Carrot cake recipe

Carrot, walnut, warm spice, and a cream cheese frosting that holds its shape. This is the same base we bake in the studio when someone orders our Carrot signature cake, scaled down to a single 8 inch round you can bake at home. Total time runs under two hours, including the cooling rack. Skip ahead to ingredients if you have made one before.

TL;DR

• Prep 25 min, bake 35 min, total under two hours including cool and frost.
• Yields one 8 inch two-layer cake. Serves 10 to 12.
• Oil-based for a moist crumb. Walnut and cinnamon. Cream cheese frosting.
• Tested in our Harare studio. Altitude-friendly at around 1,490 m.

Why this carrot cake works

Carrot cake gets a bad rap in home kitchens because two things tend to go wrong: the crumb comes out dry, and the frosting slides off. Both are fixable. The recipe here uses neutral oil rather than butter so the crumb stays soft for three or four days. Light brown sugar carries a faint molasses note that pairs with the cinnamon and nutmeg. Walnuts go in for the bite. Pecans are an option if you have them.

This is the base we use for the Carrot signature cake at the studio. We finish the studio version in a few different ways (a smooth tier with sugar carrots, a walnut and pecan crown, a naked finish), but the cake itself is this recipe scaled up.

Ingredients

Metric grams primary, US cups in parentheses. Pull the cream cheese and butter out of the fridge an hour before you start.

For the cake

• 300 g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp fine salt
• 280 ml (1 1/4 cups) neutral oil, sunflower or canola
• 280 g (1 1/3 cups packed) light brown sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 300 g (about 3 cups loosely packed) finely grated fresh carrot
• 100 g (1 cup) chopped walnuts

For the cream cheese frosting

• 250 g (1 cup) full-fat cream cheese, room temperature, brick style
• 115 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 350 g (3 cups) icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

*Walnuts can be left out for nut allergies. The cake still works. If you want pecans on top as decoration, save 30 g back from the walnut quantity and use it as a crown instead of folding it through.*

Method

Bake at 170 C fan / 180 C conventional. Grease two 8 inch round tins and line the bases with baking paper.

1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a bowl until evenly mixed. Set aside.
2. In a larger bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla until the mixture looks glossy and smooth. About a minute by hand.
3. Tip the dry mix into the wet and fold with a spatula until you no longer see streaks of flour. Stop folding the moment it comes together. Over-mixing builds gluten and gives you a tough crumb.
4. Fold in the grated carrot and chopped walnuts.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the two tins. Tap each tin once on the counter to release any large air pockets.
6. Bake for 32 to 38 minutes, until a skewer pushed into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs and no wet batter. Start checking at 30 minutes.
7. Cool in the tins for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Wait until the layers are fully cold to the touch before you frost. Frosting a warm cake melts cream cheese into a puddle.
8. For the frosting, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and uniform, about a minute. Add the icing sugar in two additions, beating just long enough to combine each time. Add the vanilla. Stop the second the frosting looks even. Over-beating breaks the cream cheese and the frosting goes runny.
9. Place one cooled layer on a plate or board. Spread a third of the frosting on top. Place the second layer, then spread the rest of the frosting over the top and sides. Finish with a few extra walnut pieces if you like.

Cream cheese frosting tips

Cream cheese frosting fails in a few predictable ways. Here is what stops each one.

• Use full-fat brick-style cream cheese, not the soft spreadable tub. Spreadable cream cheese carries more water and the frosting will not hold a swirl.
• Both the cream cheese and the butter should be at room temperature, not soft. Cold cream cheese gives you lumps. Warm butter gives you a frosting that slumps.
• Add the icing sugar in two additions and beat only until combined. The longer you beat cream cheese, the more it slackens.
• If the kitchen is warm (over about 24 C), chill the frosting for 15 minutes before piping or spreading.

Tips for Harare bakers

• Altitude in Harare sits around 1,490 m, which is mild. No major adjustment needed, but most ovens here run warm. Bake at 170 C fan and start checking at the 30 minute mark.
• Grate the carrots by hand on the fine side of a box grater. Food processor grates come out too coarse and you end up with a stringy crumb you can see in cross-section.
• For cream cheese, look for a full-fat brick-style block. The tub spreadable version will not hold a shape on the cake.
• If walnuts are hard to find or the price is steep, roasted, chopped peanuts work for the home version. Not traditional. Still good.

Variations and dietary notes

If you need to skip eggs, we bake an eggless version we bake at the studio with two days' notice rather than the one day for signature cakes.

For diabetic or sugar-restricted needs, we quote a sugar-free option on three days' notice. We do not write a separate sugar-free home recipe on this page because sugar substitutes behave differently from cane sugar and the ratios change with the brand.

This batter also scales into 18 to 20 carrot cake cupcakes. Bake them at the same temperature for 18 to 22 minutes.

Rather have us bake it?

Same recipe, finished and decorated in the studio. WhatsApp with one day's notice and we will deliver in Harare. The Carrot signature cake is $40 for a 6 inch, $55 for an 8 inch, and $65 for a 10 inch.

Order a Carrot cake on WhatsApp

See our Carrot signature cake for finishes, sizes, and the rest of the menu, or browse more cake recipes from the studio including the Herman Canadian recipe.

Take a baking lesson at the studio

If you would rather learn carrot cake (or any of our signatures) in person, we run baking lessons at the studio in Madokero, Harare. Two-hour sessions, one recipe at a time, take your cake home at the end.