. My husband asks me to make this a lot, he loves it so much! Thanks Mel
I make this cake every year for a birthday. I cook mine in a bunt pan for a little over an hour. We are at high altitude in Colorado and it turns out amazing. The frosting is not too sweet and over powering. Depending on who the cake is for, I do add some crushed pineapple. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
My now most requested cake that I make. It’s amazing. I like to make it with Cake by Courtney’s white chocolate buttercream, because we aren’t as big of fans of cream cheese.
My crew appreciated this cake, but we all felt like it was spicier than other carrot cake recipes we’ve had. I did not have ground cloves, so I ground some whole cloves in my spice grinder and used those. I wonder if the freshness of that led to the extra spiciness. Either way, we thought the cake was good.
Yep—you’re correct about fresh ground cloves versus already ground cloves. I’ve discovered this myself.
The cake is amazing – probably the best recipe I have ever used.
The frosting? Was very thin – it should have had at least double the sugar, I think. It was still delicious and I have less than half a sheetcake left after dinner, but will do different frosting next time.
Hi Denise,
I’ve made this cake many times over the past 7 yrs. Usually after I mix the icing, its a bit too runny/soft. This is just due to friction of the mixing process which generates heat, plus the ingredients are brought to room temperature before mixing. I always have to chill the icing before layering my cakes. It becomes stiff much like cream cheese once it’s been chilled. Hope you’ll try it again..its very tasty.
I’ve been making this Carrot Cake for over 20 years. It is the absolute best recipe.
I found the recipe in Cooks Illustrated Baking Book. Everything I’ve made from their books has been the absolute best!
Great cake – followed recipe ingredients exactly and it was delicious. Very moist – realized I only had 8” pans so made a triple layer (25 min bake time) – doubled frosting as suggested. The perfect Easter dinner dessert. What I love about your recipes is that I trust them so even trying a “new” recipe is safe without a test run. You are the best!
Thanks so much, Lexi! Happy Easter!
Never add pineapple, but any carrot cake MUST have nuts and raisins!
I made this as a test run for Easter. I’ve made a lot of carrot cake recipes and I can say this is the best. So soft and moist. Delicious! I’m getting rid of all the other recipes and keeping this one. The sour cream in the frosting is brilliant. And the cake is so so good.
Mediocre – oily and heavy.
Though the recipe turned out and claims to be moist. Be mindful that this is only because the cake is an oily one.
I personally found this recipe to be basic, no wow factor! It tasted like carrot muffin you would buy in the grocery store isle.
This is truly the best carrot cake. I’ve been making it at least once a year for the past 4 years, and it never fails to get compliments from family and friends. Super moist and delicious.
Yes, I made this amazing cake a few years ago, to enter into an auction at church. One man bid $40.00 (!) and won. A recent widower, he was seriously craving carrot cake, and this hit the spot! He was so EXCITED that he phoned his daughter to describe how THRILLED he was with his delicious purchase! Later, his daughter tearfully thanked me… for making her dad smile during such a difficult time. Thank-you for this recipe, Mel. Good food can “touch” people in powerful ways.
Oh, I love this story. Thank you for sharing!
I was thinking while reading your recipe that it sounds very similar to the carrot cake I make. Then when I saw that it came originally from Cooks Illustrated, I knew it was the exact same as mine.
I also don’t like all the extra’s that some people feel are necessary for carrot cake.
This is the only carrot cake I make. It is absolutely amazing.
PS. I use the juice from 1/2 a lemon in cream cheese frosting to get that little zing.
Hey! My family is a HUGE carrot cake fan, so I made this for Thanksgiving this year. It was a hit!! I added pecans, golden raisins, and pineapple to the cake. (A cup each) Turned out perfectly! Thanks Mel!
Carrot cake is a favorite in my family! Can I add nuts, raisins, and pineapple? If so, about how much of each?
I haven’t tried those add-ins but you could definitely experiment!
Hii Mel, I made this cake for my pastor’s birthday at church and everyone loved it so much, it was requested by a church member for her mom’s 80th birthday coming up this weekend! Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful recipe with us, it is loved by so many!
I have a couple of questions before making the cake again, would using coconut oil affect the flavor of the cake and also, can I use swiss meringue cream cheese frosting in place of the original frosting in the cake?
