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This truly is the best carrot cake recipe! It’s perfectly moist and delicious, made with lots of fresh carrots, and topped with the most heavenly cream cheese frosting.
Oh hey. ♡ Just thought I would casually slide this recipe right here at the top of your feed in time for Easter. Because if you happen to be looking for the world’s best carrot cake recipe to make this weekend — or any delicious day of the year — look no further. Hundreds and hundreds of our readers have agreed over the years that this homemade carrot cake recipe is a hands-down winner!
I mean, I should admit right off that I will forever-and-always be on Team Carrot when it comes to my favorite kind of cake, so I am extra-partial to carrot cake in any form (including cupcakes or carrot cake bars). But because it’s my favorite, I hold extra high standards when it comes to exactly what constitutes the perfect slice.
First off, the perfect homemade carrot cake must always be fluffy and legit extra-moist — no dry cakes allowed. It must also be made with the coziest warming spices, but just enough so that the flavor of all of those fresh carrots can shine through. And speaking of fresh carrots, a good carrot cake recipe must include lots of them speckled in every slice. Most importantly, though, a good carrot cake recipe must be accompanied with a rich and buttery cream cheese frosting in every single bite. Because in my book, a good moist carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is the ultimate dessert match made in heaven.
The other good news about this recipe? It’s much easier to make than it looks. You can make the entire recipe — both cake and frosting — 100% by hand if you would like. (No mixer required.) You can also save yourself a step and purchase store-bought grated carrots or grate them in the food processor, if you don’t want to grate them by hand. And if you’ve never made a three-layer cake before, have no fear — it’s easier than it looks, and I’ve added a brand new video below to walk you through each step of the way.
Alright, let’s make some carrot cake together!
The BEST Carrot Cake Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Homemade Carrot Cake Ingredients:
Alright, let’s make our shopping list! To make this homemade carrot cake recipe, you will need:
Oil: Any mild-flavored oil will do. I typically use avocado oil, but vegetable or canola oil would work too.
Sugars: Both granulated (white) and brown sugar.
Eggs and vanilla extract: Because…cake.
Flour: I always indulge here with classic all-purpose flour. But you’re welcome to sub in white whole wheat flour instead.
Spices: Ground cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
Baking soda and baking powder: This recipe uses both.
Salt: I used fine sea salt. If you only have iodized (table) salt, I would recommend using a little less.
Freshly-grated carrots: Either grate them by hand with a box grater, use the shredding attachment on a food processor, or save yourself a step and buy them pre-grated.
(Optional add-ins): Feel free to also include chopped nuts (such as pecans or walnuts), shredded coconut, and/or raisins if you would like.
Cream cheese frosting: Made easily with cream cheese, butter, salt, vanilla and powdered sugar.
Ingredient amounts and full instructions included in the recipe box below.
How To Make Carrot Cake:
To make this homemade carrot cake recipe, simply:
Prep your baking pans. Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. (Or save yourself a step and just use baking spray, which already includes flour.)
Make the cake batter. Mix together the oil and sugars, followed by the eggs and vanilla, then the dry ingredients, and then the shredded carrots.
Fill and bake. Portion the batter evenly into your three baking pans. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool on a wire baking rack until they reach room temperature. Meanwhile…
Make the frosting. See notes below.
Assemble and frost the cake. Once the cakes reach room temperature,* use a cake leveler or a bread knife to slice off the rounded tops of the cakes so that they are completely flat on top. Place the first cake on your serving platter, add a large scoop of frosting on top of it, and spread the frosting so that it covers the cake evenly and extends a bit over the edges. Repeat with the second and third layers of the cake. Then use the remainder of the frosting to frost all around the side edges of the cake.
Serve and enjoy. Then once you’re ready to serve the cake, slice it up and enjoy!
*I find that it’s easier to frost the cakes when they are slightly chilled. So I recommend popping them in the fridge for 15 minutes before frosting if you have the time.
How To Make Cream Cheese Frosting:
This dreamy cream cheese frosting recipe can either be made by hand in a mixing bowl or in a stand mixer — you choose! Just be sure that both the cream cheese and butter are both room temperature. (And if you want your frosting to be super-smooth, I also recommend sifting the powdered sugar in advance.)
To make cream cheese frosting, simply stir the cream cheese and butter together with the vanilla until completely smooth. Then add in however much powdered sugar is needed to make the icing nice and firm. (You may need more/less powdered sugar than the recipe calls for.)
