Easy Carrot Cake

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Easter bunny season or not, this carrot cake will knock your socks off! It’s so delicious and creamy, and the cream cheese frosting makes it perfect. This Easy Carrot Cake recipe is simple enough for even the most novice baker but makes an incredibly satisfying and impressive cake.

Thank you to my talented and amazing cousin Eliza Kroll for this easy carrot cake recipe! 

Ingredients for this Easy Carrot Cake Recipe

• 2 cups flour: All-purpose flour is best for this recipe. No need for cake flour. 
• 2 cups sugar: No substituting this one.
• 1 teaspoon salt: If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I love Redmond Real Salt and use it in all of my baking.
• 2 teaspoons baking soda: Don’t forget this. 
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon: So yummy! 
• 4 cups grated carrots: I recommend grating the carrots yourself. Don’t wring out the water from the carrots. That’s what keeps this cake moist. 
• 4 eggs: It seems like a lot of eggs, but it makes the texture just right.
• 1 1/2 cups avocado oil or melted butter: Either will work great.
• 1 cup chopped pecans: Optional but highly recommended.

Optional Add-ins 

I know some people like to add raisins or pineapple to their carrot cake, but I believe in keeping it simple. However, I do like to sometimes add one extra ingredient: coconut. I think the coconut pairs so well with the cream cheese frosting. 

If you want to add coconut, I would recommend adding 1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes along with 1/2 cup of sour cream. This will help keep everything moist and delicious. You will also need to increase the bake time by 5-10 minutes.

How to Make this Easy Carrot Cake Recipe

This Easy Carrot Cake recipe is uncomplicated to make. It doesn’t take too much hands-on time but does require a little bit of patience for cooling time. 

Make the Cake Batter

Grate the carrots before you start to make the assembly quick. Don’t squeeze out any of the water, though!

Combine the eggs and melted butter in a large bowl and mix well. Add the sugar, flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Combine well and add the carrots and the nuts. Mix everything together until it is just combined. Don’t overmix or the cake will end up tough.

Bake 

You can bake this in a greased Bundt pan or in two 8-inch round cake pans to make a layer cake. Either will be delicious. Bake at 350° F for 50-60 minutes for the bundt pan or 30-40 minutes for the two rounds. Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, but be careful not to overbake. 

Let Cool

It is very important to let the cake cool completely before frosting. If you frost a hot cake it will become a gloopy mess. When you take the cake out of the oven, you have a few options. You can flip the pans onto parchment paper, release the cake, but keep it covered with the upside down pan for a few hours until it cools completely. Alternatively, you can flip the pans and release the cakes, and then wrap them in plastic wrap until they are cool. Keeping the cake covered while cooling will help keep the cake very moist. 

Make the Frosting 

Make the frosting by whipping all of the ingredients together. I like to start with the butter and the cream cheese, whipping until smooth, then follow with the other ingredients.

Frost the Cake 

Once the cake is completely cooled, you can frost it to your liking. Cover and refrigerate until you are ready to serve! 

What Frosting Should I Make? 

I’ve included cream cheese frosting in this recipe. It is so yummy and really pairs well with the flavors of this cake. If, for some reason, you don’t like cream cheese frosting, you could also make a simple vanilla buttercream instead.

More Easter Dinner Ideas

If you are like me and love to celebrate Easter by sharing good food, here are some other Easter (or not-easter) recipe ideas.

Coconut Birds Nest Cookies

Perfect Roasted Vegetables

Six-Stranded Challah Bread

Twice-Baked Potatoes

HAPPY COOKING!

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. If you want to follow along on my cooking adventures, follow me on Instagram @AMBERSKITCHEN

Carrot Cake

Add this to your crowd-pleasing recipes list! This carrot cake is simply outstanding. 

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Desserts

Keyword: carrot cake recipe, delicious carrot cake, dessert recipe, easter recipes, easy carrot cake

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Servings: 14 -16

Author: Amber

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 4 cups grated carrots
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups avocado oil or melted butter
• 1 cup chopped pecans optional
• ***see notes below for more mix-in info

Frosting

• 8 oz cream cheese softened
• 1 cup butter softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

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Instructions

• Combine eggs, and melted butter. Mix. 
• Add the sugar, then the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mix. Add the carrots and nuts if adding. Mix to combine but don’t over mix. 
• Bake at 350° F in a greased Bundt pan (50-60 min) or two, eight-inch rounds greased and lined with parchment paper (30-40 min). Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, but be careful not to overbake. 
• When the cake comes out of the oven, flip the pan over onto parchment paper and leave the pan over the hot cake until it cools completely or for several hours. (This is my cousin’s tip when making the cake- either wrap immediately in plastic wrap or keep it enclosed/covered until frosted and this helps keep the cake very moist.)
• Prepare frosting by combining and whipping ingredients. Frost completely cooled -or literally cold out of the fridge or freezer- cake. Cover and refrigerate leftovers. 
  
  ENJOY!

Notes

You can also add 1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes, but if you add that I recommend also adding 1/2 cup of sour cream and increasing the bake time by 5-10 minutes.