Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

This carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is amazingly flavourful without being overly sweet. You won't able to stop eating it! It's quick and easy to make and you don’t even need a mixer for the batter because it comes together in bowls using a whisk and a spatula. The frosting smooths beautifully and can be decorated just like buttercream!

Why This Carrot Cake Recipe Is So Easy

One of the things I love about this carrot cake recipe is that it’s mixed by hand. There’s no need to pull out a mixer, which makes the process faster and the cleanup easier.

Instead of creaming butter and sugar, you’ll simply mix the ingredients in two bowls: one for the wet ingredients and one for the dry ingredients. Once both are prepared, the dry ingredients are stirred into the wet ingredients to form the batter. This method keeps the cake tender and moist without requiring any special equipment. You will need a cheese grater to grate the carrots, or a food processor if you have one!

This carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is a very flexible recipe when it comes to cake size. The same batter works perfectly for either a two-layer 8-inch cake or a three-layer 6-inch cake, and the same amount of frosting will fill and frost either size.

How to Mix the Carrot Cake Batter

Start by preparing your cake pans. Grease the pans well so the cakes release easily after baking. (If you want to make cupcakes instead, try my one bowl carrot cupcakes!)

In your first bowl, mix the wet ingredients together. Use a whisk to combine everything until smooth and evenly blended. Because this cake is mixed by hand, you don’t need to worry about overmixing at this stage.

In a second bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Stir these together so the spices and leavening are evenly distributed throughout the flour.

Next, add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients. Fold the ingredients into each other gently with a spatula or spoon just until everything is combined. The batter should look thick and smooth.

When you can't see the flour anymore, add the grated carrots. Freshly grated carrots work best because they add moisture and a natural sweetness to the cake. If you like a bit of crunch in your carrot cake, you can also add chopped nuts like walnuts or pecans at this stage.

Once everything is mixed, divide the batter evenly between your prepared cake pans.

Baking Your Carrot Cake Layers

This recipe works beautifully for two different cake sizes. If you’re making an 8-inch cake, divide the batter between two pans for a classic two-layer cake. If you prefer a taller cake, divide the batter between three 6-inch pans.

Spread the batter evenly in the pans and bake until the cakes are set in the middle and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in their pans for a few minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Cooling the cakes fully before frosting is important so the frosting doesn’t melt when it touches the cake.

Why This Cream Cheese Frosting Works So Well

Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is a classic flavour combination because the tanginess of the cream cheese balances the sweetness of the cake beautifully.

However, traditional cream cheese frosting can sometimes be quite soft, which can make it tricky to spread smoothly onto a cake or to use for decorating.

My favourite solution is to start with a stiff buttercream base and then fold cream cheese into it at the end. This method creates a frosting that still has the rich tangy flavour of cream cheese but with a much more stable consistency.

How to Make Stable Cream Cheese Frosting

Begin by making a thick buttercream base. Beat the butter and powdered sugar together until the frosting becomes smooth. It will be very stiff because you'd normally add milk at this stage to thin it out, but don't! You'll need it to be stiff.

Now add the cream cheese. Instead of beating it in aggressively, gently fold the cream cheese into the buttercream until it’s fully incorporated. Folding rather than whipping helps keep the frosting smooth and prevents it from becoming too soft.

The result is a beautifully creamy frosting that spreads easily onto the cake while still holding its shape.

Assembling the Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Once your carrot cake layers are completely cool, it’s time to assemble the cake.

Place the first cake layer onto your cake board or serving plate. If you're going to drive anywhere with the cake, I recommend spreading some frosting onto the board or plate first. This will act as glue to attach to the cake and hold it in place.

Spread a layer of cream cheese frosting over the top of the first cake layer. Add the next cake layer and if you’re making a three-layer cake, continue with another layer of frosting and the final layer of cake.

Put the cake into the fridge for 30 minutes or the freezer for 15 minutes before frosting it. Cold cake is firmer and less crumbly so it will be easier to frost afterwards.

How to Frost a Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Finish by spreading frosting over the top and around the sides of the cake. Because this frosting has a buttercream base, it’s much easier to smooth neatly compared to traditional cream cheese frosting.

If you struggle with smooth frosting, add texture instead by dragging a spatula or the back of a spoon around the cake. It's easier to make this look neat compared to smooth frosting, and it looks just as pretty!

Decorating a Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Decorating options are endless for this carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. Add sprinkles, flowers, a cake topper... Or pipe tiny carrots to divide the cake into portions! I used a small (#4) round piping tip for these and I scooped out a few spoonfuls of the buttercream before adding cream cheese. This consistency is much easier to pipe with than after adding the cream cheese.

Pipe zigzags of orange buttercream onto a piece of parchment or wax paper, which is much easier than piping straight onto the top of the cake. Pipe a few green spikes at the top of each carrot and then put them into the freezer for 10 minutes to chill and harden. Now you can pick them up and place them onto your cake!

For more cake decorating techniques and designs, visit my cake school 🙂

This cake is always a crowd favourite. If you want to make cupcakes instead, try my one bowl carrot cupcakes! You'll find the recipe below and you can toggle the ingredients between Metric measurements (grams) and US (measuring cups and spoons).

Keep the cake in the fridge for up to 3 days and take it out 3 hours before serving, to allow it to warm up to room temperature. Enjoy!

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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• Author: Emily

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Description

This lightly spiced carrot cake with tangy cream cheese frosting is amazingly flavourful, not too sweet, and easy to frost! Use this recipe to make a two-layer 8 inch cake or a 3-layer 6 inch cake.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

For the cake:

• 1 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 cups carrot, grated
• 1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional!)

  For the cream cheese frosting:

• 2 cups unsalted butter, softened
• 8 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt*
• 1 cup cream cheese, softened

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Instructions

Make the cake:

1. Stir the oil and sugars together. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir to combine.
2. Add the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Stir as few times as possible, just until you can’t see the flour in the batter anymore.
3. Add carrot and nuts if you're using them, and fold into the batter with no more than 5 strokes of your spatula.
4. Divide the batter between two greased 8 inch pans or three greased 6 inch pans.
5. Bake at 325F or 160C for 30 minutes, until the cakes spring back slowly when you poke them or a toothpick poked into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Let the cakes sit in their pans for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.

 

Make the cream cheese frosting:

1. Take butter and cream cheese out of the fridge a few hours before using to allow them to soften.
2. Using a mixer on the lowest speed, mix the butter and powdered sugar until smooth.
3. Mix in vanilla and salt.
4. Add cream cheese and fold in using a spatula.

Put it all together:

1. Spread some frosting onto the middle of a cake board or plate and press your first layer of cake down onto it, to attach it.
2. Spread frosting to cover the top of the cake layer, as filling. Lower your next cake layer on top. If you're making a three layer cake, repeat with another layer of filling and the final cake layer.
3. Put the cake into the fridge for 30 minutes or the freezer for 15 minutes to chill. Then spread cream cheese frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Smooth with a cake scraper or add texture by dragging an offset spatula (palette knife) or the back of a spoon around the cake.
4. Store this cake in the fridge for up to 3 days but serve at room temperature by taking it out of the fridge 2-4 hours before slicing.

Notes

*If you use salted butter, leave out the salt from the frosting.

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