Carrot Cake Variations:
If you would like to customize your carrot cake, feel free to:
Add nuts: Feel free to stir 1/2 cup chopped nuts (such as pecans, walnuts, pepitas or hazelnuts) into the batter, and/or sprinkle extras on top of the frosting.
Add raisins: You could also stir in up to 1/4 cup of raisins.
Add coconut: Or up to 1/4 cup of toasted shredded coconut.
Spice the frosting: If you would like a bit of extra flavor in the frosting itself, I recommend stirring 1-2 teaspoons ground cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger into the frosting.
Make the recipe gluten-free and vegan: Use this recipe!
More Carrot Recipes:
Looking for more delicious sweet carrot recipes? Here are a few of my faves! ♡
This classic carrot cake recipe is moist, perfectly-spiced and made with lots of fresh carrots and a cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Scale
Carrot Cake Ingredients:
1 2/3 cupavocado oil (or vegetable oil, or any mild-flavored oil)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 pound finely-grated* fresh carrots
optional: 1 cup chopped nuts or 1/2 cup raisins
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients:
3 (8-ounce) bricks cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
6 cups powdered sugar (or more, if needed to thicken)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. (Or to save a step, you can coat them with baking spray, which already contains flour.)
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together oil, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until combined and smooth. Add in the eggs and vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, nutmeg and cloves) until combined. Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture into the egg mixture, and stir until smooth. Fold in the grated carrots and stir until combined. If you would like to add nuts and/or raisins, stir them in at this time as well.
Portion the batter evenly into the prepared baking pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Transfer the baking pans to a wire cooling rack and let the cakes cool until they reach room temperature.
Meanwhile, to make the cream cheese frosting, combine the cream cheese, butter and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and stir until combined and smooth. (You can either do this with a spatula, or with a hand or stand mixer.) Gradually stir in the powdered sugar and mix until it is completely combined. You want the frosting to be pretty firm for a 3-layer cake, so add more/less powdered sugar as needed to reach the correct consistency.
Once the cakes reach room temperature,* use a cake leveler or a bread knife to slice off the rounded tops of the cakes so that they are completely flat on top. Place the first cake on your serving platter, add a large scoop of frosting on top of it, and spread the frosting so that it covers the cake evenly and extends a bit over the edges. Repeat with the second and third layers of the cake. Then use the remainder of the frosting to frost all around the side edges of the cake.
Once you’re ready to serve the cake, slice it up and enjoy! Or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
*You can either grate fresh carrots by hand with a box grater, or grate them with a food processor by using the shredding disk.
*I find that it’s easier to frost the cakes when they are slightly chilled. So I recommend popping them in the fridge for 15 minutes before frosting if you have the time.
Recipe instructions updated (with no ingredient changes) in April 2019.
I made this last year for my husbands birthday. Never made one before…OMG!!! So delicious and moist!!!! Making it again this year, it is now a tradition. You won’t be sorry!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks for sharing, Robin, we’re so glad you love the recipe!
Unfortunately, recipe wasn’t a winner for my family. Cake, rather than being super moist and airy, cake was pretty dense. For whatever reason, frosting wouldn’t thicken up.
I made this cake for a colleague of mine. It was so tasty!! I took the leftover tops from leveling and mixed it up with leftover icing…also a hit. Thanks for the recipe!!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks for sharing, Coe — we’re happy this was a hit! :)
Do you think this recipe will make enough to do a 13×9 pan or should I double?
Thank you!!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Alisha! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
I’ve been tasked with making carrot cake cupcakes for my family’s Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. Have you done this recipe as cupcakes before? Any suggestions or would it all be pretty much the same, just adjusted baking time?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Amanda! We’re sorry we weren’t able to get to your comment in time. If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
This is one huge cake!!(At least it was when I made it. There was so much frosting that I had to split my 2 layers in half!)
Tasted DELICIOUS on Thanksgiving!
Am I able to bake the layers today (Friday) and freeze them wrapped until the start of next week (Tuesday) and then frost them? Will it taste the same as a freshly baked cake? I think your recipe is fantastic and don’t want to alter the experience. Thanks!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Yes, we think that would be just fine! We hope you enjoy!
