This To Die For Carrot Cake recipe receives rave reviews for it’s unbelievable moistness and delicious flavor! Truly the BEST Carrot Cake you’ll ever try! So easy to make and as an added bonus, there’s no oil or butter. I know this cake will quickly become a family favorite! Looking for a layered cake alternative? Check out these Carrot Cake Bars!
Carrot Cake
There is nothing like a cake to transform an ordinary party into a celebration. There’s something so festive about cakes that scream it’s time to PARTY! Today I’m sharing a cake recipe with you all that’s a family heirloom. I can’t believe I’ve waited this long to share this recipe with you!
This is my Nana’s recipe – slightly modified – and it is sooo amazing! I get requests several times a year for this To Die For Carrot Cake and made it just last week for my sister’s birthday. I love this recipe because it’s a one-two-three recipe and that makes it so easy! It also is a one-bowl wonder which I love.
I have made this recipe hundreds of times and all my friends and family love this cake so much so that I get asked to bring it to parties, holidays, potlucks, and BBQs all year long. I just love that it’s SO easy to make and completely foolproof!
Best Carrot Cake Recipe
This carrot cake with pineapple makes it so moist and the addition of coconut adds a sweet, delicate flavor that you’re going to love!
I have many carrot cake recipes on my site – like these Carrot Cake Bars – but they are all variations of this one. There isn’t another recipe that I’ve ever tried that even comes close to this carrot cake recipe for flavor, moistness, and texture. It’s hands down the best carrot cake I’ve ever had. Period.
What’s In Carrot Cake
This easy carrot cake recipe with cream cheese frosting stands out from the rest for two important reasons: I use both applesauce (instead of oil) and pineapple for extra moistness. The rest of the ingredients are typical cake ingredients that you most likely already have on hand,.
- unsweetened applesauce or oil (my Nana used oil, I use applesauce)
- granulated sugar
- eggs
- all-purpose flour
- baking soda
- baking powder
- salt
- cinnamon
- carrots
- shredded sweetened coconut
- chopped nuts optional
- vanilla
- crushed pineapple
Does Carrot Cake Have Raisins?
This is totally up to you. I don’t include it in my recipe because so many in my family don’t like raisins. If you’d like to add raisins to this recipe, add half a cup of raisins in with the shredded carrot in Step 3. Golden raisins are especially delicious in this recipe!
Carrot Cake Frosting
My Nana’s recipe is super simple (as easy as 1-2-3) and tastes incredible but what’s a carrot cake without cream cheese frosting??
Cream cheese frosting is the standard when it comes to carrot cake and with good reason. Soft and gooey with a hint of tang from the cream cheese – it’s the perfect complement!
How To Decorate!
You can decorate the cake however you want and I do it differently every time. You really can’t do this wrong!
- After the cakes have finished cooling, invert one of the cakes onto a cake plate or stand. Apply a generous dollop of frosting and spread to cover. An offset spatula will make quick work of this. Gently place the second cake on top and continue frosting.
- For this carrot cake recipe, I chose to decorate with the nuts. I chopped up some toasted pecans and then inverted a bowl onto the cake.
- Gently spread the pecans around the bowl and you’ll end up with a nice clean circle on the center of the cake. Watch the video below to see how I did it!
- I could have left it like this but my family loves coconut so I filled in the center with shredded coconut. Turned out really pretty!
What a cake!! I’d love for you to give this from scratch carrot cake recipe a try – it really will blow your mind! I like to use light cream cheese frosting and then subbing the applesauce for the oil, well, obviously you can now have two pieces of cake!
Do you have family recipes that the whole family just LOVES like this cake recipe?? I’m so thankful that I was able to get so many fabulous recipes from my Nana. Every time we eat this cake, I think of her and all the yummy times we had together.
Tips for the Best Carrot Cake
- Toasting the pecans (if you’re using them) adds even more amazing flavor to this recipe.
- DO NOT use pre-shredded carrots. Buy standard carrots, peel and grate by hand for the best results. You want the fresh flavor in this cake – it’s what makes it so outstanding!
- I used three 8-inch cake pans in the video. I really like the size of the cake with three layers. These are the pans I used – they’re amazing!
- These cakes are SUPER moist – amazingly so. Make sure to adequately grease your pans before adding the cake batter. My little brother likes to grease his pans, and line them with a piece of parchment before baking. I’m far too lazy for that. Using the pans above, and some baking spray that has the flour added in (like Baker’s Joy or Pam with flour), I have never, ever had any sticking issues.
- I’ve had several requests from people wanting to know where I got my cake serving set from… Amazon, of course!
How To Make Carrot Cupcakes
This recipe can easily be converted into a cupcake recipe. I do recommend that you use parchment liners because this cake is very moist and could stick to regular paper liners.
To make carrot cupcakes:
- Follow instructions 1 and 2 below.
- Place liners in muffin pan and fill two-thirds full.
- Bake at 350F for 18 to 22 minutes.
- Let carrot cupcakes cool before frosting.
Try these cake recipes!
