Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
90 comments » 
As you can tell from the picture, that trifle doesn’t exactly look like a cake. This was one of those “when life gives you lemons you make lemonade” situations. I was planning to make this carrot cake recipe for Thanksgiving dessert, to go along with the pumpkin pies that my great aunt was planning on bringing. As luck(?) would have it, for the first time in three years, I had cakes fall apart when turning them out of the pan. Of course it would happen the night before Thanksgiving, when I didn’t have the extra ingredients or the extra time to re-make or the cake. So, a trifle it was! The cake was meant to be a three-layer cake with sweet cream cheese frosting between each layer and on top of the cake. So I recreated the cake in trifle form. I looked on the bright side – it took less time to assemble than the finishing decorative touches on a cake would have 
The good news? This cake was absolutely out-of-this-world. In the stratosphere of most amazing carrot cakes ever.
My aunt always makes the pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving, but my mom asked if I would make an additional dessert, and of course I said yes. I automatically eliminated anything with pumpkin or any type of pie. It took me awhile to do some thinking and then carrot cake finally dawned on me. I absolutely adore carrot cake and thought that it would make a great finish to Thanksgiving dinner. I sat down with my stack of cookbooks to see if a recipe jumped out at me. I narrowed it down to four different ones and chose this one for two primary reasons: #1 – It’s a Dorie Greenspan recipe. And all of the recipes I have tried from her are, without fail, fabulous. And #2 – It was the only recipe with lots of “stuff” in the cake (“stuff” would be defined as nuts, raisins and coconut). I like my carrot cake chunky and hearty. The only change I made was to add cloves, nutmeg and allspice to the cinnamon in the original recipe since I wanted to punch up the spice factor a bit.
I highly, highly recommend this cake. I love carrot cake and this one probably ranks in the top two that I have ever eaten (the other being while on vacation in the Outer Banks). Hope everyone in the U.S. had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and a relaxing weekend!
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Yield: 10 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 to 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients:
For the Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground allspice
¾ teaspoon salt
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
½ cup raisins
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup canola oil
4 eggsFor the Frosting:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
4 ounces (½ cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pound (3¾ cups) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extractDirections:
1. Position the racks in the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour three 9x2-inch round cake pans. Put two pans on one baking sheet and one on another.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice and salt. In another bowl, stir together the carrots, chopped nuts, coconut and raisins.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar and oil together on medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs one by one, and continue to beat until the batter is even smoother. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear. Gently mix in the chunky ingredients. Divide the batter among the three baking pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point, until a thin knife inserted into the centers comes out clean; the cakes will have just started to come away from the sides of the pans. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes and unmold them. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up. (The cakes can be wrapped airtight and kept at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to 2 months.)
5. To make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the frosting is velvety smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract until well-combined.
6. To assemble, stack the layers, spreading a generous amount of frosting between layers and then cover the top and sides. Garnish and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
*Note 1: If you like a substantial layer of frosting between layers, I would probably use 1.5 times the quantities in the frosting recipe. Too much frosting is always much better than not enough :)
*Note 2: Covered, the cake will keep at room temperature for 2 to 3 days.
(Recipe adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours
by Dorie Greenspan)
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Wow this looks amazingly delicious! I must try this recipe. What an eye pleaser on thanksgiving. LOVE IT and your Blog!
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What a great idea to make a trifle. Looks really good…
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i LOVE carrot cake, but i never thought to make it for thanksgiving dessert, what a great idea! i really like that you turned it into a trifle, it looks lovely!
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Sometimes little accidents can end up having the best results, this idea is great, I’ll have to copy it, thanks so much.
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Oh!!! It’s beautiful, and it seems to be delicious!!
At home, mum and me make some carrot muffins, but with the Betty Croker Mix, so it hasn’t worth.
We wanted to make something homemade (is the correct word???) and with the cheese frosting, like we eat in restaurants and cafés, so I’ll save this recipe. Perhaps we can try it when I go home this Christmas
Thank you!!!
