Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

Name: Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 2 h 40 min
Ingredients: 260 g all-purpose flour; 2 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp baking soda; ½ tsp salt; 2 tsp cinnamon; ½ tsp nutmeg; ½ tsp ground ginger; 4 eggs; 150 g sugar; 150 g brown sugar; 240 ml neutral vegetable oil; 2 tsp vanilla extract; 300 g carrot, finely grated; 100 g walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional); 60 g raisins (optional); 340 g cream cheese, cold, full-fat block; 115 g unsalted butter, softened; 300 g icing sugar, sifted; 1 tsp vanilla extract

Contains egg (no meat or fish)

A moist, spiced oil-based layer cake packed with grated carrot and toasted walnuts, sandwiched and covered with tangy cream cheese frosting.

Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is an American cake from United States, ready in about 2 hours 40 minutes and made with carrot and cream cheese. It serves 14 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking

A slice of carrot cake with icing and walnuts on a chopping board with carrots and greens. — Photo: Leeloo The First / Pexels · Pexels License

Prep: 35 min
Cook: 35 min
Rest: 1 h 30 min
Total: 2 h 40 min
Serves: 14
Level: Easy
Calories: 550

About this dish

Origin: United States · Commonly attributedCarrots have sweetened cakes and puddings in Europe for centuries; the oil-based layer cake with cream cheese frosting is an American style.Also popular in United Kingdom, Canada, AustraliaMore food from United States
Dish: Dessert · Snack · Cakes · Desserts
Cooking method: Oven-baked
Taste: sweet, aromatic / warmly spiced, tangy, nutty
Diet: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Pork-free · Beef-free
Without the optional extras: No nut ingredientsWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Festive & celebration · Make-ahead
Cook more with: Carrot · Cream cheese · All-purpose flour · Baking powder · Baking soda · Cinnamon
Techniques: Baking · Emulsification · Fermentation

Allergens

Contains: Milkfrom cream cheese, unsalted butter
Contains: Eggsfrom egg
Contains, can be adapted: Tree nutsfrom walnuts
Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder
Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder
May contain: Sulphitesfrom raisins

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

550 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 143 g · recipe makes 14

Where the energy comes from

Protein 4%
Carbohydrate 44%
Fat 52%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g
Energy	550 kcal	385 kcal
Protein	5.5 g	3.9 g
Carbohydrate	61 g	42.7 g
Net carbohydrate	59.6 g	41.7 g
Sugars	44.2 g	31 g
Added sugars	42.1 g	29.5 g
Fibre	1.3 g	0.9 g
Fat	32.4 g	22.7 g
Saturated fat	10.7 g	7.5 g
Trans fat	—	—
Cholesterol	95 mg	67 mg
Sodium	358 mg	251 mg
Salt equivalent	0.9 g	0.6 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 161 mg
Calcium: 94 mg
Iron: 1.4 mg
Magnesium: 12 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 333 µg
Vitamin C: 1 mg
Vitamin D: 0.3 µg
Vitamin B12: 0.2 µg
Folate (DFE): 67 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
Optional ingredients are not included: walnuts, raisins.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Grate the carrots finely so they melt into the crumb.

Common mistakes

Over-beating cream cheese frosting makes it runny.
Frosting a warm cake makes the frosting slide off.

Serve with

Serve at room temperature with tea or coffee.

Food safety

Keep frosted cake refrigerated because of the cream cheese frosting.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 5 days; bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving. Freeze unfrosted layers up to 2 months.

Variations

Carrot sheet cake: Bake in a 23 × 33 cm tin for 35–40 minutes and frost the top only.
Pineapple carrot cake: Fold in 150 g drained crushed pineapple.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 29 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

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Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

All-purpose flour260 g
Egg4 piece · 200 g
Carrot, finely grated300 g
Raisins (optional)60 g

Used in steps 1, 2, 3

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

Mix and knead · about 35 min
Mix only until no dry flour remains — overmixing makes it tough and tunnelled.
Rest · about 20 min
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Bake · about 35 min at 175 °C
Risen and golden; a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs; the top springs back.
Cool · about 1 h 10 min
Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.
Start to finish: about 2 h 40 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

If something goes wrong

Gummy or wet crumb
Likely causes
- Under-baked
- Sliced while hot
- Hydration too high for the flour
What to do
- Bake to 93–96 °C inside (cakes: clean skewer)
- Cool completely on a rack before slicing
- Reduce water by 3–5% or use a stronger flour
Collapsed or sunken middle
Likely causes
- Oven door opened too early
- Too much leavening or sugar
- Under-baked centre
- Over-proofed yeast dough
What to do
- Don't open the oven for the first two-thirds of baking
- Measure leaveners exactly with spoons, levelled
- Test the centre before removing
- Proof less
Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Cracked or domed top
Likely causes
- Oven too hot (crust sets before the centre rises)
- Too much leavening
- Overmixed batter
What to do
- Lower the oven 10–15 °C
- Use the exact leavening amount
- Fold just until combined
Big holes or tunnels
Likely causes
- Overmixed batter (cakes, muffins)
- Air trapped while shaping bread
- Uneven proof
What to do
- Mix quick breads only until no dry flour shows
- Degas gently and shape tightly
- Proof covered in an even, warm place
Dry or crumbly
Likely causes
- Too much flour (scooped, not weighed)
- Over-baked
- Too little fat or sugar
What to do
- Weigh flour, or spoon it into the cup and level
- Check 5 minutes early
- Don't cut fat or sugar by more than a quarter without another moisture source

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

Ingredients

For the frosting

Equipment

Method

About this dish

Allergens

Nutrition

Good to know