This incredibly moist carrot cake recipe is hands down the best I’ve ever had! The soft spice infused carrot cake layers are bursting with flavor and dotted with nuts that add the most wonderful texture. Filled and topped with a tangy cream cheese frosting, and already boasting more than 50 five star reviews, this recipe is a carrot cake lovers dream!!
Why You’ll Love This Carrot Cake Recipe
When developing any recipe, there are always two things at the forefront – flavor and texture. Let me tell you, this carrot cake recipe DOES NOT DISAPPOINT on both of those fronts!
Flavor
There are a few notable ingredients in this recipe that contribute to the incredible flavor of this cake.
Firstly, a carefully selected combination of spices are used for the cake layers, giving them the most cosy, warm taste! The spices used in this recipe are ground cinnamon, powdered ginger, cloves and nutmeg. I find that this combination works incredible well together, and I’ve used a similar combination in many of my other recipes (like my spice cake, pumpkin cake and very popular fruit cake).
Secondly, I use crushed pineapple in my carrot cake. Yes, you heard that right! It’s actually quite a common ingredient used in carrot cake, and it adds incredible flavor and texture.
Most importantly, this cake is packed with the star of the show – shredded carrots! I also like to add nuts (usually a combination of walnuts or pecans), which add another layer of flavor to the cake.
Oh and I almost forgot – yoghurt! I love using yoghurt in my cake recipes to add additional flavor and moisture, and this recipe is no exception.
Texture
This carrot cake recipe is so soft with a very moist crumb, and there are a few ingredients to thank for that!
Firstly, oil. I usually use a combination of unflavored vegetable oil (canola oil) and butter in most of my cake recipes, however with recipes that have a lot of shredded vegetables, it’s often better to use only oil. This is because carrot cakes (and similar recipes) are on the heavier side, and using butter alone can make for a very dense and overly heavy cake. With this cake having so much flavor, butter isn’t really needed, so I opted to only use oil. It makes for a super soft and not too heavy carrot cake!
Secondly, I opted to use only light soft brown sugar for this recipe, and no granulated sugar at all. Brown sugar adds additional moisture and flavor to the cake, and the amount used in this recipe allows for the brown sugar to really shine without making for an overly dense cake (which too much brown sugar can do!).
Shredded carrots, yoghurt and pineapple also add to the super moist texture of the carrot cake recipe.
One last notable ingredient is cornstarch. I like to substitute a small amount of the all purpose flour in most of my cake recipes with cornstarch for a softer cake. This is because cornstarch doesn’t contain any gluten (unlike flour), so having a little less gluten in the cake batter results in a softer cake. It’s a careful balance though, as not enough gluten will result in a cake that won’t hold together.
How to Make Carrot Cake
This carrot cake recipe is SO EASY to put together as it uses the ‘muffin method’ of making cake batter. This is when the wet and dry ingredients are combined separately (no electric mixer required) and then combined together at the end.
Begin by preheating your oven to 160°C (320°F) fan forced (increase the temperature to 180C/350F if using a conventional oven with no fan), and grease and/or line two 8 inch round cake pans. I like to grease my cake tins with my homemade cake release.
In a bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine soft brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla, yoghurt and crushed pineapple. Using a whisk, stir until well combined, and then for a further minute to incorporate some air into the batter.
Add your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and using a rubber spatula, gently fold together until just combined. Do not overmix.
Add in the grated carrots and walnuts and/or pecans. Using a spatula, gently fold through until just combined. Do not overmix.
Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and then give the cake tins a light bang on the counter to release any large air bubbles.
Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting with my favourite cream cheese buttercream. This buttercream has a wonderful tang, with the addition of lemon juice as well. I highly recommend pairing it with this carrot cake recipe!
For tips on how I decorated my cake, check out the recipe video below 🙂
Commonly Asked Questions
How do you store carrot cake?
This carrot cake can be left at room temperature for the day, however overnight it will need to be refrigerated due to the cream cheese in the frosting. The fat and sugar in the frosting will prevent the cream cheese from going off immediately which is why you can keep it out at room temperature for an extended period of time.
When storing, place it into an airtight container, and into the refrigerator. Allow it to come to room temperature before serving.
What are some other common additions to carrot cake batter?
In addition to spices and nuts, other additions to carrot cake recipes include pineapple (like I have used in this recipe), shredded coconut and raisins.
Moist Carrot Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 2 cups (225 g) finely grated carrots - about 3 medium sized carrots
- 1 cup (190 g) canned pineapple - blended (remove the liquid from the can before blending - see note 4). Use canned pineapple in juice (not syrup).