I love to bake Cakes. I took after my Grandmother and have been doing them for years now. I just followed this Recipe to T and made it for a Family Member. It came out terrible!!! It was dry and tasted like cardboard. Im so shame.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We’re very sorry to hear that, Meka! This should never be dry or taste like cardboard and we’ve never seen anyone who’s had that as their experience. It sounds like it got overbbaked and that some of the ingredient measurements might have been off.
Hi! I love this cake! Its my go to carrot cake… I was wondering if you have every added rum to it..and if so..what and how much for the liquids did you substitute to keep the same texture?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We’re so glad to hear that, Salome! :) We have not experimented with adding any rum to this, though we bet that would be yummy! If you wanted to add some rum to it, you could do 1 TBS and then just omit the vanilla, OR (depending on how much of a rum flavor you’d like), you could leave out the 2 TBS of oil, and use rum instead. We hope this helps!
Hello ! Your cake looks amazing and the comments have tempted me even more.Will be making this for my daughter’s birthday ,can you pls let me know if I can substitute the oil with butter ? Thank you !
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thank you, Sheema — we hope you and your daughter enjoy! :) And yes, you can use butter instead of oil (use the same amount, unsalted and melted, and just let it cool some before you add it to the batter).
Made this one today…used a 9×13 pan and it was a bit too much batter…should’ve read further down the comments about that. Edges got a little overdone due to the extra cooking time but it seems to be ok…smells great- nicely spiced.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Oh no! Yes, this makes a ton of batter for just a 9×13 cake. We hope you still enjoyed it though!
Hi Ginger! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
Love this recipe! I halved the recipe and it was perfect for a 6 x 2 3/4 in round pan with enough batter to make 4 extra muffins. I will be making the full recipe this weekend ..with a little more spice :)
Do I buy one pound of whole carrots and then shred them, or more than a pound of carrots to yield one pound of shreds after accounting for weight lost due to loss of moisture during grating?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We bought a pound of carrots, then grated them. We hope you enjoy!
Can I freeze these cakes, if so for how long. Can I ice the layers and freeze and do the outside frosting when I need the cakes.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Naaz! Yes, you can definitely freeze these cake layers. We would recommend freezing them un-iced though, and then assembling when ready, if you can. We hope you enjoy!
I made this 2 days ago and I am happy to say that this cake is the best carrot cake I’ve ever had. Better thank shop bought or boxed. Thanks so much for sharing this great recipe, I absolutely love carrot cake and my partner is the opposite he does not like carrot cakes at all but he tried it and he couldn’t get enough, he loved it and said it’s so good so thank you thank you thank you for this beautiful cake
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
What a nice compliment, Nikki! We’re so happy you and your partner loved it! :)
Just made this cake. My husband loves carrot cake & this was my first time making it. Thank you for the recipe!! It was easy for a first timer like me and it was delicious.
Wow, just Wow! I am a 1st time baker. This was a simple recipe, yet tasted so complex. It was delicious! My mom had asked me to find her a good carrot cake recipe. I stumbled onto this one. Her birthday was coming up so I decided to try and surprise her and make it. The cake, the icing every part of this cake surprised me and most importantly my family. No one believed I baked it. 10 out of 10. Thank you!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thank you for your sweet words, Johnny — we’re so happy you and your family loved this, and we appreciate you giving the recipe a try! :)
I only have 2 9″dark cake pan, should I use the same temp @ baking time?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Danette! Yes, we think that should be fine, but to be on the safe side (since every oven is a little different), you might want to set your timer for 20 minutes and then check. If they aren’t done (they likely won’t be), just set the timer for 5 more min and keep checking at 5 min intervals until a cake tester/toothpick comes out clean. We hope this helps and that you enjoy the cake!
I just have to tell you that this cake was amazing!!
I’m going to be making it again for a family members birthday with weekend!
Thanks again for the awesome recipes!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thank you, Haley! :) We’re so happy you enjoyed it and we hope your family does as well!
Hi I was wondering if this would make enough batter for a 9×13?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Lindsey! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
Hi.. I tried to make the cake based on your recipe but I found it hard and the batter was not raising while baked.
However the taste is great. Do think the oil is too much? I use olive oil as I did not have vegetable
nor canola oil at home> Do you have any suggestion on that?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Diaz! Hmm, we haven’t tried this with olive oil, so that might have thrown the taste off a bit (shouldn’t affect the texture much though). If your cake didn’t really get fluffy in the oven, we wonder if your baking soda or baking powder could have been old? Those are the ingredients that help give the cake its lift. Over-mixing the batter could also keep it from rising as much as well. We’re sorry you had some issues with this!
