The Best Homemade Carrot Cake Recipe

Moist, melt in your mouth, delicious Carrot cake made with carrots, a bunch of spices, and topped with walnuts and a homemade Butter pecan cream cheese frosting.

Hey PBJ’s! I’m back, and this time, with a dessert recipe: homemade Carrot cake. I’ve been wanting to create a carrot cake recipe for a long time, but since I’m not really into sweets, I unintentionally put it off.

But today, I’ll be showing you how to make a delicious, one-of-a-kind carrot cake that you and your family will love. And although I haven’t been making carrot cake for long, I don’t think it can get too much better than this.

My mom’s co-workers begged for a Carrot Cake

My mother’s co-workers begged me to make a carrot cake! They loved my Delicious lemon bundt cake so they asked my mother if she could have me make another cake to bring to the job, which was a carrot cake!

I’m diabetic, so I try to stay away from sweets. Whenever I create or experiment with a baked goods recipe, I’d taste a little and if it’s good, my mom will take the rest to work. She sits the cake on the lunchroom’s table at her job, and all her co worker’s devour it.

Anyway, I had never made carrot cake, but it was always a recipe I wanted to post because I know it’s pretty popular, and a lot of people love it. I’m not the biggest fan, personally, but after tasting the one I bought from the church, I developed a liking for it.

Our church sells cakes, juices, and dinners in a side room out in the lobby. My mom bought this Bahamian lady’s famous carrot cake and fell in love with it. People from the church say it’s the best they’ve ever had, so you know, that inspired me to make my own.

I said, well, it’s time to look into how to make carrot cake and master a fiya carrot cake recipe myself. So I did some research on Google to figure out the common ingredients people use and decided to choose which Ingredients I wanted to use.

I had to order some carrot cakes from a few stores just to get a feel for what a good carrot cake tastes like, so I would have a reference for what a good carrot cake is. So I want you all to give my carrot cake recipe a shot and tell me what you think.

I gave a few pieces to carrot cake lovers and cake eaters, lol, and they all seemed to love it and even asked for more, so I think this carrot cake is valid! Below are all the ingredients and tools you’ll need to make this recipe.

Recipe Ingredients:

Dry Ingredients

• All-Purpose Flour: Flour is the main ingredient because it’s what the cake is made of. I tried using cake flour but didn’t like the texture of the crumb it produced.
• Baking Powder & soda: Baking powder is a leavening that is responsible for making the cake rise. Baking soda is also a leavening agent. When it reacts with an acidic ingredient like buttermilk, it produces carbon dioxide, creating a light and fluffy cake.
• Salt: Salt enhances flavor! Salt is so important in making “baked goods.” Novices may think it’ll make the cake salty. Lol! It won’t because only a pinch is used.

The Spices

Here are the spices I use in this recipe. I’ll let you know which are common and traditional and which are not. Feel free to customize the recipe and play around with the spices. Eliminate, reduce, or increase them if you want.

For example if you dont like Ginger or Clove, just use Cinnamon and Nutmeg. Some people just use Cinnamon; if that’s you just use Cinnamon. Feel free to add a little at a time and once you’re done blending everything together, give it a taste test and decide what you need more of.

• Cinnamon: Cinnamon is the one spice that you must use to give Carrot cake its traditional flavor and aroma. It also helps darken the flour to give the cake its traditional light brown color. You will almost always see Cinnamon as an ingredient in a Carrot cake recipe.
• Nutmeg: Nutmeg adds a much needed flavor to the cake and is a commonly used spice in Carrot cake. Both Cinnamon and Nutmeg give the cake a traditional flavor, color, and aroma.
• Ginger: Ginger adds just the right amount of spice to the cake, but it’s not a common spice used in carrot cake, so I only use a little, especially since ginger is pretty potent.
• Clove: I decided to be a little different and add ground clove to the batter, and people seem to like it. I didn’t use much of it because using it in carrot cake isn’t traditional.

Wet Ingredients and add-ins

• Vegetable Oil: Vegetable oil is the most important ingredient when it comes to moisture.
• Applesauce: Apple sauce adds flavor and moisture. I use it to reduce the amount of oil I use, which makes the cake greasy.
• Buttermilk: Buttermilk is used to create gluten, add flavor and moisture, and loosen the cake batter.
• Butter: Butter adds flavor to the cake. I’m big on butter, as it makes every “sweet” and “baked good” taste better. Make sure you use unsalted butter because we’re already adding salt to the flour, and too much salt is a no-no.
• Eggs: Eggs are very important for cakes, pies, and many other “baked goods” as they’re mainly responsible for their structure also helps the cake rise.
• Carrots: This is carrot cake, so you have to have carrots. Use fresh carrots and grate them.
• Vanilla: Vanilla extract is a MUST! It plays a MAJOR role in adding flavor to baked goods, and without it, your favorite cakes, muffins, and cobblers will taste incomplete. Use a good brand of vanilla extract like McCormick’s.
• White and Brown Sugar: The white sugar obviously sweetens the cake, and the brown sugar provides sweetness, moisture, and a molasses flavor. Along with the spices, it also gives the carrot cake its classic light brown color. Usually, a dry ingredient… but in this recipe will be added along with the wet ingredients.