- 2¼ cups (290 g) flour - plain, all purpose
- ¼ cup (30 g) cornstarch
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2½ tsp cinnamon - ground
- 1¾ tsp ginger - ground/powdered
- ¼ tsp cloves - ground
- ½ tsp nutmeg - ground
- 1½ cups (300 g) soft brown sugar - firmly packed (see note 2)
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola
- 3 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- ½ cup (110 g) yoghurt - unsweetened, regular not Greek (low fat Greek yoghurt is okay). Room temperature.
- 1 cup (100 g) pecans or walnuts - coarsely chopped. I like to use both so I use 1/2 a cup of each.
Cream Cheese Frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (see note 3 if you don't have a fan function) and grease and/or line two 8 inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release).
- Begin by peeling and finely grating your carrots and set them aside for later. Also prepare your pineapples, so blend your canned pineapple (remember to discard the liquid before blending) and set aside for later.
- In a bowl, sift together your flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Using a whisk, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl combine your soft brown sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla, yoghurt and crushed pineapple. Using a whisk, mix until well combined, and then for a further minute to incorporate some air into the batter.
- Add your dry ingredients into your wet mixture and using a spatula, gently fold together until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Add in the grated carrots and walnuts and/or pecans. Using a spatula, gently fold through until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and then give the cake tins a light bang on the counter to release any large air bubbles.
- Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the cake tins for about 20 minutes and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool, before frosting with my favourite cream cheese buttercream.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
255 Comments
Hi! Your recipe looks amazing! thanks for sharing. I have some questions to ask,
1. Its impossible to find canned pineapples in juice here where I live! Do you think is better to use fresh one or canned one but in syrup?
2. Do you think using smaller size pans (18cm == 7inches) would make the inside raw? How do I adjust the baking time?
Thanks in advance!
Hi Azka! Thanks so much 😀
I think it’ll still be better to use the canned one (as opposed to fresh), just keep in mind the cake may be a little sweeter because of the syrup. I haven’t tried 7 inch tins so not sure if the cake would rise as well if you used all the batter in two 7 inch tins. What I would recommend for best results is to make 1x the recipe, distribute most of it into the 7 inch tins (just make sure the cake layers aren’t too thick) and use the little bit of extra batter to make a few cupcakes on the side. This will ensure the cake layers bake evenly 🙂
The cook time in 7 inch tins will also likely be shorter so I would check the cakes about 5 minutes earlier than the stated cook time.
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Just made this carrot cake for a birthday. It really is an amazing cake. So moist and delicious. I don’t do a lot of baking anymore, so I easily doubled the prep time. I’d allow for that, and pan prep would def need to allow more time as well.
You won’t be sorry you made this with the cream cheese icing!
Yay! So happy you enjoyed the carrot cake Ey 😀
Hi MK
If I want to add raisins as well how much can I add?
Hi Tyrone! 🙂
I haven’t tried adding raisins in myself, but I think around 1/4 to 1/2 cup should work well 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi
Can this recipe be used for cupcakes too?
Thank you
Hi Elsa! 🙂
Yes you can totally use this recipe to make cupcakes, you’d just want to reduce the cook time to around the 18 min mark 🙂
Enjoy!
Hi
I’m planning to bake 2,6″ cake pans. So should I half the whole recipe?
Thank you
Hi Elsa! 🙂
Yes that’s correct, for two 6 inch cakes you want to half the recipe and check them a little earlier too as they may bake a little faster. Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Best carrot cake ever!!!! It came out perfectly. Fluffy and moist with smooth edges. Thanks you very much for sharing this recipe with us.
You’re so welcome Noni! So so happy to hear you loved the carrot cake 😀
Hi MK, love your recipes! I’ve done so many and they have never been a disappointment thank you so much.
Can I make these into cupcakes and if so how long should I bake them for?
Hi Abby!
So so happy to hear you’re loving the recipes 😀
Yes you can totally make these into cupcakes. I would check around the 18 min mark and then bake more if needed 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hello! Is the weight of the pineapple after removing the liquid? Or do I weigh out the pineapple straight from the can first, then remove the liquid? Thank you in advanced!
Hi Gloria!
The weight of the pineapple is after the liquid has been removed 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hai Maryam❤️ Much Love from Sri Lanka… I loved the way you present everything… i want to know that can we use curd instead of yoghurt? TIA
Hi Shazny! So glad you’re loving the content 😀
I haven’t tried that myself but if the curd is relatively thick it should be okay 🙂
Enjoy!
What can I use instead of pineapple? Can I skip adding pineapple and still get the same taste?
Hi Imani! 🙂
I wouldn’t recommend skipping the pineapple as it adds moisture to the batter, but you can substitute it with apple sauce if you like! This will help to ensure there is enough moisture in the cake 🙂
The taste will be slightly different, but will still be delicious!
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