I did it following the instructions step by step but I felt it had too much baking soda it was kind of salty
What happened? Please give me a suggestion
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hmmm, this definitely shouldn’t taste salty. Did you use unsalted butter in the cake?
Made this cake last year and it was a huge hit. Would love to make it as cupcakes this year as we’ll be at a park. What do you recommend for time and temp for cupcakes?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We’re glad to hear that, Lisa! If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
how long is the cream cheese frosting good for in the fridge?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Shelly! The frosting should be good in the fridge for at least a week, if not longer. You will want to let it sit out for a bit and then re-whip it when you’re ready to ice. We hope you enjoy!
I only have 3 9″ pans instead of 3 8″ pans, will this still work? because i still want 3 layers but i don’t want to go buy 3 more pans, will baking it for a little less time work? Thanks!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Vish! You can still do this with 3 9″ pans (they will just be thinner layers, and you will need to take them out of the oven sooner). We hope you enjoy the cake!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe, I did it today it was easy to make and final result is a fluffy cake with flavor and delicious scent. This is my husband favorite cake and he loved it!!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
You’re very welcome, Brenda, and we’re so happy to hear you and your husband loved it! :)
Hello!
I just made this cake as a trial for my wedding cake. Delicious! A bit on the salty side for me, so I might reduce the salt by 1/4tsp or so, but other than that, I won’t be changing a thing! I need to make this cake in 2 or 3, 6 inch round pans. Do you have a suggestion on yield? Do you think half of a recipe would be enough for 2, 6 inch pans?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Thanks, Katie — we’re glad you enjoyed it, and that’s so cool you’ve chosen this recipe for your wedding cake! Definitely feel free to reduce the salt if you like. As for the yield in those size pans, we haven’t tried those sizes, so it’s a bit tough to say. However, we think half the recipe would definitely be enough for two 6″ pans (in fact, we think you would have some extra batter leftover, we’re just not sure how much). We hope this helps!
Hi. Just made this cake today for my family. Carrot cake was my dad’s favorite and we will have it tomorrow on what would’ve been his 77 birthday. Can’t wait to dig in!! Do you usually use all if the icing? I ended up with a lot leftover…we aren’t big icing eaters. Do you think the icing would freeze well? I thought when I pulled it out to use again, I would let it thaw in the fridge. I would appreciate any words of wisdom.
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Beverly! We hope you all enjoy this! Yes, we use all the icing but you totally don’t have to, and you can definitely freeze it.
Hi making cake today?would it fine if I added pineapple also and how long would cake stay moist 2-3 days?? Thanks
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Gina! We think you would be fine to add a can of drained pineapple. It should keep in the fridge for at least 3-5 days, if not longer. We hope you enjoy!
Hi Alissa! If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
What is the first 1 1/2 cups of flour and canola oil for? The pans?
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
Hi Julie! The flour and oil you use for the pans isn’t included in the oil and flour amounts in the recipe. So the cake has 1 1/2 cups, plus 2 TBS of oil and 3 1/4 cups of flour in it. We hope you enjoy!
This is a great cake! And is makes a lot of cake! Here is what I did to make this cake more awesome:
1. I squeezed out excess water from shredded carrots
2. I added 1can of crushed pineapple, squeezed of excess liquid like the carrots
3. Added 1/2 cup dried cranberries
4. Toasted shredded coconut added to the sides of the cake after frosting
5. Reserved some frosting and colored some orange and some green, made decorative carrots on each slice of cake.
Again, a basic carrot cake that is amazing!!
Hayley @ Gimme Some Oven —
We’re glad you enjoyed it, Mark, and yes, it definitely is a lot of cake! :) Thanks for sharing your take on it, we bet the cranberries and coconut were really yummy in this — what a great combo!
I made this last year for my husbands birthday. Never made one before…OMG!!! So delicious and moist!!!! Making it again this year, it is now a tradition. You won’t be sorry!
Thanks for sharing, Robin, we’re so glad you love the recipe!
Unfortunately, recipe wasn’t a winner for my family. Cake, rather than being super moist and airy, cake was pretty dense. For whatever reason, frosting wouldn’t thicken up.
We’re sorry to hear that, Kim. :(
How long of a cooking time if using 9″ pans would you suggest? Thank you!
