A fancy-looking, but super simple carrot cake with a smooth and velvety cream cheese icing!
It was Dave’s 32nd birthday yesterday so I made him this delicious carrot cake to celebrate at home. He has been asking me to make him carrot cake for months so figured this was the perfect occasion. I actually used the bundt pan we received as a wedding shower gift for the first time! I love how fancy the cake looks but was actually so easy to whip up!
Recipes, for me, are like a guideline. I use them to get a general idea of the dish and then use my own intuition and taste preferences to steer me the rest of the way. Some times they turn out better than others – like this cake!! I like to look at the ratio of fats (oil/butter) to leavening agents (baking powder/soda) to binding agents (egg, flour). So I Googled a handful of carrot cake recipes and combined them with the common elements to end up with this cake. I wanted to use brown sugar as well since it helps to not only sweeten the cake but also add moisture. No dry cakes for me! I’m not normally a huge fan of cream cheese icing but this was impressively light and almost reminded me of a blend with a soft vanilla buttercream. Give this cake a try – I promise you won’t be disappointed!!
A fancy-looking, but super simple carrot cake with a smooth and velvety cream cheese icing!
- 3/4 cup oil
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
- 3/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 cups finely grated carrots (approx 3-4 large carrots)
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup golden raisins (optional)
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
- 3/4 cup cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered icing sugar (may need more depending how thick and sweet you want your icing)
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 cup milk of choice
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Preheat your oven to 350ºF and spray your bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray.
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Beat together your oil, eggs and sugars for about one minute until smooth.
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Add in the cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
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Mix in the flour and then fold in the grated carrots, raisins, and walnuts.
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Pour cake mixture into the bundt pan & bake for approximately 45 minutes until set and a toothpick comes out clean. Invert onto a large plate and allow the cake to cool.
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Blend softened cream cheese with butter until smooth. Add vanilla and milk. Then add powdered icing sugar until desired consistency is reached. You'll want it to be a bit thinner if you want it to run down the sides of the cake as shown in my photos. If you are planning to spread it on top with a knife then make the icing a bit thicker by adding more icing sugar. Sprinkle a few walnuts and nutmeg on top if desired!