Up to date: 4/3/25
Yearly, on the first signal of spring, I make this wholesome carrot cake recipe. It’s a fuss-free, decrease sugar, single-layer, delicate, and moist cake. I take advantage of applesauce to chop down on added sugar whereas nonetheless getting all of the candy and spiced taste of a traditional carrot cake. In keeping with my boys, nonetheless, one of the best half is the cream cheese frosting on prime.
Recipe Highlights
- It takes simply quarter-hour of prep time and a whole time of lower than an hour to have this favourite dessert prepared.
- One batch makes sufficient for 16 servings, so I believe it’s good for Easter, spring celebrations, and year-round household gatherings.
- WIth a easy swap, this recipe could be gluten-free. Plus, it’s simple to change it to be dairy free and vegan, making this a dessert I can depend on to swimsuit a wide range of dietary wants.
- I take advantage of applesauce to chop down on refined sweeteners. Plus, the nuts, carrots, and walnuts are healthful high-fiber meals that add diet, too.
Ingredient Spotlights
This isn’t the total checklist of substances, however only a few of my notes about the principle ones:
- Shredded carrots – I wish to shred the carrots myself with a field grater or my meals processor. But it surely’s simply wonderful to make use of store-bought grated carrots to save lots of time. Then, I take advantage of any further shredded carrots to make this favourite carrot cake baked oatmeal.
- Walnuts – these add a pleasant crunch to the cake, however I’ve additionally examined this recipe with out walnuts for a nut-free possibility, and it doesn’t impression the flavour. Generally I substitute pecans or pistachios for a barely totally different style
- Unsweetened applesauce – I add unsweetened applesauce to chop down on refined sugar. May use ½ cup of mashed banana or mashed candy potato rather than the applesauce.
Different non-obligatory mix-ins I’ve tried are shredded coconut, crushed pineapple, and a tablespoon of grated contemporary ginger (or 1 teaspoon floor ginger).
Discover the ingredient checklist with actual measurements within the recipe card under.
Kitchen Tools Wanted
This primary carrot cake recipe doesn’t require any speciality tools or instruments. Right here’s what to assemble with a view to make it:
- 8×8 inch sq. pan – I like an 8-inch pan as a result of it makes the cake squares taller. Nonetheless, a 9×9 inch cake pan works simply wonderful or use a 9-inch spherical pan to make a spherical cake
- Mixing bowl – I takes only one medium bowl to combine the moist substances, dry substances, and add ins all collectively
- Hand mixer – this makes simple work of blending the frosting in a big bowl
- Offset spatula or knife – an offset spatula is a helpful software for spreading the frosting
Flip The Batter Into Cupcakes
Use this similar recipe to make carrot cake cupcakes. To take action, comply with the recipe instructions, then divide the batter right into a 12-count cupcake pan lined with paper liners. Mist the cups with nonstick spray then fill each ⅔ full with the cake batter. Bake at 350 levels for a baking time of 18 to twenty minutes, or till a toothpick comes out dry and crumb free. Let the cupcakes cool fully earlier than topping with the frosting.
Make It Gluten Free
For a gluten-free carrot cake or gluten-free carrot cupcakes, merely swap the all-purpose flour for an equal quantity of a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour substitute, reminiscent of Bob’s Purple Mill One-to-One Gluten-Free Baking Flour or King Arthur Measure-for-Measure Gluten-Free Flour. Might have to extend the baking time by as much as 5 minutes.
Make It Dairy Free
Resulting from meals intolerances, I’ve to omit dairy from my eating regimen. Fortunately, this wholesome carrot cake recipe is simply as scrumptious and simple to make dairy-free with these swaps:
- Use dairy-free milk, reminiscent of unsweetened almond milk, within the batter and frosting
- Moreover, use vegan stick butter and vegan cream cheese (reminiscent of Tofutti or Treeline dairy-free cream cheese) for the frosting
Vegan Possibility
For a 100% plant-based carrot cake, use the dairy-free swaps listed above, plus use the next measurements to interchange the eggs with flax eggs.
To make flax eggs, whisk collectively 2 tablespoons floor flax meal + 4 tablespoons of heat water, let it set for 3-5 minutes to thicken, and add it to the batter. Then, add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to the batter.
One Of Our 5-Star Opinions ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Superb like all the opposite recipes on the Actual Meals RDs web site! I doubled the recipe and baked it in a 9×13” baking dish. It bought rave critiques from everybody. Good texture, moist, the proper quantity of sweetness with the added dietary worth of the carrots, raisins, and walnuts. My kids fortunately loved it. One other keeper!”