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I think all cakes should be made this way! I love all the layers!
Carrot cake is my favorite by the way
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The cake may not have turned out, but I love the trifle you made it out of it. It looks lovely. Kind of a neat twist on the the usual there.
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I made a carrot cake last weekend the night before a bake sale it was supposed to go to. I turned it out of my bundt pan, and a ring of cake was still stuck on the bottom! I gently pried it out and laid it on top the rest of the cake. With a smattering of frosting over top, no one ever found out!
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Michelle on November 29th, 2010 at 6:48 pm
Oooh I wonder if it’s a carrot cake thing
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Great idea! You’re so resourceful. I would’ve freaked out, but the trifle actually looks more festive than an iced cake! Plus, people can scoop out the exact amount they want to eat.
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too delicious. reminds me of my swirl-together’s when lazy…
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Genius! I love your idea – and now I have to purchase a trifle dish to have on hand for when I have the same problem! So SMART!
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Nice save! That was some quick thinking. I probably would have mushed it together somehow, but your idea is way more clever. And I can tell that it does look really, really delish.
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I like it better in trifle form anyways:)
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Wow, by just looking at your gorgeous trifle, you would have never of known that it was meant to be a layered cake. I LOVE that you made it into a trifle, it looks sooooo good. Carrot cake is one of my absolute favorites and yours looks insanely delicious. I’m so making this trifle as soon as possible.
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I too like lots of “stuff” in my carrot cake. This looks great & I am loving the layered trifle thing you got going on. Extra frosting is never a bad thing
xo
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Looks way too amazing!!
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What a cute story! I love how you don’t sweat it you just shift gears! Great save and looks divine.I’ve ask you this before but, I’ll ask again ……. Would you have a recipe to share for mini ladylocks? I have one that’s o.k. but ,always looking to improve.
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Michelle on November 29th, 2010 at 6:51 pm
Hi Tina, I haven’t ventured into homemade ladylocks yet, although a friend of my mom’s keeps asking if I can make some. One of these days I’ll tackle them
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Tina from PA on November 29th, 2010 at 10:08 pm
I’ll be waiting! Ilive in northeast Pa now and these people don’t have a clue what they are up here,when I do make the recipe I have they all go crazy for them.I also want to try to make Italian peaches too, have you ever made them?That will really knock their socks off!Hey ,you can take the girl out of Pittsburgh,but ,you cann’t take the cookies out of the Pittsburgh girl!
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Michelle on December 1st, 2010 at 8:51 am
I’ve actually never heard of Italian peaches, fill me in!
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Looks amazing still! I’d love to try this carrot cake recipe. Have heard nothing but raves about Dorie Greenspan.
I, too, love a chunky carrot cake!
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I love that you took a negative and turned it into a positive like that. I had a lemon cake fall apart a few weeks ago and I swear it felt like the end of the world. I will have yo rember this if it ever happens again. Btw the trifle looks fabulous!
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What a wonderful way to salvage those cakes! I would not have been at all disappointed to have been served this lovely dessert!!
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Great idea for a stuck cake…that happens to me way too often! Looks gorgeous as a trifle!
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You know some of my near-disasters turned out to be great successes! Out of desperation comes brilliance and you’ve certainly achieved that! well done
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This is the first time I’ve seen a carrot cake trifle but I have a feeling it won’t be the last. What a fantastic idea!
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I’m really sorry to say this, but I’m glad the cake broke
this is a great idea, and it looks beautiful!!
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This looks sooooo good! I like how you strayed away from the traditional cake look. Love it!
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What a way to save a cake! It looks super tasty, but I’m a sucker for anything with cream cheese frosting
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Delicious! What a great idea. It looks fabulous. Great way to shift gears!
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This sounds absolutely heavenly! I love that you went for a non-conventional Thanksgiving dessert! Beautiful presentation in the trifle dish!
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I love the deconstructed carrot cake!!!