The baking time should be around 25-30 minutes. We hope you enjoy!
I made this cake for a colleague of mine. It was so tasty!! I took the leftover tops from leveling and mixed it up with leftover icing…also a hit. Thanks for the recipe!!
Thanks for sharing, Coe — we’re happy this was a hit! :)
Do you think this recipe will make enough to do a 13×9 pan or should I double?
Thank you!!
Hi Alisha! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
I’ve been tasked with making carrot cake cupcakes for my family’s Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. Have you done this recipe as cupcakes before? Any suggestions or would it all be pretty much the same, just adjusted baking time?
Hi Amanda! We’re sorry we weren’t able to get to your comment in time. If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
This is one huge cake!!(At least it was when I made it. There was so much frosting that I had to split my 2 layers in half!)
Tasted DELICIOUS on Thanksgiving!
We’re so happy you enjoyed it! :)
Am I able to bake the layers today (Friday) and freeze them wrapped until the start of next week (Tuesday) and then frost them? Will it taste the same as a freshly baked cake? I think your recipe is fantastic and don’t want to alter the experience. Thanks!
Yes, we think that would be just fine! We hope you enjoy!
i want to try the cake without the frosting… i want to try it just like a carrot bar… will it be okay?
We haven’t tried this without the frosting, but we think it would still be delicious! :)
I love to bake Cakes. I took after my Grandmother and have been doing them for years now. I just followed this Recipe to T and made it for a Family Member. It came out terrible!!! It was dry and tasted like cardboard. Im so shame.
We’re very sorry to hear that, Meka! This should never be dry or taste like cardboard and we’ve never seen anyone who’s had that as their experience. It sounds like it got overbbaked and that some of the ingredient measurements might have been off.
Hi! I love this cake! Its my go to carrot cake… I was wondering if you have every added rum to it..and if so..what and how much for the liquids did you substitute to keep the same texture?
We’re so glad to hear that, Salome! :) We have not experimented with adding any rum to this, though we bet that would be yummy! If you wanted to add some rum to it, you could do 1 TBS and then just omit the vanilla, OR (depending on how much of a rum flavor you’d like), you could leave out the 2 TBS of oil, and use rum instead. We hope this helps!
Made this for my sons birthday party and it was a huge hit. Everyone loved it!! Best carrot cake for sure!
We’re so glad to hear that, Jenelle! :)
I followed your recipe and I’m not sure what I did wrong. The cake tatste a little bit salty. The cream cheese icing was great
Oh no, we’re sorry to hear that, DeAnna! :(
Hello ! Your cake looks amazing and the comments have tempted me even more.Will be making this for my daughter’s birthday ,can you pls let me know if I can substitute the oil with butter ? Thank you !
Thank you, Sheema — we hope you and your daughter enjoy! :) And yes, you can use butter instead of oil (use the same amount, unsalted and melted, and just let it cool some before you add it to the batter).
Made this one today…used a 9×13 pan and it was a bit too much batter…should’ve read further down the comments about that. Edges got a little overdone due to the extra cooking time but it seems to be ok…smells great- nicely spiced.
Oh no! Yes, this makes a ton of batter for just a 9×13 cake. We hope you still enjoyed it though!
Made this last night for a friend’s birthday. It was a HUGE hit! Thanks for the recipe! Will be keeping it for the future.
We’re so glad to hear that, Carrie! :)
Hi! Just wondering if I could use a 10″ round pan instead of 9″, or if i should double the recipe. I don’t want the layers to be too thin. Thanks!
Hi Mel! We think you could do a 10″ round. We hope you enjoy!
Hi! I’m confused about the oil – 1 1/2 cups (of what) plus oil? Is it butter? Or just a lot of oil? Many thanks!
Hi Georgina — it’s 1 1/2 cups plus 2 TBS of oil. We hope you enjoy!
can this be made in a 9×13 pan?
Hi Ginger! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
Love this recipe! I halved the recipe and it was perfect for a 6 x 2 3/4 in round pan with enough batter to make 4 extra muffins. I will be making the full recipe this weekend ..with a little more spice :)
We’re so glad to hear that, Sarnia!
Do I buy one pound of whole carrots and then shred them, or more than a pound of carrots to yield one pound of shreds after accounting for weight lost due to loss of moisture during grating?
We bought a pound of carrots, then grated them. We hope you enjoy!
