I often think of carrot cake as a Spring dessert. Maybe it’s the childhood association of carrots for the Easter Bunny that put that in my head, but carrot cake is good any time of year. The warming spice of cinnamon, and carrots and nuts of harvest season could be perfect for Fall. Technically, National Carrot Cake Day is in February so there is a Winter connection too.
Regardless of the time of year, I think of a carrot cake as an old fashioned classic. I have fond memories of carrot cake smothered in cream cheese frosting at gatherings at my great grandparents’ house in the woods when I was a child. Carrot cake makes me think of farm style kitchens and Little House On The Prairie.
The “perfect” carrot cake is open to interpretation. Should it have pineapple? Raisins? Walnuts? Should carrot cake be dense, or fluffy? Everyone I talk to about it has a different opinion about what a really good carrot cake should be. This is my take on a perfect carrot cake, and it was shaped by my son’s idea of what carrot cake should be. His favorite carrot cake was found at a small bakery outside a town where we lived years ago. In the years since leaving there I have tried to approximate his memory of that sheet cake. Of course, I then made it a layer cake and added other elements because I’m me. Also, because I’m me, you will not find raisins- I think raisins are disgusting. Below is my recipe for a “Fully Loaded Carrot Cake” which is packed with all kinds of elements (except raisins!).
Pro Tips:
This cake calls for walnuts, and they should be lightly toasted before adding to the batter. Toast them just enough to draw out the flavorful oils, but not so much that the walnuts become bitter. I toast mine in the oven at 350 for 5 minutes or less. Use your sense of smell for this!
The recipe makes enough frosting to cover the cake, and if that’s what you are going for, great! If you want a more decorative cake (like the one in the picture) with pattern and swirls you will need to increase the recipe by 50%, or double it and have more than enough for filling etc.
The cake pictured has layers of cheesecake for the filling. This is A LOT more work, but kind of worth it. It involves making my classic cheesecake recipe divided into two pans lined with parchment, baking those the day before and then using them between the carrot cake layers. This cake is really good on it’s own, however, so you might want to keep it simple!
Fully Loaded Carrot Cake
A classic layered carrot cake packed with nuts and spices. A perfect blend of moist and fluffy and flavorful.
- Prep Time: 50 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Category: cakes
- Cuisine: dessert
Ingredients
For the Cake:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter at room temperature
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 cup old fashioned oats
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup sweetened coconut
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup toasted walnuts chopped
For the Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1 1/2 cups butter at room temperature
pinch of salt
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Prepare three 8″ round cake pans with cooking spray and parchment paper.
Preheat oven to 350
Mix butter with sugars until light and fluffy. Add the vegetable oil to combine. Mix in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix in the applesauce and buttermilk. Fold in the carrots, coconut and walnuts. Divide the batter between the three pans and bake for 25-30 minutes. Mine were done at 28 minutes.
Allow the cakes to cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before turning them out onto racks. Cool completely before frosting the cake.
For the Frosting:
Mix the cream cheese and butter until combined. Add the salt and powdered sugar and mix until light and creamy.
I didn’t think I liked carrot cake until I tried this one!
★★★★★