How to Make Easy Carrot Cake

cream cheese

🥗Healthier: Greek yogurt

💰Cheaper: ricotta

Greek yogurt offers a tangy flavor with fewer calories.

walnuts

🥗Healthier: pecans

💰Cheaper: sunflower seeds

Pecans provide a similar texture and flavor, while sunflower seeds are nut-free.

granulated sugar

🥗Healthier: coconut sugar

💰Cheaper: brown sugar

Coconut sugar is less processed, while brown sugar is often cheaper.

vegetable oil

🥗Healthier: applesauce

💰Cheaper: canola oil

Applesauce reduces fat while adding moisture.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare a square cake pan (8-inch square or 9-inch square) by greasing it with butter or baking spray and lining it with parchment paper. Set it aside.

Add the flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves to a large mixing bowl and whisk together until combined.

Add the shredded carrots to the dry ingredients and mix together.

Measure the buttermilk and oil into a liquid measuring cup and then add the eggs. Whisk them together well with a fork until combined.

Add the buttermilk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix together by hand with a silicone spatula just until the mixture is smooth and no lumps remain.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for about 35-38 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. To see if the cake is done, insert a toothpick into the centre. If it comes out clean, the cake is done.

Place the cake pan on a wire rack to cool completely.

Add the butter to a mixing bowl and mix on high speed with a hand mixer until pale in colour (2-3 minutes).

Add the powdered sugar and mix well until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl.

Add the cold cream cheese and mix well to combine, just until the mixture is creamy and smooth. Mix in the vanilla.

Be sure to frost the cake after the cake has cooled completely. Adding frosting to a hot cake will cause the frosting to melt.

Add the frosting on top of the cake and use an offset spatula to push the frosting out to the edges of the cake, smoothing out the top.

Slice and serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to serve.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens