Best Easy Carrot Cake Recipe
The Best Carrot Cake Ever – This easy carrot cake recipe includes a soft and moist crumb brimming with carrots, shredded coconut, and chopped nuts. Top the homemade layer cake with a sweet, tangy cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut for a classic dessert everyone loves!
Why This is the Best Carrot Cake Recipe
I find that the most simple recipes are often the best, and this Easy Carrot Cake is a great example of how, sometimes, you just don’t need to mess with the classics.
My go-to recipe for the best carrot cake is worthy of any spring or summer occasion, from Easter and Mother’s Day, to birthdays, graduations, and more! It’s even a great dessert for winter holidays. When I want a dessert that is decadent but not overly indulgent (I’m looking at you with love, BTS cake) and will have guests ooo-ing and ahhh-ing, I always reach for this tried-and-true favorite.
We don’t include any pineapple, raisins, or other fruit in here – just carrots, chopped nuts, and yummy shredded coconut. The coconut on the inside compliments the toasted coconut and the rich, tangy, sweet cream cheese frosting on the outside. So every forkful is moist and tender, sweet but not too sweet, and utterly delicious!
I’m telling you, even lifelong carrot cake haters will fall in love with this recipe!
Ingredients You Need
For the Moist Carrot Cake Sponge –
- All-purpose flour – or cake flour for a lighter texture
- Granulated sugar – or coconut sugar
- Cornstarch – a thickening agent
- Pumpkin pie spice blend – or apple pie spice blend with ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger
- Baking soda – to help the cake rise nice and fluffy
- Sea salt – a bit to balance the sweetness
- Coconut oil – melted, but not hot
- Eggs – large, at room temperature
- Vanilla extract – use quality extract for the best cake flavor
- Carrots – freshly shredded in a food processor, or grated by hand with a box grater
- Shredded coconut – unsweetened
- Chopped nuts – walnuts or pecans
For the Cream Cheese Frosting –
- Cream cheese – full-fat, softened
- Butter – unsalted, softened
- Powdered sugar – AKA confectioner’s sugar
- Shredded coconut – toasted, for garnishing the cake
- Vanilla extract – again, use the good stuff here
- Sea salt – to balance the sweet frosting
NOTE: See our Full Recipe Below for ingredient proportions and cooking instructions!
How to Make the Best Carrot Cake Ever
Step 1: Bake the Cake
- Preheat the oven and spray three 8- to 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of a standing mixer (or use a large bowl and electric hand mixer). Mix briefly on medium speed, then turn the mixer on low and pour in the melted coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla. Scrape the bowl and turn on low speed again. Then mix the shredded carrots, coconut and chopped nuts into the cake batter.
- Equally divide the batter between the three cake pans and smooth flat. Bake them for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool for 5 minutes in the pans. Then flip the cakes out onto wire racks and cool them completely before frosting.
Step 2: Make the Cream Cheese Frosting and Toast the Coconut
- In a clean mixing bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese and butter until very smooth with no lumps.
- Turn the mixer on low and slowly add most of the powdered sugar. Then beat in the vanilla and salt at a higher speed. Beat in one more cup of powdered sugar if the frosting is too loose.
- Next, toast the coconut. Spread the shredded pieces out flat on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 4-7 minutes at 350 degrees. Watch the coconut carefully, it burns fast! Cool completely before adding to the cake.
Step 3: Assemble the Carrot Cake
- Time to stack the layers! Place the bottom layer on a cake stand or serving plate. Spread 1/4 of the frosting evenly over the top. Stack on a second cake layer, then evenly spread on another 1/4 of the frosting. Top with the final cake layer and press gently to even out the layers.
- Use a long spreader to spread the frosting that comes out from between the layers around the edges to create a “crumb coat” to catch the loose crumbs. Then scoop the remaining frosting on top of the cake and spread it down over the sides, and then neatly over the top to create a rustic feel. We’re not looking for perfection here, people!
- Lastly, use your hands to gently press the toasted coconut into the sides of the cake.
Get the Complete (Printable) Best Easy Carrot Cake Recipe Below with Tips and Measurements. Enjoy!
Recipe Variations
- Gluten-free – Use your favorite GF-friendly all-purpose flour replacement to make this a gluten free carrot cake recipe.
- Carrots – Feel free to use bags of pre-shredded carrots to make this recipe even easier!
- Without nuts – Not a fan of nuts? No problem! Simply omit them from the recipe.
- Coconut oil – I like the flavor and richness of coconut oil in this cake. But you can easily swap it with vegetable oil or canola oil, if you prefer.
