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The BEST Carrot Cake with Fluffy Cream Cheese Frosting
This truly is the BEST Carrot Cake ever! It is moist tender and fluffy, perfectly spiced and not oily. I top it with this smooth, creamy and fluffy cream cheese frosting that is irresistible. Raisins and walnuts are optional ;)
Ingredients
Cake batter:
- 2 cups (284g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon each ground allspice, nutmeg and ginger
- 2 cups (240g) finely grated carrots (from about 3 medium carrots)
- ⅔ cup (145g) packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- ⅔ cup (160ml) sunflower oil
- ½ cup (120ml) plain full fat yogurt
- ⅓ cup (80ml) pure maple syrup
- ½ cup (50g) coarsely chopped walnuts
- ½ cup (70g) soaked and drained raisins (optional)
1 x Recipe for BEST Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two 8-inch round cake pans with rounds of parchment paper and lightly grease the sides. I actually don't grease the sides of my pans because I like the cake to climb up for taller layers, but that's up to you if you're worried about sticking.
- Mix carrots with sugar first. If you have time, combine the grated carrots with sugar first before adding the eggs and let it sit for 10 minutes. This draws out some of the moisture and allows the sugar to dissolve which makes the cake extra moist. This step also helps to break down the carrots slightly so that you don't end up with fibrous bits in the baked cake.
- If don't have time to let the carrots sit with the sugar, then combine grated carrots, both sugars and eggs in a large bowl and beat with an electric handheld mixer on medium speed until combined. Add oil, yogurt and maple syrup and beat until evenly blended.
- Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low until just combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined. Do not over-mix. Add walnuts and raisins (if you choose to use them) and fold them in until evenly distributed.
- Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and bake for 28-32 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to loosen and invert the cakes onto the rack to cool completely.
- Make the frosting. Prepare the frosting according to this recipe. Reserve about 3 tablespoons of frosting to make the little carrot decorations if you wish.
- Place one layer of cake onto a serving plate. Use an offset spatula to spread about 1 cup of frosting over top leaving about ½-inch border. Place the second layer on top and press it down gently to stick to the bottom layer. Spread a thin layer of frosting over the whole cake. Chill for 15 minutes. Dollop the remaining frosting on top of the cake and spread it out from the top working your way out to the edges and then down the sides again if you wish, or use the offset spatula to make swooshes on top (I like the naked style to show the sides of the cake through the frosting).
- Decorate. To make little carrots, reserve about 3 tablespoons of frosting. Place 2 tablespoon into a small bowl and add a little orange food coloring. Place 1 tablespoon into another small bowl and stir in a little green food coloring. Use a zip-top plastic bag to pipe little carrots on top (watch the recipe video above for a demo). Sprinkle with chopped walnuts or pecans and enjoy!