Thanks,
Cleopatra.
I’m glad this cake was a hit at church! I haven’t tried either of those changes, but I think they would work fine. The coconut oil may lend a slightly different flavor and texture to the cake.
This is now our Easter Sunday traditional dessert, it really is best ever! I don’t think I ever really like carrot cake until I made this. I’m a no nuts (and most definitely no raisins!) kind of girl so I skipped the pecans. The icing is perfection.
The cake looks amazing and I am going to make it tomorrow for my friend’s birthday per his request. I’m wondering if I could use pastry and cake flour rather than all-purpose and what the difference would be?
I haven’t tried altering the flour type – you could experiment. It will likely change the texture/density of the cake.
Could I still use the frosting recipe but add coloring so I can decorate it or would that hurt the recipe?
Yes, that should work just fine.
Yum! I baked this carrot cake for Easter dinner dessert. My husband and family declared this cake the Winner! Thank you for another fantastic recipe, Mel!
We thought we hated carrot cake but this is for sure the best cake I have ever made- who knew? Doubled the icing for layer cake except for cream cheese (kept only 8oz for doubled recipe) and added extra icing sugar to replace the rest of the cream cheese to avoid too strong cream cheese flavor and was dreamy- new Easter tradition- thanks Mel!
I have made this carrot cake year after year and I’m obsessed. This recipe turned me into a carrot cake lover! Question…if I’m making it today (Saturday) but want to have my friends try it on Tuesday, will it be ok? How long can I keep it in the fridge?
Hi Danielle, sorry for the delay in responding. This cake actually keeps quite well in the refrigerator for several days. Should be ok!
I need help! I prefer smooth carrot cake but I am making one for a dear friend and he loves it full of raisins, crushed pineapple and nuts. I have seen comments here about adding stuff but was hoping for more guidance on proportions, etc.
I’m not entirely sure, Aubrey, since I’m like you and far prefer carrot cake with no add-ins. But I think you could try adding raisins and walnuts just fine. The crushed pineapple has me worried because the extra moisture might mess with the cake consistency. You might have better luck searching for a tested recipe that has all those add-ins already.
I need help! I prefer smooth carrot cake but am making one for a dear friend’s birthday and he likes everything but the kitchen sink. Now I need help. Could I make a variation of this recipe that includes raisins, walnuts and crushed pineapple? Or do you have a recommendation. I have a reputation to uphold but have no idea what to do this one!
Absolutely decadent!!! My son requested a carrot cake for his birthday. I’m so glad you had a recipe. I’ve never made carrot cake before. I’m so glad I can trust your recipes knowing they will turn out amazing for the first time!!!!
Could I half the mixture and use in a 9 inch springform pan? the only one I have
Yes, I think so!
so yummy. i used walnuts instead of pecans. can i use this recipe for cupcakes?
Yes! Many people have done that with good results!
THE BEST!
Added raisins and some pecans in the batter and toasted pecans at 250 for a half hour (butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves) for the topping.
Only one piece left of 9×13 cake for 11 people!
Hi! Could I use packed dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar? Thankss!
Sure! The cake will have a slightly richer flavor and chewier texture but should work out ok!
Hey there. I’m making this for mother’s day and was wondering about high altitude conversions. Do you have any suggestions?
I don’t live at high altitude, so I’m not totally sure, but I’ve heard adding a few more tablespoons flour and slightly decreasing the leavening agent should help (king arthur flour has some good high altitude tips)
Thank you! I didn’t find a comment below about making it with gluten free all purpose flour. But I did bake it with the gluten free flour and WOW it’s fluffy and so moist and rose beautifully! It was great! A must try and GLUTEN FREE friendly!!!!!
Ohhh and I left it for 12 more minutes , so 44 min total because at 32 min it was not bouncing back.
Going to try this for Mother’s Day! Can I switch the all purpose flour for gluten free all purpose flour? If so, do I use the same amount? Thank you Mel
I haven’t tried a gluten free version but I believe others in the comments have used gluten free flour with good results!
Maybe this is too late to ask but I made this cake for Easter (and I’ve made the America’s Test Kitchen one it is based on) and have had the same problem with both. The cake sinks in the middle, somewhat dramatically. What am I doing wrong?
