The Best Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

This is hands-down the best carrot cake ever! Simple and straightforward, it is ultra moist, fluffy, and incredibly delicious.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is the best carrot cake I have ever tasted! Incredibly moist, but not too moist, and so much flavor!! -Sarah

Why This is The Best Carrot Cake Recipe

Hundreds (and hundreds!) of reviewers have rated give this carrot cake recipe a 5-star review. It really is the best, and here is why:

• It is a one-bowl recipe. Mix the batter together by hand (no need for a stand mixer!).
• The cake is incredibly moist, soft and fluffy.
• Bake the cake as a layer cake, sheet cake, bundt cake or as cupcakes.
• The cake is perfectly spiced with just the right hint of warm baking spices.
• The creamy frosting is absolute perfection with the moist carrot cake.

Key Ingredients Notes

• Carrots: Finely shred the carrots for the best texture. I use a food processor fitted with the fine shredding disk (no need to peel the carrots before shredding, just trim off the ends).
• Sugar: This cake recipe uses both brown sugar and granulated sugar for flavor and moistness.
• Eggs: Use large-size eggs for this recipe. The total weight of the eggs will be 200 grams out of shell.
• Oil: I prefer using vegetable, canola or other neutral-flavored oil.
• Unsweetened applesauce: The original recipe used all oil (1 1/2 cups total). Over the years, I’ve subbed 1/2 cup of the oil with unsweetened applesauce and can’t tell a difference in the baked cake. If you don’t have applesauce or don’t want to use it, use the full 1 1/2 cups oil in the cake.
• Flour: I use unbleached all-purpose flour for this cake.
• Spices: Pantry-friendly spices like ground cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves perfectly flavor the cake batter.
• Cream cheese: Full-fat cream cheese is recommended for the frosting.
• Sour cream: A small amount of sour cream is added to the cream cheese frosting to cut the richness and add a bright counter balance to the flavor.

When making the cake batter, mix the batter JUST until it is incorporated. Avoid over mixing as it can create a denser, heavier cake.

Pan Size Variations for Carrot Cake

The following pans can be used for this recipe:

• 9X13-inch baking pan
• Two 9-inch round cake pans to frost as a layer cake, if desired
• Cupcake pans for a yield of 24 to 30 cupcakes
• 12-cup bundt pan

The recipe can also be easily halved (for a 9X9-inch square baking pan, one 9-inch circle pan, or fewer cupcakes).

Frosting and Decorating Carrot Cake

The cream cheese frosting in this recipe is ultra-soft and creamy, which makes it perfect for swooping and spreading around the edges of a layer cake or on the top of a sheet cake, but the frosting is a bit too soft to hold up to piping.

If you’ve never added a tiny bit of sour cream to cream cheese frosting, the small amount adds a wonderful dimension and depth of flavor to the super sweet frosting. I never make cream cheese frosting without it.

I do not like adding nuts to carrot cake batter (or any cake batter, for that matter). But toasted pecans do add a tasty crunch and texture to the outside of this carrot cake. I usually sprinkle them on top of the frosting (whether it is a layer cake or sheet cake).

The Best Carrot Cake Ever

This cake stays moist for days, making it a wonderful make-ahead dessert. Fully frost (to seal in the moisture) and store in the refrigerator. Who knew that chilled carrot cake is a food straight from heaven?

This really is the best carrot cake ever. The flavor is spot-on. The cake is soft and sturdy. It is moist and absolutely magnificent.

This carrot cake is such a tried-and-true, foolproof recipe, that I haven’t had a need or desire to try another classic carrot cake recipe in over 15 years. Just read through the reviews, and you’ll see that I’m not alone in this sentiment! I’m so excited for you to have the best carrot cake recipe at your fingertips.

The Best Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Yield: 15 Servings

Prep Time: 45 minutes mins

Cook Time: 40 minutes mins

Cooling/Chilling Time: 3 hours hrs

Total Time: 4 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

4.70 stars (280 ratings)

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Ingredients

Cake:

• 1 pound medium carrots, 6 to 7 large carrots, ends trimmed (no need to peel)
• 1 ½ cups (318 g) granulated sugar
• ½ cup (106 g) packed light brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup vegetable, canola or other neutral-flavored oil (see note)
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce (see note)
• 2 ½ cups (355 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon table salt
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves

Cream Cheese Frosting (*see note for doubling):

• 8 ounces (227 g) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 5 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ¼ cups (143 g) powdered sugar
• Toasted chopped pecans, for garnish (optional)

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Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position.
• Lightly grease preferred baking pans (see note below for pan options) and line bottom with parchment (optional but helpful for 9-inch round pans). Set aside.
• For the carrots, finely shred the carrots in a food processor or on a box grater for about 3 cups/400 g total. Set aside.
• For the cake batter, in a large bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and eggs until well combined.
• Add the oil and applesauce and whisk until the batter is light in color and the oil is thoroughly emulsified in the batter.
• Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cloves. Mix until just a few dry streaks of batter remain.
• Add the carrots and mix until evenly combined (don't over mix).
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake until the top springs back lightly to the touch and a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

  9X13-inch pan: 45 to 50 minutes

  9-inch round pans: 32 to 35 minutes

  Cupcakes: 17 to 20 minutes

  Bundt pan: 50 to 60 minutes
• For round cake pans or a bundt pan, let the cakes cool for 5 to 7 minutes before turning them out to cool completely on a parchment-lined wire rack (this helps the cakes not stick to the rack as they cool).
• For cupcakes, remove from the pan a minute or two after they come out of the oven and cool completely on a cooling rack.
• For a 9X13-inch pan (or other sheet pan), let the cake cool completely in the pan.
• For the frosting (IMPORTANT: see note below about doubling), with a handheld or stand electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla at medium speed until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Add the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and creamy.
• Frost the cake as desired. Top with toasted pecans. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Notes

Pan Options: This cake can be baked in one 9X13-inch pan, a 12-cup bundt pan, two 9-inch round cake pans, or cupcake pans (for a yield of 24 to 30 cupcakes). 

Frosting: The frosting recipe, as written, is enough for the top of a 9X13-inch cake or to frost a bundt cake. Double the frosting recipe to cover a 9-inch layer cake or to frost the top of cupcakes. 

Oil + Applesauce: The original recipe called for 1 1/2 cups oil. Over the years (and after hundreds of comments), I’ve found I prefer 1 cup oil + 1/2 cup applesauce. Many others have made this cake using 3/4 cup oil + 3/4 cup applesauce with good results or 3/4 cup oil + 3/4 cup buttermilk. 

Make-Ahead: This cake can be made and frosted up to 24 hours in advance. Store in the refrigerator.  

Author: Mel

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Method: Bake

Serving: 1 Serving, Calories: 348kcal, Carbohydrates: 59g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 71mg, Sodium: 317mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 39g

Recommended Products

9-inch Cake Pan

Box Grater

Breville Food Processor

Recipe Source: Cooks Illustrated (with my notes included)
Recipe originally posted March 2008; updated February 2025 and March 2026 with new photos, recipe notes, etc.

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