I started making this carrot cake when my niece was just a little girl. (She’s about to give birth to twin girls so it has been awhile. LOL) She declared one year that her favorite cake was carrot cake and that was that. She now knows I’ll be whipping up Brandy’s Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting every birthday no matter what. The rest of the family doesn’t seem to mind since they love it too. There are a lot of steps to the cake but everyone always appreciates the effort so it is worth it. I’ve used this same batter to make cupcakes and a loaf cake, and the results are great. You just adapt the bake times. The frosting has been used on all versions of this cake and others. I’ve also used it as a dip with fresh fruit and as a spread for waffles and pancakes…yes, it is that good. So, be sure to dissect the recipe into parts and use it for other things to.
Let’s get started on this cake. First you are going to peel about 8 medium sized carrots and then throw them into a food processor with the shredder blade. That makes shredding the carrots a piece-of-cake (he, he, he). You can always use a manual box grater but really, make the investment in one of my kitchen staples. It does all the heavy lifting for you.
Dump all the shredded carrots into a large bowl and add the brown sugar. Stir to get everything incorporated. Let this mix sit for about one hour then add in the raisins. Stir to incorporate everything.
While the carrots are sitting, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 10-inch cake pans with cooking spray and flour the pans. Make sure they are well coated and then dump out any of the excess flour. Put the pans to the side.
Next, chop your walnuts into small pieces and bake in the oven on a baking sheet for about 8 minutes. Stir them once or twice and watch them carefully. Nuts have a way of burning when you aren’t looking. Then, you have to discard them and start over. There is no way to save burnt nuts. After they are toasted, put them in a bowl to cool.
In your stand mixer, beat the eggs until light and airy. Alternatively, you can use a hand mixer. Gradually, start adding in the white sugar, oil and vanilla alternating between all of them to make sure everything is fully incorporated. Stir in the pineapple.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add this dry mixture into the wet mixture slowly and stir until everything is combined.
Add all but a handful of the walnuts to the batter. You’ll save that handful to garnish the finished cake.
Now add the carrot mixture to the batter and stir until full combined.
Pour the batter into the two prepared cake pans distributing it evenly between the two of them. Put in the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes until the cakes are done.
I still use the old toothpick method to test my cakes. Just insert a toothpick in the middle of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is done. If it comes out wet or with a lot of crumbs, let it continue to bake for another five minutes. Test again.
When the cakes are done, remove them from the oven and let cool in the pan for about 15 minutes. Then, run a knife between the edge of the cake and the pan to loosen the cake. Remove from the pan and let them cool completely on a rack.
While the cakes are baking, pull your butter and cream cheese out of the refrigerator and let them come to room temperature. It will make creating the frosting so much easier.
Then, add the butter and cream cheese to a bowl and use a hand mixer to beat them together until it is light and fluffy.
Sift your confectioner’s sugar to get rid of any lumps. I use a hand held sifter and do it right over the frosting bowl. Continue beating the sugar in. Add the vanilla and beat one last time. You are now ready to frost your cake.
I use a cake stand to frost my cake. Lay down several sheets of parchment paper around the top of the cake stand. Top with the first cake layer. You will be able to easily pull out this parchment sheets after you frost the cake. They are there just to catch dropped crumbs and frosting.
Add a 1/2 inch layer of frosting just on the top of that first layer. Top with the second cake layer. Using an off-set spatula or knife, spread the frosting over the top of the cake and then down the sides, completely covering the cake with the cream cheese frosting.
Use all of the frosting so you have a nice thick layer. Add the remaining walnuts on top of the cake. I usually chill the cake for about an hour before serving since the cream cheese frosting might be very soft after working with it.
Cut large wedges and serve. Trust me, everyone loves this cake. Keep leftovers covered in the refrigerator and enjoy within a couple of days.
Did you like this recipe? Are you looking for other show stopping desserts? Try some of my other favorites. These always elicit a WOW from my guests. Enjoy!
Pavlova with Blackberries & Ginger
Brandy’s Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
CAKE
- 6 Cups of grated carrots
- 1 Cup of brown sugar
- 1 Cup of raisins
- 4 Eggs
- 1 ½ Cups White sugar
- 1 Cup Canola oil
- 2 Tsps. Pure vanilla extract
- 1 Cup Crushed pineapple, drained
- 3 Cups All purpose flour
- 1 ½ Tsp. Baking soda
- 1 Tsp. Kosher salt
- 4 Tsps. Ground cinnamon
- 1 Cup Chopped toasted walnuts
FROSTING
- 1/4 Cup of room temperature butter (unsalted)
- 8 Oz. Room temperature cream cheese
- 2 Cups of confectioners’ sugar (sifted)
- 1 Tsp. Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Peel the carrots (about 8 medium carrots) and shred them in a food processor or on a manual grater. Put the shredded carrots in a large bowl with the brown sugar and stir. Let the mix sit for one hour. Then, add the raisins and stir them into the mix.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray two 10-inch cake pans with cooking spray, and flour the pans dumping out excess.
- Chop your walnuts into small pieces and bake in the oven for about 8 minutes. Stir them once. (Watch them carefully to be sure they don’t burn). Let cool.
- In your stand mixer (or use a hand mixer) beat the eggs until light. Gradually add in the white sugar, oil and vanilla alternating between all of them and making sure everything is really incorporate. Stir in the pineapple.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Stir this dry mixture into the wet mixture until everything is combined.Stir the carrot mixture into this combined mix and add the walnuts (keep a small handful for garnishing the finished cake). Pour evenly into the two prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes until the cake is done. (Test with a toothpick. If it is inserted into the middle of the cake and it comes out clean, the cake is done.) Let cool in the pan for about 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of each cake to loosen the cake from the pan. Remove from the pans and let cool completely.
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- Whip the butter and cream cheese in a mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar until well incorporated. Add the vanilla and mix until everything is smooth and creamy.