Baking pan ingredients

• Pam Cooking Spray: I’ve found that Pam spray and vegetable oil work better together than either alone, so I use both to prevent the cake from sticking.
• Vegetable Oil: You’ll also need oil for the cake pans. It serves as a gluing agent to help the flour stick to the pan.
• All-purpose flour: The flour in conjunction with the oil serves as a barrier to prevent the cake from sticking. You want the cake pan to be lightly dusted with flour.

Frosting ingredients

• Confectioner’s Sugar: Powdered sugar is great for frosting because it dissolves into the other ingredients. White granulated sugar won’t blend in well, and you might feel hard sugar crystals in the frosting, which we do not want.
• Pecan Syrup: We use simple syrup to smooth and thin out the frosting. This is completely optional.
• Cream Cheese: Cream cheese balances the overall cake and adds a bit of cheesiness to the frosting.
• Whole milk
• Vanilla Extract: Vanilla just gives the icing a boost of flavor like it does everything else.

Cake topping

• Crushed Walnuts or Pecans: Crushed walnuts or pecans can be used to decorate the top and sides of the cake.

Equipment:

• Mixing Bowls: Make sure you have at least three big mixing bowls: one for the dry ingredients, one for the wet ingredients, and another for the icing.
• Spatula: A spatula is good for pressing the batter that splashes on the sides of the bowl down into the center and for scrapping up the batter that seaps to the bottom of the bowl the hand mixer misses.
• Measuring Cups: Measuring cups are a must when following a baked goods recipe because you have to use exact measurements for the cake to turn out right. You need measuring cups to accurately measure the flour, sugar, buttermilk, and oil.
• Measuring Spoons: You need measuring spoons to accurately measure the baking powder, soda, spices, and vanilla, etc
• Strainer: You need a strainer to sift the dry ingredients.
• Knife: I use a knife to level out the flour.
• Whisk: Use a whisk just to whisk in all the dry ingredients.
• Potato Peeler: Use a potato peeler to peel the skin of the carrots
• Cheese Grater: A cheese grater is necessary to create finely shredded carrots.
• Hand mixer: Use a hand mixer to combine the dry and wet ingredients and create the cake batter.
• Cake Pans: You obviously need these to bake the cake in and since this is a layer cake you’ll need 2.
• Icing Spatula: An icing spatula is a heaven-sent. It’s the perfect tool for applying the icing or frosting, and it makes the process so much easier.

Making a moist cake

Vegetable oil is the most important ingredient and the most effective at creating a moist cake, but using too much can result in a greasy cake, and that’s a NO, NO! To attain a very moist cake without having to use a lot of oil, other ingredients that create moisture, like Sour cream, buttermilk, or hot water, can be used.

This is carrot, though, so we’ll be using apple sauce, which is a common ingredient used to moisten cake, and the flavor complements the spices and ingredients used in this cake, which is why I elected to use it over sour cream.

The vegetable oil, buttermilk, and apple sauce will give you a very moist outcome. I use more vegetable oil than anything else because it’s the most effective at providing moisture, but buttermilk and apple sauce not only adds moisture but depth of flavor. 

Carrots and alternatives

• If you use small carrots that come in a bag, add them to a blender and blend them because they are too small to shred.
• Don’t use pre-shredded carrots in a bag; they’re too hard for carrot cake. If you do use them, blend them.
• If you blend carrots that come in a bag, don’t blend them for long; you do not want them to turn into carrot juice. A couple of pulses should do the job.