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I’ve been there before with broken pieces of a cake out of a pan, but I love the way you turned it around. The trifle looks gorgeous, and I’m certain I would have gone that way over any pie offered!
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Ok… pass me a spoon and let me dig in! Carrot Cake (along with rice pudding and cheesecake) is one of my favorite desserts! Can never get enough.
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I sooooo miss cream cheese!
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Wow looks delicious. Great idea – makes me want to dig right in
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I had a similar incident happen to me once. I used Cool Whip instead of frosting. Everyone loved it. I call it my Dump Cake.
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Michelle, I think we can call this a “happy accident” – looks delicious! And it’s pretty too.
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I need to try this, I love lots of “stuff” in my carrot cake also. And the trifle looks so festive!!
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Wonderful idea to turn it into a trifle! I agree that every recipe Dorie touches seems to turn to gold for me. Sounds like you had a great holiday!
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I am a big carrot cake fan. In fact, that was the flavor we had for our wedding cake. I think the trifle is a brilliant solution to a cake that’s not cooperating!
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There is no such thing as too much icing. ever.
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Oh my, that looks absolutely amazing!! I love this idea and it looks even moister and richer than a cake would have been. Accidents in the kitchen are actually often a good thing.
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truth be told, i think this is superior to your intended cake. the frosting-to-cake ratio is much better.
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This looks amazing. Whether it be cake or trifle. What an ingenious way of using up the cake.
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Now this is a prime example of how a kitchen mishap can end up yielding a fantastic result! Carrot cake is one of my favorite desserts, and I love the idea of presenting it as a trifle
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That is such a wonderful idea. A friend gave me a Pampered Chef trifle bowl for my birthday and I have been searching for ideas. I never thought of something so easy to do as just a cake with icing layers and maybe through in a filling also. Thanks so much. This is my first time on your blog and I will definately be back to read more. I found you when I was searching for icing recipes for my Christmas cookies. I love the detail that you provided. Thanks so much.
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Michelle on December 6th, 2010 at 11:36 pm
Hi Cindy, welcome to the site! I hope you’ll enjoy the recipes!
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I have 2 questions that may sound ridiculous (sorry!):
-Can this be made into a cupcake recipe? I ask because I love how carrot cake is so moist and I don’t want that to be lost if it’s in cupcake form.
-Is the coconut critical? I hate to say it but I’m not a huge coconut fan.
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Michelle on December 10th, 2010 at 1:55 pm
No questions are ridiculous! As far as cupcakes, I can’t give you a good answer because I haven’t tried it. You could give it a shot! Then report back
No you can leave the coconut out if you don’t like it; it’s not critical.
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I love the look of that trifle! I have tons of cream cheese icing left over from my brother’s wedding last weekend, so I might have to make something similar this week
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Oh man…I want some of this right now! Wow, it looks amazing!
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Michelle! Help! First, let me say that I just stumbled on your website and am SO thrilled that I did!! I’m beyond excited to start trying your recipes!… Now, for the help I need… On Thanksgiving, my brother-in-law challenged me to a “carrot cake bake off”! I, of course, excepted this challenge and then proceeded to talk all kinds of trash! I mean who does he think he is?!?…I am the baker in this family! LOL! Buuut… I’ve never made a carrot cake??! YIKES! I’m going to use your recipe of course! Any tips to ensure I will be victorious?
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I just made this cake (not as a trifle) for a holiday/birthday dessert… it was incredible. I omitted the nuts (since the birthday person wasn’t a fan), but it still came out so well. It did crack, too, as I turned it out, but it didn’t matter at all. That’s what frosting is for, right? Thanks for sharing a great recipe!
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I tried this recipe today and thought it was good. The only thing I’d change is the amount of ground cloves. I found 1tsp to be overpowering. Next time I might just put 1/4 or 1/8 tsp.
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Hi Michelle,
I am new to your site but already love it! Quick question about this recipe – for your trifle above, did you just use the amount of frosting the recipe calls for above or did you almost double it as you recommended for those who like more frosting?
I love the idea of turning any regular cake into a trifle, simple but genuis. Thanks for that!
Thanks,
Kristin
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Michelle on March 21st, 2011 at 12:05 am
Hi Kristin, I did increase the frosting for this recipe. I loooooove my frosting
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Do you think this would work as a cupcake recipe?
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Michelle on April 21st, 2011 at 3:59 pm
Hi Claire, I have not made these into cupcakes, but it never hurts to try, right? If you give it a go, I would start checking them around the 14-minute mark so you don’t over-bake them.
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I have had your blog bookmarked for a while now and I have made many of your recipes, but this one is hands down the best. I love the trifle idea and was planning on that, but when my cakes came out of the pan so nicely, I decided to frost it up. It turned out amazing. One thing that I did was put the layers in the freezer for 45 minutes as soon as they came out of the pan. This kept them sooo moist and was super easy to frost. Thank you, thank you!
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Whitney on July 19th, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Thank you so much for posting how you got your cakes out of the pan easy! This is my first time making a cake so the more tips I can get the better
Trying out this recipe today for my moms birthday!
Wish me luck.
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Whitney on July 20th, 2011 at 12:21 pm
It was a hit!! My mother told me that it was the best carrot cake that she has ever tasted!
For a first time making a cake, I am pretty proud of myself. Thank you for this Recipe!
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This is my new keeper for a carrot cake recipe!!!!
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This cake is out of this world! It’s moist and flavorful, and the frosting…Oh the frosting! Perfection. Thank you!
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Made this cake today! Found the recipe super easy (used the food processor to finely chop up my carrots). The frosting was just the right amount for my tastes—enough to frost between the 2 layers I made and the top. It wasn’t as heavy or moist as other carrot cakes I’ve made, but I think crushed pineapple added in some recipes gives that texture….this one was perfectly acceptable and I will be making it again. Thanks for the recipe!
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i made this yesterday for a friend, and it was DELISH! very moist. I didn’t use the nuts (she’s allergic) or the dried fruit, but i added in chocolate chips, as i am a firm believer that chocolate makes everything better =). will definitely make this again!
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Would this recipe hold up if I omitted the chunk (coconut, raisins, and nuts)? We’re more pure cake fans!
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Michelle on October 24th, 2011 at 10:34 pm
Hi Laura, I haven’t omitted any of the goodies/chunks in this recipe, but I *think* it should hold up okay. I can’t guarantee it though since I haven’t tested it!
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Whitney on October 26th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
I omitted the coconut and the raisins, but not the nuts. I’m sure you will be fine
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Michelle, I am in the process of making this cake for tomorrow’s Thanksgiving feast and am very excited to see how it turns out.However, as I’m looking at the frosting recipe, it calls for 4 oz. butter and in parentheses it says (1/2 cup). I’m guessing the 4 oz. is correct and the parentheses should read 1/4 cup? I looked at other carrot cake frosting recipes and they seem to call for 4 oz., so I’m going to go with that amount. Just wanted to let you know in case that tidbit needs fixing. Thanks for always sharing great recipes.
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julieA on November 23rd, 2011 at 7:30 pm
4 oz = 1/2 c, no? When I made it, I used 1 stick of butter which is 1/2 c or 4 oz. In anycase, it was delicious! 8oz= 1 c in a standard measuring cup.
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Michelle on November 23rd, 2011 at 10:43 pm
Hi Maria, Julie is correct – 4 ounces of butter is indeed 1/2 cup.
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My error…I was seeing the tbsp. measurements and thinking it was ounces. Guess I’ve been doing too much baking for the holidays and am bleary-eyed! Sorry.
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Ha! I love this! I totally did this with a birthday cake I made for a friend once. I was going for a 3-layer chocolate cake with cream cheese icing and the cakes broke on me. So I dumped the cake pieces into a trifle dish, layed with icing, and decorated the top like a cake (complete with candles and sprinkles and everything!). I’ve gotten requests for “birthday cake trifles” ever since.
