Just the mention of carrot cake is that perfect blend of vegetable and naughty treat. It’s a recipe we all know and love, and it absolutely HAS to come with cream cheese icing. That thick, cloud-like topping, which simply oozes creaminess. The grated carrots give the cake a wonderful moist and delicate crumb, and the mix of heady spices, and the crunch of the chopped nuts combine to make the most delectable teatime treat.
Carrot cake – a cake of two halves
There’s something utterly magical about carrot cake – a dessert that somehow convinces us we’re being virtuous by eating vegetables, while delivering pure indulgence in every bite.
Carrot cake is all about the balance. The cake itself is incredibly moist and tender, studded with finely grated carrots that add natural sweetness, and the warm spices – cinnamon, nutmeg, and just a whisper of ginger – create layers of comfort that make each forkful feel like autumn wrapped in cake form.
But that’s only half the story. Carrot cake wouldn’t be complete without its infamous cream cheese icing. And if you’re my husband, this is the most important chapter! Tangy, rich, and impossibly smooth, it’s the perfect counterpart to the cake’s warmth and spice. This isn’t an overly sweet butter icing – it’s an icing that makes this cake sophisticated enough for dinner parties yet comforting enough for an afternoon treat with coffee.
Other carrot recipes
Below please find a variety of other carrot recipes you can find on Eat Your Greens:
- Roasted carrot and lentil salad
- Moroccan chickpea and vegetable tagine
- Carrot and coriander soup
- Carrot and lentil Bolognese
Growing carrots
One of the most, if not the most, important considerations when growing carrots is the soil. It needs to be light, well-drained and above all contain minimal stones. It’s important to sow as sparingly as possible in shallow drills and thin out seedlings when they appear. Baby carrots can be harvested in as little as 4-6 weeks, but larger varieties take around 3 months to mature.
Some popular varieties include: Nantes (classic sweet tasting), Chantenay (short and stubby), Autumn King (large and long), Purple Haze (a striking colourful addition to the plate).
Yes, pecan nuts would work very well as an alternative to walnuts.
Stored in a cool, dry place, in an airtight container, this cake will last 3-4 days.
Carrot Cake
Equipment
- free-standing mixer or hand whisk
- 1 20cm/8" cake tin
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 260 g plain flour white or preferably wholemeal
- 320 g light soft brown sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp mixed spice
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 200 g vegetable oil rapeseed, sunflower or similar
- 4 eggs
- 300 g carrots
- 150 g walnuts
Cream Cheese Icing
- 200 g double cream
- 100 g icing sugar
- 200 g cream cheese
- ½ vanilla paste or 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 °C and place the shelf in the middle of the oven. Line a 20cm/8" deep, round, loose-bottomed tin with baking paper.
- Weigh all the dry ingredients into the large bowl of your free standing mixer (or a large bowl). Next, add in the oil, eggs, and mix everything on a slow speed to a smooth batter with the beater attachment. Scraping down the sides now and then. Otherwise, mix with a wooden spoon by hand.
- Coarsely grate your carrots, and add them to the mix, giving them a good stir to distribute them evenly.
- Chop the walnuts, and put all but 20g into the batter, and give everything a final mix. The remaining 20g will be used to decorate the cake later.
- Pour the cake mixture into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Bake in the oven for 90 minutes. The cake should be golden brown and when you insert a wooden toothpick it should come out dry. If it starts to brown too quickly, loosely cover with a sheet of foil.
- Remove from the oven, cool for 30 minutes, then remove from the tin (discarding the baking paper) and place on a wire rack to cool completely for another hour.
- Whilst the cake is cooling, you can turn your attention to the icing. Firstly sift your icing sugar into the bowl of your free-standing mixer (or a large bowl). I’m not one to waste time on sifting, but with icing sugar there are no shortcuts to having icing with no lumps!
- Add in the double cream and with the whisk attachment (or hand whisk) whip the cream and sugar together until it forms stiff peaks. Ie. It’s just holding its shape.
- You want to quickly whip the cream cheese in a separate bowl until it's smooth, to make it easier to mix quickly into the cream and sugar, and then add this to the main bowl. Whip again for approximately 1 minute.
- Add in the vanilla and salt and mix one final time.
- When the cake has totally cooled, put on your serving plate and smooth the icing on the top making swirls with a spoon. Sprinkle the remaining chopped walnuts on top.
Notes
- You can use other nuts than walnuts – pecans work well as an alternative.
- The carrot cake will keep for 3 days in a sealed container in a cool, dry place.
