What would Easter be without carrot cake anyway? My husband’s absolute favourite dessert in the world is carrot cake, so I made it my mission to perfect this recipe. After testing it again and again, I can confidently say this is the one. Soft, perfectly spiced, incredibly moist, and topped with the dreamiest cream cheese icing. I already know it’s going to be the most requested dessert in our house for years to come.
If you’re looking for a classic, crowd-pleasing Easter dessert, this is it.
This carrot cake is everything you want it to be. Light yet rich, warmly spiced, and perfectly balanced with a tangy, smooth cream cheese frosting. Made with simple, wholesome ingredients, it’s the kind of recipe you’ll come back to every single year.
Ingredients:
MAKES ONE 13- x 9-inch CAKE! I doubled the recipe listed below to achieve a 4-layer cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cups vegetable oil
- 3/4 cups brown sugar, packed
- 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups grated carrots
- 1 can (398 mL) crushed pineapple, drained
- Cream cheese icing:
- 2 (8oz) packages of cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups icing sugar
- For garnish:
- 3 carrots, peeled & halved
- 1/2 cup mini eggs, crushed
Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease a 13- x 9-inch metal pan.
- In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, beat together eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, veg oil and vanilla until smooth.
- Stir this into flour mixture until just combined then stir in the carrots and pineapple until well combined.
- Scrape this mixture into 2 greased and floured 8-inch round cake pans.
- Bake in 350 F oven for 35 minutes. Allow cakes to cool in pan, remove and allow to completely cool before icing.
- *(I often make the cake the day before and let it rest a day before icing!)
Cream Cheese Icing:
- In bowl, beat cream cheese with butter until smooth followed by vanilla.
- Next, beat in icing sugar 1/4 cup at a time, until smooth and well combined.
- Slice each cake in half horizontally to make 4 layers. Place 1 layer, cut side up, on a cake plate. Spread about 3/4 cup of the icing over cut side – top with 1 of the remaining layers, cut side down. Repeat with remaining cake layers and icing.
- Using a large offset palette knife, spread a layer of the remaining icing all over cake to seal in crumbs and refrigerate for about 30 minute to firm up.
- Use a dollop of icing to stick your carrots to the top and finish with mini egg dirt around the base of the carrots and base of the cake.
CHEZ CHANELLE 