- Orange Creamsicle Cake
- Lemon Zucchini Cake
- Best Ever Texas Sheet Cake
- Strawberry Shortcake Roulade
- Zucchini Spice Cake
How To Make Carrot Cake
To Die For Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
One
- 1 ¼ cups unsweetened applesauce or oil, this is what my Nana used
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 eggs room temperature
Two
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Three
- 2 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1 cup chopped nuts optional
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup Dole crushed pineapple not drained! {use the pineapple in JUICE not syrup}
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- ½ cup butter softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 pound powdered sugar
- top with toasted pecans or coconut if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine #1 ingredients. Add #2 ingredients. Stir in #3 ingredients.
- Pour into a lightly greased 9 x 13 , two 9-inch pans or three 8-inch pans. (The cake is very moist so cutting parchment for the bottom of your pans will ensure they don't stick. I prefer to use the non-stick baking spray that has the flour in it for easy cake removal.)
- Bake for 35-40 minutes for the 9x13 and 9-inch pans and 25-30 minutes for the 8-inch pans. You're looking for an inserted toothpick to come out clean.
- Let cakes cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then remove to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
For the frosting:
- Beat the butter and cream cheese until nice and fluffy. Add in the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until nice and smooth.
- Invert the cake onto a cake plate or stand.
- Apply a generous dollop of frosting and spread...
- Gently place the second cake on top and continue frosting. Repeat with the third cake if you made three.
- Refrigerate for an hour before serving for best results.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Original post published August 18, 2012. Updated February 27, 2018.
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Kristal says
Made it as the recipe is written. It’s way too wet and impossible to cook it all the way through without burning it. Also has too much sugar. Nice try though.
Tammy says
LOVE THIS! I have a severe gluten allergy and have found that “gluten free” desserts don’t quite do it for me. So I’ve began to experiment. Your recipe was my first trial run. I used the blender to grind GF oats into flour and substituted it in the recipe. My hope was that with the nuts and coconut, any graininess would be masked. IT WORKED! The moisture from the pineapple was enough to keep it moist. The first time I made it in a 9×13 pan, and didn’t have any trouble with it sticking. I also used oil as my husband’s tummy doesn’t like apples (apparently we’re a hot mess). Anyway – making them again today for my birthday and turning them into cupcakes. They are in the oven, and smell divine! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Tina says
Hello, I also have a gluten allergy. Did you use only ground GF oats as a flour substitute? Or did you use another type of all purpose flour as well as the oats? Thank you!
Tammy says
Sorry it took so long to respond. Yes. I ONLY used ground up GF oats. I ground them in the blender and then measured to make sure I had enough “flour” as specified in the recipe.
I have made this a few times and, with the substitution, found it is best made in a 9×13 pan. It doesn’t really hold up the way regular flour does and was a hot mess as a stacked cake.
I tried it with coconut flour and GF ground oats – it was too crumbly…
Let me know which flour you use. I’m always up for trying new things 🙂
Diana Cath says
Hi Trish, I’ve this cake twice this year and my friends love them soo much! Because the applesauce’s price is so expensive here in Malaysia, I did replace it with canola oil and it works! Thanks for sharing this recipe of yours.
Marianne Lintner Oldham says
I lost all of my recipes in a house fire in May. So, I’ve been trying to remember and replace them. This was one of my recipes and I LOVE it , very moist…perfect !!
Gracious says
Hi Trish. Looks very yum! What type of coconut did u use? will it be less of a To Die For carrot cake if I skip the coconut? I don’t have it in stock. I got coconut milk, haha. Baking it now with my 14 yr old son.
September says
Would this recipe work for a 1st birthday smash cake? Have you ever made cupcakes with this recipe?
Ashley says
When you say Coconut, do you mean coconut flakes?
Gracious says
Same question here! Thanks.
Deanna says
How did you get your cakes so flat/even on the top? Mine always dome up in the middle. I’m making this for my husbands birthday tomorrow. Looks so great!
Bev says
Hi,
Love the cake!
Just wondering, what do you mean by crumb coat? Do you use frosting?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Hi Bev! A crumb coat is just a thin layer of frosting that goes on the cake. Let it set up in the fridge for 30 minutes and then finish frosting. It keeps the crumbs from the cake out of the frosting 🙂
Diane says
I’m planning on making the cakes the day before my event have you done this before? Just want to know if it will hold up well over night in the frig.
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
Most definitely! It’s even better the next day!
Sarah says
Hi, just stumbled on this recipe today. I’m looking for a recipe for my sister’s birthday. Any idea if this can be made into cupcakes.
Crista says
I made mine in 3 layers and used wax paper lined then sprayed veg spray and a light coating of flour and came out perfect. I haven’t tried it yet but the cake mix tasted good after I mixed it lol
Liza Michell says
Hi, may i know what does the “c” mean in your measurements? Thank you
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
So sorry for the confusion Liza – c is for cup(s) 🙂
Mattie says
Hi!
I loved this cake I made it and it didn’t last long at my house. I was wondering could this recipe be used to make cupcakes as well?
Trish - Mom On Timeout says
I’ve made it into bars before Mattie so I’m sure it would work for cupcakes as well. Not sure how many it would make though…I’ve been meaning to try it myself 🙂
Jennifer C says
Hi! I love your carrot cake recipe. I’ve made it three times over the last year. A tradition in our house is I make a “donut” cake for the birthday person. I just make their favorite cake in a bundt pan. My daughter wants me to make this cake again this year for her birthday. My question is do you think this recipe will be OK in a bundt pan? Thank you!