~ April
Serve And Get pleasure from
After I consider carrot cake, I usually affiliate it with Easter or Mom’s Day and serve it alongside different wholesome Easter recipes and Mom’s Day brunch recipes.
However why maintain one thing so scrumptious for only one season? I’m right here to say that this simple carrot cake recipe can (and will) be loved year-round. It’s an important stand-alone deal with and, personally, I believe it pairs splendidly with my cinnamon coconut latte for a day pick-me-up.
Storage Choices
Retailer the unfrosted cake in an hermetic container (or cowl the baking pan with aluminium foil) at room temperature for as much as 3 days. Retailer the frosted cake within the fridge for as much as 5 days.
Or, freeze the cake for as much as 3 months. To take action, let the cake cool fully after baking, and depart it unfrosted. Reduce it into items, and place the squares in a freezer-safe container within the freezer. To serve, thaw the servings within the fridge in a single day. It’s good each chilly or at room temperature. Whip up a contemporary batch of icing to easy excessive simply earlier than serving.
Incessantly Requested Questions
For an much more nutritious deal with, change the powdered sugar frosting with a smear of vanilla Greek yogurt or almond butter. Or, benefit from the bars unfrosted, as extra of a carrot cake bread.
Sure, merely double the batter substances to make sufficient to fill a 9×13 baking pan. Improve the baking time by 2-3 minutes.
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Recipe
Wholesome Carrot Cake Recipe
Comfortable, moist, and completely spiced, this wholesome carrot cake recipe is a straightforward twist on the traditional dessert and could be modified to be gluten-free with a easy swap. Served it as a single-layer cake or use the batter to make cupcakes. Topped cream cheese frosting, this can be a favourite dessert that’s good for gatherings.
Prep: quarter-hourPrepare dinner: 25 minutesComplete: 40 minutes
Servings: 16 servings 1x
Elements
For the Cake:
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 levels. Mist an 8×8 or 9×9 baking pan with nonstick spray. (TIP: For straightforward elimination of the cake from the pan, line the pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil strips, leaving further to hold over the sides. Mist the parchment or foil with nonstick spray.)
- In a medium bowl, cream collectively the eggs, sugar, milk, applesauce, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
- To the identical bowl, add the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, allspice, salt, and cloves; stir collectively. Fold within the shredded carrots, raisins, and walnuts; combine till integrated.
- Pour the batter into the ready baking dish and unfold evenly with a rubber spatula. Bake till a toothpick inserted within the heart comes out clear, 25 to half-hour. Take away the cake to a wire rack to chill fully earlier than frosting.
- To make the frosting: In a medium bowl, place the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla. Utilizing a hand mixer or picket spoon, mix the substances till easy, slowly rising the pace. When easy, slowly add the powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of milk; combine till blended.
- Gently unfold the frosting over the cooled carrot cake. If desired, garnish with further chopped nuts, a touch of cinnamon, and/or shredded contemporary carrots. Reduce into 16 items.
- Retailer unfrosted carrot cake in an hermetic container at room temperature for as much as 3 days. If carrot cake is frosted, retailer within the fridge for as much as 5 days.
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Notes
*For gluten free: use a 1-to-1 gluten-free baking flour mix, reminiscent of Bob’s Purple Mill Gluten-Free 1-for-1 Baking Flour or King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure-for-Measure Flour Mix.
For dairy free: Use an unsweetened non-dairy milk within the cake and frosting. Moreover, use vegan stick butter and vegan cream cheese (reminiscent of Tofutti or Treeline dairy-free cream cheese) for the frosting.
For egg free: Substitute ‘flax eggs’ for the eggs. To make sufficient to substitute for two eggs, whisk collectively 2 tablespoons floor flax meal + 4 tablespoons of heat water, let set for 3-5 minutes to thicken, then add to the batter. Additionally, stir 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar into the batter after including the flax eggs.
The diet per serving with out frosting is: 144 energy, 3 g whole fats (0 g saturated fats), 141 mg sodium, 26 g carb (3 fiber, 11 g sugar), 2 g protein, 22 mg ldl cholesterol
Diet Data
- Serving Dimension: 1 piece with frosting
- Energy: 242
- Fats: 7 g
- (Sat Fats: 3 g)
- Sodium: 165 mg
- Carbohydrate: 40 g
- (Fiber: 3 g
- Sugar: 25 g)
- Protein: 4 g
- Ldl cholesterol: 33 mg
Dietary
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