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I am deathly allergic to chocolate…like when I bake anything chocolate for the family, I wear surgical gloves ha! So… Carrot cake is one of my favorite things. The best carrot cake I have ever had was at J. ALexanders and I don’t think its the recipe so much, its the way they serve it. Right before the serve it, they heat it up so the cream cheese frosting is melting over the ginormous slice and the inside is hot and gooey….. Heat up your carrot cake- might sound odd BUT it is AMAZING!
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I’ve made this twice, and it has stuck horribly to the pans, both times, despite butter flour and lastly non stick spray. The cake still is excellent, even in bits, so I really love the recipe! Does anyone have any tips on how to get the cakes out in a single piece?
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Michelle on October 23rd, 2012 at 10:38 pm
Hi Col, I would recommend greasing the pan, then lining the bottom with a round of parchment paper, then grease the parchment and flour the whole thing. That has worked for me.
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Col on October 27th, 2012 at 11:34 pm
I’ll give it a shot! Thanks for the help.
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Colin on November 12th, 2012 at 3:28 pm
I made this again, for my son’s birthday, and the parchment paper was a huge improvement. No sticking whatsoever!
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Try this with pineapple as in Barefoot Contessas receipe. Makes a kick ass moist carrot cake. Will try yours but, no other receipe I have tried compares to Barefoot Contessas!
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I decided to make this last week for my family’s Thanksgiving. I worked on really early on Thursday morning and when I took out for dessert, EVERYONE was floored! I rarely have time to bake and I’m SO happy I opted for your carrot cake recipe. Seriously, the guest could not stop gushing about it. I honestly started to wonder if they were pulling my leg or what, it was that good! Your recipe was PERFECT!! I followed it exactly and it turned out fantastic. So many people wanted the recipe and seconds! I just gave them the link to your website. This is the first recipe I have used from your site, I definitely plan on trying out some more. Thanks so much for sharing it with us, it really was a delicious cake!
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Dear Brown Eyed Baker,
Thank you for such a heavenly recipe. My mum and I tried it last Sunday and everybody loved it!
Shall be trying more of your recipes,
Thanks again from Malta
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After researching several Carrot Cake recipes I decided to try yours. I have made many of your other desserts and gotten rave reviews. It was my father-in-law’s bithday and was worried since this was my first attempt making carrot cake. It was Amazing! Thank You! I followed your recipe just reducing the cloves to 1/2 teaspoon and omitting the coconut. The cake was moist, delicious and the frosting was yummy! I did use 1 & 1/2 recipes of frosting to decorate a triple layer cake.
You definitely need to use parchment paper or wax paper so the cake doesn’t stick. Thank you for that tip!
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I made this in a 9 x 13 pan and it baked perfectly in the time designated– much easier for me to transport to school. I also used ginger and mace with the cinnamon, as my allspice and cloves were whole (no grinder) and some whiskey-soaked currants (no raisins). My teammate loves carrot cake and this is my go to recipe, so thanks again. Try adding some powdered ginger to the frosting for a little heat…
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Hi Michelle. Can I use Dessicated coconut instead of shredded coconut? Thanks!
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Michelle on March 31st, 2013 at 2:44 pm
Hi Aimee, Yes, I think that would work fine.
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Just wanted to say I made these into cupcakes for a coworker’s birthday and my coworkers said they were the best cupcakes they’ve ever eaten! I had enough left over to make individual trifle jars that were a _huge_ hit too!
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I just made this cake and it baked in about half the time. I went to rotate the pans and they were already done. I just wanted to let everyone know to make sure to check it often!
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I made these as cupcakes this weekend. Only change was I added 1 cup brown sugar, and 1 cup white. I also left out the coconut as I’m not a fan. Results? DELICIOUS!
I’ve made 5-6 of your recipes and I honestly think this might be my favorite.
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