Can I freeze these cakes, if so for how long. Can I ice the layers and freeze and do the outside frosting when I need the cakes.
Hi Naaz! Yes, you can definitely freeze these cake layers. We would recommend freezing them un-iced though, and then assembling when ready, if you can. We hope you enjoy!
I made this 2 days ago and I am happy to say that this cake is the best carrot cake I’ve ever had. Better thank shop bought or boxed. Thanks so much for sharing this great recipe, I absolutely love carrot cake and my partner is the opposite he does not like carrot cakes at all but he tried it and he couldn’t get enough, he loved it and said it’s so good so thank you thank you thank you for this beautiful cake
What a nice compliment, Nikki! We’re so happy you and your partner loved it! :)
Hi
I’m inspired to make this for my dads birthday but dont know about cup measurements Could you interpret into metric weights please?
Hi Sarah, here’s a great website for metric conversions: We hope you enjoy the cake!
Just made this cake. My husband loves carrot cake & this was my first time making it. Thank you for the recipe!! It was easy for a first timer like me and it was delicious.
Awesome, so glad you both enjoyed it! :)
Wow, just Wow! I am a 1st time baker. This was a simple recipe, yet tasted so complex. It was delicious! My mom had asked me to find her a good carrot cake recipe. I stumbled onto this one. Her birthday was coming up so I decided to try and surprise her and make it. The cake, the icing every part of this cake surprised me and most importantly my family. No one believed I baked it. 10 out of 10. Thank you!
Thank you for your sweet words, Johnny — we’re so happy you and your family loved this, and we appreciate you giving the recipe a try! :)
I only have 2 9″dark cake pan, should I use the same temp @ baking time?
Hi Danette! Yes, we think that should be fine, but to be on the safe side (since every oven is a little different), you might want to set your timer for 20 minutes and then check. If they aren’t done (they likely won’t be), just set the timer for 5 more min and keep checking at 5 min intervals until a cake tester/toothpick comes out clean. We hope this helps and that you enjoy the cake!
Hi I was wondering if I could replace some of the oil with applesauce?
Hi Samantha! We haven’t tried that, so we honestly can’t say, however, we think you could certainly experiment!
Do you peel the carrots before grating them? Thanks, Sue
Yes. We hope you enjoy the cake!
I just have to tell you that this cake was amazing!!
I’m going to be making it again for a family members birthday with weekend!
Thanks again for the awesome recipes!
Thank you, Haley! :) We’re so happy you enjoyed it and we hope your family does as well!
Hi I was wondering if this would make enough batter for a 9×13?
Hi Lindsey! We’re pretty sure this makes way too much batter for just one 9×13 pan. We would actually either cut the recipe in half or use two 9×13 pans. Alternatively, you could always use one 9×13 pan and make cupcakes with the leftover batter. We hope this helps, and that you enjoy! :)
Hi.. I tried to make the cake based on your recipe but I found it hard and the batter was not raising while baked.
However the taste is great. Do think the oil is too much? I use olive oil as I did not have vegetable
nor canola oil at home> Do you have any suggestion on that?
Hi Diaz! Hmm, we haven’t tried this with olive oil, so that might have thrown the taste off a bit (shouldn’t affect the texture much though). If your cake didn’t really get fluffy in the oven, we wonder if your baking soda or baking powder could have been old? Those are the ingredients that help give the cake its lift. Over-mixing the batter could also keep it from rising as much as well. We’re sorry you had some issues with this!
I did it following the instructions step by step but I felt it had too much baking soda it was kind of salty
What happened? Please give me a suggestion
Hmmm, this definitely shouldn’t taste salty. Did you use unsalted butter in the cake?
Hello:
I would like to know if I can use a bundt pan for this recipe?
Hi Nat! If you cut the recipe in half, a bundt pan should work fine. We hope you enjoy!
I have made this cake, and it is The Best Carrot Cake Ever!!! I read the comment about baking in two 9×13 pans. What temp and how long?
Thank you, Vickie — we’re so happy you loved it! You should still bake them at 350 and they will likely take the same amount of time.
Omg this is bad. I can’t stop eating. No one can’t. SOOO GOOD and easy to make.
We’re so happy you guys like it! :D
Made this cake last year and it was a huge hit. Would love to make it as cupcakes this year as we’ll be at a park. What do you recommend for time and temp for cupcakes?
