Award Winning Carrot Cake

Published on
September 22, 2023
Intro
This is it! An old fashioned carrot cake recipe that is moist, flavorful and most importantly not too sweet. The luscious cream cheese icing is a perfect complement to the cake. Take my advice- stash away a second piece for yourself.
Cake cake with edible flowers.
Prep Time:
40 Minutes
Cook Time:
50 Minutes
Servings:
12
Difficulty Level:
Medium
Ingredients

Carrot Cake

4 eggs, room temperature

2 cups light brown sugar

1 1/2 cup canola oil

1/3 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Ginger

4 cups carrots, shredded

1 cup raisins

1 cup walnuts, toasted, chopped

Cream Cheese Icing

18 oz Cream Cheese, room temperature

3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/3 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350º F. Butter and flour 2 - 8-inch cake pans. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer beat the eggs and brown sugar on medium-high speed until mixture is light and thick, about 3-4 minutes.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk and vanilla.

4. On low speed, gradually over about 1 minute, add in the oil mixture into the egg-sugar mixture. (if you do this too fast you lose the volume from beating the eggs and sugar.)

5. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, Cinnamon, and Ginger.

6. Fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture with a spatula. When most of the flour mixture has been incorporated, stir in the carrots, raisins and walnuts. Pour the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 38 - 42 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Make the Cream Cheese Icing

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add in the butter and continue to mix for another minute.

2. Add in the confectioner's sugar and vanilla. Beat for 2-3 minutes, or until well very smooth.

Assemble the Cake

1. Remove the cakes from the pans. Split each in cake in half creating two layers. You now have 4 layers of cake.

2. Place layer one cut-side up on a cake plate. Spoon about 1/4 of the frosting evenly to the edges. Repeat with remaining 3 layers.

3. Place the top layer, cut-side down, on top and press down to adhere. Spread the remaining icing over the top and to the edge. Decorate as desired.

Substitutions
Recipe Tip:
To avoid splitting the cakes, use 4 cake pans and reducing baking time to 17-20 minutes.
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