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Everyone has their favorite version of a carrot cake (and if you don’t like carrot cake… who hurt you?). Mine happens to be pretty simple – I want my carrot cake moist, deeply spiced, full of finely grated carrots, and paired with a cream cheese frosting. I find that most recipes for carrot cake lean on adding all sorts of extra ingredients (nuts, coconut, dried fruits, etc.) I don’t actually want, and so I set out to create my own.
This carrot cake delivers on all the spice and flavor you want, and I add texture without adding any nuts/other ingredients at all. Instead, this recipe adds crunch via a cake scrap crumble! It’s game-changing, and I promise you that it will forever raise the bar for what you expect with carrot cake. The actual cake, ganache, and frosting for this come together very easily, and the recipe can just as easily be made as cupcakes instead.
Why You’ll LOVE This Carrot Cake
Here’s what you’ll need:
Carrot Cake Tips
Grating your carrots. Grate the carrots finely. Coarsely grated carrots will have a noticeable texture in the finished cake, and we want the carrots to blend in with the crumb as much as possible.
Working with white chocolate ganache. While working with the ganache, you may find that it gets too loose / stiff depending on how hot / cold it gets. If it gets too loose, simply put it in the fridge and check on it after 5 minutes. If it gets too stiff, simply microwave it in 5 second intervals (it really doesn’t take much to loosen up again).
Working with cream cheese frosting. Similar to the white chocolate ganache, the cream cheese frosting may get loose while you’re working with it. Simply put it in the fridge to firm up again before continuing.
How to make this carrot cake:
- Make the carrot cake: Preheat the oven, mix the cake batter, and bake. Cut the domes off the finished cakes, crumble onto a sheet pan, and bake to create the cake scrap crumble.
- Make the white chocolate ganache: Combine the melted white chocolate and the warm cream and emulsify using a rubber spatula.
- Make the cream cheese frosting: Combine ingredients and mix using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.
- Assemble: Cake -> white chocolate ganache -> cream cheese frosting -> repeat
FAQ
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“10/10 best carrot cake I’ve had easily” – Stephen O.
The BEST Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 250 grams all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 225 grams vegetable oil
- 225 grams light brown sugar
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 150 grams whole egg (approx. 3 large eggs)
- 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
- 205 grams sour cream
- 225 grams carrots, peeled, finely grated
White Chocolate Ganache
- 224 grams white chocolate, melted
- 75 grams heavy whipping cream
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 226 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
- 552 grams full fat cream cheese, room temperature
- 750 grams powdered sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
Instructions
Carrot Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare 4 6" cake pans with grease and parchment on the bottom. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk dry ingredients together. Set aside.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk vegetable oil, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla bean paste together. Then whisk in the sour cream to the wet mixture, followed by the grated carrots. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Distribute evenly into pans and bake for ~35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean (except a few crumbs). Remove and set aside to cool for 15 minutes in the cake pans before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Use a sharp serrated knife to cut the domes off the top of each cake, and crumble the cake scraps onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Continue baking these at 300°F for ~30 minutes, or until crunchy. Remove from oven and set aside.
White Chocolate Ganache
- Add warmed heavy whipping cream to melted white chocolate and emulsify using a rubber spatula. Let cool until spreadable / a peanut butter consistency.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together unsalted butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add salt and powdered sugar and continue mixing (start on low speed at first). Then, add vanilla bean paste and mix, making sure to scrape down the bowl.
Assembly
- Take one layer of carrot cake and spread ~2 tbsp of white chocolate ganache onto it, followed by cream cheese frosting (I use 3oz of frosting). Level the frosting, add another cake layer, and repeat. On top of the top layer, skip the ganache.
- After adding the top layer, crumb coat the cake and let chill in the fridge for at least 20 minutes. Then, add your outer layer of cream cheese frosting, smooth, and decorate. If at any point the frosting gets too warm/loose, simply put it in the fridge to chill to firm it up again.
- Finally, take the crunchy cake crumble, and add generously along the bottom of the cake and around the top.
Did you make this recipe?
I’d love to see! Follow and tag @pastrychefjeff on Instagram!