We’re glad to hear that, Lisa! If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
how long is the cream cheese frosting good for in the fridge?
Hi Shelly! The frosting should be good in the fridge for at least a week, if not longer. You will want to let it sit out for a bit and then re-whip it when you’re ready to ice. We hope you enjoy!
I only have 3 9″ pans instead of 3 8″ pans, will this still work? because i still want 3 layers but i don’t want to go buy 3 more pans, will baking it for a little less time work? Thanks!
Hi Vish! You can still do this with 3 9″ pans (they will just be thinner layers, and you will need to take them out of the oven sooner). We hope you enjoy the cake!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe, I did it today it was easy to make and final result is a fluffy cake with flavor and delicious scent. This is my husband favorite cake and he loved it!!
You’re very welcome, Brenda, and we’re so happy to hear you and your husband loved it! :)
I make this cake last year. It was delicious. In my opinion you need base experience (baking)
I reduce sugar to 1/2 (frosting ) I will make again!!!!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it!
Hello!
I just made this cake as a trial for my wedding cake. Delicious! A bit on the salty side for me, so I might reduce the salt by 1/4tsp or so, but other than that, I won’t be changing a thing! I need to make this cake in 2 or 3, 6 inch round pans. Do you have a suggestion on yield? Do you think half of a recipe would be enough for 2, 6 inch pans?
Thanks, Katie — we’re glad you enjoyed it, and that’s so cool you’ve chosen this recipe for your wedding cake! Definitely feel free to reduce the salt if you like. As for the yield in those size pans, we haven’t tried those sizes, so it’s a bit tough to say. However, we think half the recipe would definitely be enough for two 6″ pans (in fact, we think you would have some extra batter leftover, we’re just not sure how much). We hope this helps!
Hi. Just made this cake today for my family. Carrot cake was my dad’s favorite and we will have it tomorrow on what would’ve been his 77 birthday. Can’t wait to dig in!! Do you usually use all if the icing? I ended up with a lot leftover…we aren’t big icing eaters. Do you think the icing would freeze well? I thought when I pulled it out to use again, I would let it thaw in the fridge. I would appreciate any words of wisdom.
Hi Beverly! We hope you all enjoy this! Yes, we use all the icing but you totally don’t have to, and you can definitely freeze it.
Hi making cake today?would it fine if I added pineapple also and how long would cake stay moist 2-3 days?? Thanks
Hi Gina! We think you would be fine to add a can of drained pineapple. It should keep in the fridge for at least 3-5 days, if not longer. We hope you enjoy!
would this recipe work well for cupcakes?
Hi Alissa! If you want to make cupcakes out of the recipe, you’ll definitely need to cut it in half (even cutting it in half will probably make more than 24). We’d suggest setting the timer for 10 minutes (though these might need 15 minutes or longer) — just keep an eye on them and test for doneness with a toothpick. We hope this helps!
I made this cake today for my boss and it turned out great just as is. This was my first time making one and it turned out great thanks.
Awesome!! So glad it turned out well!
I just wanted to say that I made this cake yesterday and it is the BEST carrot cake. The whole family loved it!!
Yay, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
What is the first 1 1/2 cups of flour and canola oil for? The pans?
Hi Julie! The flour and oil you use for the pans isn’t included in the oil and flour amounts in the recipe. So the cake has 1 1/2 cups, plus 2 TBS of oil and 3 1/4 cups of flour in it. We hope you enjoy!
This is a great cake! And is makes a lot of cake! Here is what I did to make this cake more awesome:
1. I squeezed out excess water from shredded carrots
2. I added 1can of crushed pineapple, squeezed of excess liquid like the carrots
3. Added 1/2 cup dried cranberries
4. Toasted shredded coconut added to the sides of the cake after frosting
5. Reserved some frosting and colored some orange and some green, made decorative carrots on each slice of cake.
Again, a basic carrot cake that is amazing!!
We’re glad you enjoyed it, Mark, and yes, it definitely is a lot of cake! :) Thanks for sharing your take on it, we bet the cranberries and coconut were really yummy in this — what a great combo!
Hi,
I just wanted to make sure this recipe has been adjusted for high altitude baking. I have had so many failed cakes due to altitude.
Thanks! I’m looking forward to baking it for Easter.
Hi Lori! This recipe hasn’t been adjusted for high altitude baking, however, we found this link helpful: