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They’re Lovin’ It! Here’s what They’re Sayin’:
โThe one, and only, recipe for carrot cake in my house.
Brown butter frosting is a revelation and the cake is so flavorful.โ
โPAM
The Lowdown on The Best Carrot Cake
Big mama made fantastic carrot cakes. They were so wonderful to enjoy during the Spring. Her mix of fresh shredded carrots with hints of pineapple, spices, and roasted nuts with a smearing of creamy cream cheese frosting is absolutely perfect!
I added a slight remix by browning the butter to make that frosting pop even more, and let me tell ya, it’s an absolute hit!
Ingredients you’ll need to make Southern Carrot Cake
- Self-Rising Flour: To avoid a super dense cake, I use a self-rising flour which has baking powder. The additional leavening prevents the development of too much gluten so it stays nice and tender boos. Thank you to Mama Dip for this amazing tip!
- Spices: Cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and allspice are all in the mix. They layer in warmth, a sweetly pungent aroma and peppery overtones.
- Vegetable Oil: Oil keeps this cake super moist y’all.
- Grated Carrots: I personally prefer to freshly grate my own carrots because thereโs a cleaner, more prominent earthy and sweet flavor.
- Roasted Walnuts: They add a smoky, nutty essence with a hint of texture.
- Crushed Pineapples: This gives us a lil’ extra fruity sweetness with a hint of texture. I also like the extra moisture it gives.
- Cream Cheese: If your carrot cake ain’t got tangy, smooth and rich cream cheese frosting, I don’t want it!
- Butter: I brown it to let that nuttiness add some depth to the frosting making it unlike anything you have ever tasted boos.
How to make Carrot Cake
What to serve with this carrot cake recipe
- Southern Comfort: Get into these beef tips, baked macaroni and cheese, candied yams and Southern green beans. They are the perfect start before you diving into your carrot cake.
- Sunday Supper: Smothered pork chops, sour cream mashed potatoes, turnip greens and Jiffy cornbread make the perfect dinner to serve along with your cake.
- Spring Entertaining: Impress your guests with some crab stuffed salmon, creamed spinach and Jollof rice.
Recipe Substitutions
- Walnuts: Swap out the nuts completely if you don’t like them or replace with pecans or almonds.
- Spices: Keep the spice needs down by swapping in a tablespoon of apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice instead.
- Granulated sugar: You can replace with some homemade brown sugar to add a bit more depth.
- Crushed Pineapple: You can play around with apple sauce which will keep the cake moist and fruity as well.
Recipe Variations and Additions
- Gluten-Free: Swap in a good gluten-free self-rising flour so your gluten intolerant boos can enjoy this.
- Add Citrus: Tossing in some orange zest or lime zest will really make the flavors pop with brightness.
- Add Coconut: Add a 1/2 cup of shredded coconut to the mix for some island vibes.
Expert Tips and Tricks for making the best carrot cake recipe
- Don’t Drain ALL the Pineapple: You want to keep that juice. It adds moisture and more flavor.
- Toast the Nuts Boos!: It really brings out more texture and richer flavors.
- Grate Finely: A food processor is a great tool to use to get those carrots small so they blend perfectly into the batter.
- Don’t Overmix: Overmixing makes a super tough and overly dense cake.
How to store carrot cake
Keep your freshly baked Carrot Cake in a dry, cool area and cover with foil or plastic wrap to keep from drying out. At room temperature, the cake will last for 1-2 days.
How long will it last in the fridge?
It will last up to a week in the fridge.
Can I freeze carrot cake?
Absolutely boos, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap then place it in a heavy-duty freezer bag. The quality will stay great for 4-6 months.
Frequently asked questions
Absolutely boos! Bake the layers and wrap in plastic wrap tightly. You can keep them at room temp for about 2 days before frosting and serving up.
If your cream cheese frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time until you reach the consistency. If it’s too thick, add a teaspoon of milk until it thins out to be spreadable.
This seriously is the best carrot cake eva! I wouldn’t lie to ya. The flavors are earthy, fruity, spiced and nuanced. Super moist, tender and melt in your mouth, it is the ultimate cake. And that brown butter cream cheese frosting is everything! Get into it.
More Carrot Recipes
Carrot Cake Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 1/2 cups self rising flour self rising flour usually has salt in it which is why it was omitted here but if you want a bit more you can add 1/4 tsp of salt as well
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 3 cups grated carrots finely
- 1/2 cup crushed pineapple with juice
- 1 cup chopped roasted walnuts optional
For the Frosting
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 16 oz cream cheese somewhat softened but still a little stiff/ 16 oz is 2 (8 oz) packages
- 3 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar if you want the frosting more stiff, add another 1/2 cup going up to 4 cups total
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Sift together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice and baking soda and set aside.
- Next line the bottoms of 3 9โ inch round cake pans with parchment paper and lightly grease.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, beat sugar, oil and vanilla together at medium speed. Next add eggs, one at a time, blending after each incorporation.
- Next slow down the mixer to lowest speed and add flour mixture in increments.
- Fold in carrots, crushed pineapple if desired and walnuts if desired.
- Evenly pour batter into cake pans.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool cake layers in pans for 10 minutes then flip cakes onto cooling racks to cool completely.
For the Frosting
- In a small saucepan, add butter and melt over medium heat. Once the butter has fully melted, a white foam will begin to appear over the top of the butter.
- Watch carefully as the butterโs color changes to brown and the smell of the butter becomes somewhat nutty.
- As soon as the butter is an amber brown color, remove from heat and cool in the refrigerator until it the butter has become solid again (can take about an hour or so).
- Add cooled brown butter and cream cheese to the bowl of your mixer and beat on high speed until it begins to thicken and fluff.
- Next slow down mixer and carefully add in confectionerโs sugar. Once all sugar has incorporated, turn mixer back to high to continue whipping.
- Add salt and vanilla extract and continue whipping until it is smooth.
- Spread frosting between layers and around cake and serve.
Hello Jocelyn,
Would this recipe for carrot cake work with a gluten free flour? Maybe with additional baking powder?
I canโt wait to try this!
Thanks:)
Laurel
I have had a few people use a baking swap cup for cup flour and it work really well!
Iโm going to try this carrot cake next week for Easter and was wondering if I can use a Bundt pan to cook it in? Thanks!
If you are looking for a bundt carrot cake, this one is a great one specifically for that https://grandbaby-cakes.com/easy-carrot-cake-pound-cake-recipe/
Moist, but the best part of the recipe is def the browned butter in the frosting.
As for the RAF, carrots and eyesight: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fact-or-fiction-carrots-improve-your-vision/
Would canola oil be equivalent to vegetable oil or is vegetable the best for this recipe?
You can use canola. That’s fine.
I made this recipe into cupcakes and I LOVED the texture!
These were made for a wedding shower. BIG RAVE REVIEWS!
How long did you bake the cupcakes for?
Here is the cupcake recipe: https://grandbaby-cakes.com/carrot-cake-cupcakes/
What would you recommend as a good sub for eggs to make the cake vegan? There are so many different substitutes but I just wonder which you would say would work best.
I personally have not tried an egg sub for this cake yet but here is my full list of great egg subs https://grandbaby-cakes.com/egg-substitutes/
This cake looks amazing!
Can I use three 8 inch cake pans.? I only have 1 9 inch pan.
Can I add raisins, and if so, how much do you suggest?
Yes you can use 8 inch and I wouldn’t go over 1 cup of raisins for this batter. Maybe add 1/2 a cup first and see if that works for you then add the rest based on how it looks in the batter.
Some tips to help any UK bakers from the frosting (icing!) nightmare Iโve been having, as I suspect our ingredients are a bit different:
1) You MUST use the thickest, richest, full fat cream cheese you can find. The reduced fat stuff has added water and stabilisers and wont thicken.
2) Donโt over-beat / over-whip. As you beat cream cheese, water comes out of it (due to the change in the protein structure of the cheese โsqueezingโ water out). The icing sugar (powdered /confectioners sugar) dissolves in this water becoming a liquid sugar and this wont thicken.
3) Once your brown butter is solid again, cream it back up with a wooden spoon or your mixer before mixing in the cream cheese. If itโs too cold the butter stays in tiny lumps in your frosting. Since the butter is a more solid fat, not having it mixed in properly also hinders the thickening.
In short, over-whipped, reduced fat cream cheese frosting is basically a wicked sweet milkshake, with butter lumps!!
Softened brown butter with gently folded-in full-fat cream cheese for the win.
Is it possible to halve the recipe to make it for 8?
Thank you!
I just posted the cupcake version of this recipe if you want to make it for a smaller crowd. https://grandbaby-cakes.com/carrot-cake-cupcakes/
Can I use cake flour for this recipe?
I would not use that in place of the self rising flour.
We are not big carrot cake eaters but, for a change, my husband asked for carrot cake for his birthday. I chose this recipe because it won the carrot cake smackdown, and I was hoping for a better-than-average carrot cake, especially because there was browned butter. WOW–it is one of our favorite cakes now. I can’t believe how awesome it is! That browned butter! And the crushed pineapple is perfect. It took slightly less time to bake. The top was completely smooth, thanks to the parchment. It was almost crispy (so I didn’t have to freeze while frosting) while the inside was still wonderfully moist. I only have 2 pans, so I baked two at first and then baked the the third when the first two were cooling.
Thanks for such a great recipe!