The taste was of course amazing, – in fact I just finished a piece tonight, because someone has to help with the leftovers!
Delicious! I love spice cake, and this carrot cake reminds me of it, but in a lighter, springy-ish sort of way. 🙂 I’ve also never made carrot cake before, but I knew I could trust your recipe, Mel. I baked in a 9×13, and it turned out wonderfully. My family has already requested it again. 🙂
This was so delicious and tasty! We did a two layer cake and made a 1 1/2 recipe of the frosting and thought that was plenty. We also used 1/2 applesauce and 1/2 oil. Thank you so much!
Funny story. My grandma’s lasagne and carrot cake are two top reasons my dad says he married my mom and every year this is always everyone’s favorite cake recipe. After I grew up, married and moved away I couldn’t find her recipe on Easter. She must have been in church because when I called she didn’t answer either. Knowing that Mel has NEVER led me astray I looked up this recipe and made it. I LOVED it! Next year we went to a family easter dinner and I took my recipe. Without telling anyone. My mom took a bite and looked at me with wide eyes and said, “this isn’t MY recipe!” Guilt written ALL over my face I said, “nope.” She said, “its SOOO good!!!!” Turns out, they’ve never adored that recipe anyway! It was always just not quite right. The boys totally can’t tell the difference, but to the women, you have achieved carrot cake perfection. Thank you Mel. Our lives are now complete. Amen.
Haha, this is THE BEST story, Stacey! I loved it so much. Thanks for sharing! I think we all have recipes in our family history we make because…well, it’s just tradition. But maybe a new recipe isn’t always a bad thing?? 🙂
That’s hilarious. Reminds me of how my parents, brother, and I (grown adults at this point) were all sitting around talking about Thanksgiving dinner food. My mom used to always make that nasty traditional green bean casserole. I mentioned how I never liked it. My brother says “Seriously? I never liked it either.” My dad? “Yeah, me neither.” I turn to my mom “Sorry, Mom, I know how much you like it.” She says “Wait! I never liked it either. I just made it because I thought you guys did.” So we literally ate that stuff for decades because everyone was too afraid to admit they didn’t like it, including the woman who was preparing it. Needless to say, it’s off the Thanksgiving menu.
I love this recipe and have been making it for years. Has anyone else had problems with their carrots turning green. I read it’s an issue with PH balance and a reaction with the baking soda.
I live at sea level, should I change the baking time?
Thanks! You are always so helpful!
Just keep an eye on it! It’s hard for me to know exactly, but I made this cake a lot when we lived near sea level and it worked per the recipe.
Could you use coconut oil?
Also, could you use pre shredded carrots from a store bought bag?
Thanks!
The pre shredded carrots are much thicker than freshly grated carrots and I haven’t tried them, but you could experiment. Yes, you could use melted coconut oil.
I wouldn’t use the pre shredded carrots. While they’re undoubtedly easier, they are far drier than carrots you grate yourself. Dry carrots = drier cake.
Can you bake this is a bunt pan?
Also how many cups of grated carrots?
I haven’t tried a bundt pan but others in the comments have with good results. The shredded carrots should be right around 3 cups (I haven’t measured exactly, I usually use my kitchen scale to weigh the carrots before shredding).
Perfect carrot cake recipe❤.
Is this enough batter for three 8 inch cakes? Also, if I wanted to add chopped pecans, how much should I add/when should I add them?
I made a different carrot cake recipe this morning, and it completely failed. I really want to make your recipe instead, but I do not want to leave anything to chance! Thank you!!
I just made this recipe in 3 8″ round pans (I don’t have 9″ pans and I didn’t want 2 8″ pans to be too full). Each cake is only about an inch high, but it worked out fine. I had to bake them for about 28 minutes in my oven.
They will be thinner layers, but yes you could make 3 8-inch cake layers. If you want them thicker, try 1 1/2-ing the recipe. You can add pecans in with the dry ingredients.
For the frosting do you use salted or unsalted butter? Thank you
I use salted
I’m with you. No raisins, no nuts, and nooo pineapple. I didn’t even know pineapple was a thing people added to carrot cake until I read this blog post. I have never been disappointed in your recipes, so I’m excited to try this one this weekend!