How to make homemade carrot cake

1. Add the dry ingredients, including the baking powder, soda, and spices, to a large mixing bowl through a strainer, then whisk well.
2. Melt the butter.
3. Add all the wet ingredients to a large mixing bowl, and blend well with a hand mixer on low speed.
4. Peel the carrots, shred them with a grater, then add them to the wet ingredients and fold in well.
5. Combine the dry and wet ingredients, then blend just until everything is well incorporated.
   *Push the batter down from the sides and dig deep and scrape up any flour at the bottom with a spatula*.
6. Preheat oven to 350°F.
7. Rub oil around both baking pans with a paper towel, then lightly spray Pam cooking spray onto each part of the pan.
8.  Add the flour, shake and turn, then flip the pan upside down to remove any excess flour.
9.  The pans should be nicely coated; now, pour the cake batter into both pans.
10. Lift the pans an inch above the surface and drop to remove excess air; do this 3 to 4 times.
11. Bake them for 1 hour and 5 minutes, then remove.
12. Cover with a cooling rack, flip upside down, and then remove from the pans. Let them chill for 30 minutes. 
13. FROSTING: In a big bowl, combine the cream cheese, confectioner’s sugar, milk, syrup, and vanilla with a hand mixer on low speed until it’s nice and smooth.
14.  Once the cakes have chilled, start coating them with the icing spatula, then refrigerate.
15. After about 2 hours, or once the frosting hardens, add more frosting to the top of the bottom cake for a thick middle layer of frosting, then place it back in the refrigerator.
16. Once the frosting on the bottom cake has hardened, remove both cakes and place the top cake over the bottom cake.
17. Add the rest of the frosting to the sides and top of the cake and set it in the refrigerator until the last coating of frosting hardens.
    *Make sure to add enough frosting to the sides to cover the middle layer of frosting so it blends in and look like one cake*
18. Put the walnuts in a blender and blend them until they look like sand.
19. Sprinkle it onto the top and sides, and top with shredded carrots as well. (optional)

Baker tips:

• Use new and good quality ingredients: To optimize the deliciousness of your cake, use new fresh ingredients not old ingredients that maybe close to epiring which will ruin the taste. And use a good brand of ingredients for a higher quality of taste
• Make sure ingredients are room temperature: Make sure everything is at room temperature before combining all the ingredients.
• Measure accurately: To ensure you’re not using too much flour, make sure to use a spoon to scoop the flour into a measuring cup, shake it to even it out, then level it off with a knife so ensure you’re not using too much which can happen when you just dig into a bag of flour with a measuring cup.
• Spatula: Make sure to have a spatula. A spatula is critical for mixing cake batter. Dry flour seeps down to the bottom of the the bowl and will remain dry if not stirred in properly with a spatula while mixing.
• Dont overmix the batter:  Overmixing the batter can ruin the cake. Below under frequently asked questions, you’ll find a few horrible outcomes that can come as a result of overmixing. Mix on a lower speed just until everything is incorporated.
• Preheat the oven: Make sure the oven is hot before adding the cake. Adding the cake before the oven reaches the right temperature can result in an underbaked cake.
• Let the cakes rest after baking: Give the cakes time to cool before adding the frosting. This will allow the frosting to stick better and not melt potentially cause the frosting to break.
• Even out the cakes: If the cake’s top is too high and not flat, use a large knife or icing spatula to slice it off and level it so it’s flat. Then, brush off any crumbs so that they won’t get caught in the frosting when you apply it.

Serving suggestions:

• Cold Cup Of Milk: This cake will taste great as a midnight snack late at night, with an ice-cold cup of milk to drink it with. Amazing!
• Hot tea: My grandma used to always eat cakes early in the afternoon on Sundays. If we made a cake, which the family often did, she’d tear it up with a nice hot cup of tea on the side.

Storage

• How to store cake? Since we’re making the frosting with cream cheese, you can store the cake in the refrigerator. Place it on a plate or cake holder, cover it with a lid, and place it in the refrigerator. This will keep it fresh and the frosting solidified.
• Can you freeze the cake? Yes, the cake freezes nicely! Just make sure it’s tightly sealed to prevent freezer burn. Sealing it in a Ziploc bag is a great option.

 

Homemade Carrot Cake FAQ

Why was my cake wet on top after baking?

This was the last dilemma I needed to fix before mastering this cake. If the top is still wet after an hour of baking, there are a few common things that may be causing this, and a pretty easy fix.

• Too much liquid: If the cake isn’t cooking all way through it’s due to excessive liquid in the batter… so whether you’re following my recipe or creating your own, make sure to be mindful of not using too much liquid.
• Didn’t cook long enough: Another reason for a wet, mushy top is that the cake didn’t cook long enough.. If you experience this, add the cake back to the oven and bake it longer, or increase the cooking time by a few minutes in the future. 

Why is my cakes sticking to the pans and won’t slide out?

Ok, so this is something that absolutely annoys the heck out of me… something I’m sure everyone who’s made a cake before experienced, cake not coming out of the cake pan easily and sticking to it, ruining the structure.