- Canned frosting – If you’re in a rush you can pop open a can of store-bought frosting instead of making it from scratch. No judgment here!
- Without coconut – If you are allergic or simply don’t like coconut, absolutely feel free to leave it out of the batter and off of the cake coating.
- 2-layered cake – Use two 9-inch round cake pans to make this a 2-layer carrot cake.
- Carrot cake sheet cake – Prepare the cake in a rectangle 9×13-inch baking dish, and bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes.
- Cupcakes – You can make these as carrot cake cupcakes, but note that this recipe will yield about 36 cupcakes total, so you’ll need multiple pans to work in batches. Bake them at 350 for 18-22 minutes.
- Make ahead – This is a terrific dessert recipe to make in advance! Bake and cool the cakes, then wrap each layer tightly in a layer of plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months, and thaw them at room temperature before assembling and frosting. The frosting can be made several days ahead of time and kept in the fridge. Let it warm at room temperature for 30 minutes or so before using.
Frequently Asked Questions
Carrots are a moist vegetable and make for a moist cake. Including shredded coconut in the batter helps to reduce the wetness a bit. But if you notice the cake is a bit too moist, it’s likely from not properly measuring the shredded carrots and possibly including too much.
It’s best to use oil to make carrot cake. Oil is pure fat while butter also includes protein and water. Any water will create a super moist crumb and can cause the sponge to bake unevenly.
As with most cakes, you can keep this carrot cake out at room temperature for 3-4 days, covered. Refrigerate it to prolong the shelf-life for up to a week, but always serve cake at room temperature. Leave it out on the counter for several hours before serving.
Yes, you can! Wrap the assembled cake tightly in plastic wrap and a layer or two of aluminum foil. Keep the cake in the freezer for up to 3 months, then thaw at room temperature for 2-3 hours.
Looking for More Marvelous Cake Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
- Pistachio Pudding Poke Cake
- Butter Pecan Cake (Brown Butter Cake)
- Easy Pineapple Upside Down Cake
- Southern Caramel Cake
- Chocolate Banana Cake with Coconut
Best Easy Carrot Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Carrot Cake:
- 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice blend or apple pie spice blend
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 1/3 cup coconut oil melted
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups freshly shredded carrots
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 1 cup chopped nuts walnuts or pecans
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 12 ounces cream cheese softened
- 6 ounces unsalted butter softened
- 7-8 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 cups toasted coconut for garnish
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray three 8- to 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray and set aside.
- Pour the flour, sugar, cornstarch, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and sea salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix briefly, then turn the mixer on low and pour in the melted coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula and turn on low again. Mix in the shredded carrots, coconut, and chopped nuts.
- Equally divide the batter between the three cake pans and smooth it flat. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool for 5 minutes in the pans, then flip the cakes out onto cooling racks and cool completely before frosting.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting and Coconut Coating:
- In a clean mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and butter together until very smooth. Scrape the bowl and beat again to be sure there are no clumps.
- Turn the mixer on low and slowly add 7 cups of powdered sugar. Then beat in the vanilla and salt at a higher speed. If the frosting is too loose, beat in one more cup of powdered sugar.
- To toast the coconut, spread it out flat on a rimmed baking sheet. Place in a hot 350 degree oven and toast for 4-7 minutes. Watch the coconut carefully; it burns fast! Cool completely.
To Assemble:
- Spread 1/4 of the frosting evenly over one cake. Top with a second cake layer, then spread 1/4 of the frosting evenly over the second cake. Top with the final cake layer and press gently to even out the layers.
- Using a long spreader, spread the frosting that comes out from between the layers around the edges to create a “crumb coat” to catch the loose crumbs. Then scoop the rest of the frosting on top of the cake and spread in down over the sides, and then neatly over the top
- Use your hands to gently press the toasted coconut into the sides of the cake.
This carrot cake recipe looks absolutely delicious! The combination of moist cake, creamy frosting, and toasted coconut is perfect. I love that it’s easy to make yet so decadent. Can’t wait to try it for our next special occasion
I’ve always been intimidated by cake recipes, and usually just bake my cakes from a box. But this one seemed simple enough so I gave it a try and am so glad I did. We loved it and I’ll definitely be making it again!
My friends LOVED this carrot cake! I brought it to our holiday party and everyone agreed it was the best dessert there. SO so so good!
This carrot cake was delicious! The pumpkin pie spice makes all the difference. I never thought to add it to my carrot cake until I found this recipe. Thank you for a delicious cake!