Basically, making all your hard work become in vain and a waste of time. It’s like getting tripping before getting to the finish line of a track race. Ugh! Here’s why this happens and how to fix and prevent it in the future.

• Undergreased pans: This is pretty much the main reason this happens. You probably didn’t use enough oil. You dont want the pans soaking in oil, but you want to make sure you use a semi thick coating of oil to where it’s visible but not to where you can scoop any with a spoon.
• What prevents the cake from sticking: I like to use both oil and Pam cooking spray for an extra preventive measure against sticking. I’ve found that when I use both oil and Pam spray in conjunction, I experience far less sticking than when I just use oil or butter.
• How to properly grease the pans: After you add the oil, get a paper towel and spread it all around every part of the pans so every part is greased and you remove any excess oil, then lightly spray all parts with Pam cooking spray. This will prevent the cake from sticking in the future.
• How to remove a cake that’s sticking to the pan? I talk about the solution to this in this article Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe here. <<< Click that link for an easy way to release a stubborn cake that is stuck to a cake pan.

Why do I see a bunch of mushy patches of flour on my cake?

Ok so when you see big light wet uncooked flour on the cake im sure you get very annoyed. First off it’s not only undesireable but sometimes you can taste the raw flour as you’re eating the cake which is a no, no! Unfortunately, there’s no easy fix to this but to avoid these following things in the future.

• Overgreased pans: You overgreased the pan by either adding too much oil or a combination of oil and Pam cooking spray, which left puddles of liquid in the pan. This will create a thick, wet layer of flour after you add the flour, resulting in a bunch of mushy patches of flour on your cake after it’s done.
• How to properly grease the pans: As I mentioned earlier, ensure you remove any excess oil and/or Pam cooking spray. You can do this wiping the oil around the pan with a paper towel and lightly spraying the pan with Pam spray.
• How to properly coat with flour: First off dont add a lot of flour, just a tablespoon or so. Shake the pan around making sure all parts of coated, then turn it upside down and tap the back to remove any excess flour, leaving the pan perfectly lightly coated.

Why did my cake sink after baking?

This is probably all of our biggest nightmares and the most traumatic baking experience you could possibly have and never want to experience. Here are common reasons a cake sinks and preventive measures you can take to avoid it from happening again.

• Overmixing: Overmixing can incorporate too much air into the batter. This excessive air can weaken the cake’s structure, resulting in it collapsing.
• Underbaking: The most common reason for a cake sinking is removing it from the oven too soon not allowing it to bake and rise to its full potential fully. Since it’s not fully baked, and still soft, and the structure hasn’t been developed, it will obviously collapse. So make sure not to remove your cake too early.
• Opening the oven door before it’s done: This happens when we get too excited, want to check on the cake, and open the oven door, which causes a sudden drop in temperature. The incoming cool air stops and disrupts the baking process, causing a sudden stop in it’s rise, leading to a collapse of the cake.
• Outdated leavening ingredients: If the baking powder and or soda, which are the two ingredients most responsible for the cake rising, are outdated, it won’t be effective, and therefore the cake won’t rise to its full potential and just sink when removed from the oven.
• Incorrect ratio of ingredients: If you dont use ENOUGH baking powder for the amount of flour and liquid used for example, it wont rise or it will rise initially then sink because it’s not enough baking powder to support the amount of flour and liquid used. Using too much baking powder can cause this too.

Why does my cake have a gummy texture and streaks?

• Underbaking: This usually happens when the cake it slightly underbaked. If the cake is underbaked, the center will be left wet and dense, resulting in a gummy texture.
• Overmixing: When you overmix the batter, the gluten can become too strong and overdeveloped, resulting in a tough, gummy-like texture.
• How to prevent this? Mix batter until everything is just incorporated and dont mix it on high speed when using a hand mixer. Stick with a low to medium speed for a short mix and or combine everything with a big spoon.
• Too much liquid: I’ve found that using too many liquids to provide moisture can result in a gummy cake, as it prevents the flour from developing a drier, cake-like texture. Excessive amounts of oil, apple sauce, buttermilk, or sour cream can cause this.

Other cake recipes you might like:

• How To Make Lemon Pound Cake And Homemade Lemon Frosting
• Otis’s Easy Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe (Made from scratch)

Alright, PBJ’s, that’s it for now! Give this recipe a shot. I think you’ll really enjoy this carrot cake recipe. And make sure to subscribe to get email notifications whenever I post a new delicious recipe.

Also, if you want to stay updated on everything Philly Jay Cooking, follow me on social media at the following links: Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube.

Enjoy, later!
PBJ~

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