Easy Moist Carrot Cake Recipe

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I’m so excited to share my very favorite, raisin-free, easy, moist carrot cake recipe! We are big fans of carrot cake in this house, sans raisins. Just like with our Caramel Carrot Poke Cake, this recipe has shredded carrots and crunchy pecans, and absolutely no raisins. You get the idea! This cake was fun to make, and everyone enjoyed it. We topped it with our favorite whipped cream cheese frosting and even more crunchy toasted pecans.

We used a stand mixer for this, but it’s not necessary you can always use large mixing bowls and your hand mixer.

Carrot Cake and Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this amazing cake-

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 ½ tsp. Baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp. Cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. Nutmeg
• 1 ¼ cups vegetable oil
• 1 ½ cups brown sugar
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups grated carrots
• 2 cups chopped pecans, divided (we love Fisher chopped pecans)

Then, for the frosting you’ll need-

• 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla

This recipe is easily made in your stand mixer, or you can use a hand mixer and large mixing bowls, either is just fine. Let’s talk about how to make this easy moist carrot cake recipe, and then I’ll have some extra tips for you.

Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting Directions

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• Add parchment paper to 2 round 8 inch cake pans, and lightly spray with non-stick spray, set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

• To your stand mixer, add brown sugar, sugar, vanilla, eggs, and vegetable oil. Beat ingredients until well combined.

• Turn the mixer to low and slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, until flour mixture is just incorporated, careful not to over-mix.

• Add the grated carrots and 1 cup pecans, and mix until just combined.

• Pour batter evenly into cake pans, and bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the pans comes out clean.

• Allow the cake to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, add 1 cup of chopped pecans to a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 4-5 minutes, until toasted. Set aside.

To make the frosting-

• Add powdered sugar and cream cheese to the bowl of your stand mixer, beat together until combined and light and fluffy.
• Add vanilla, and mix on low until combined.
• To a separate bowl, add heavy whipping cream.
• Using a whisk attachment, mix on medium speed until peaks begin to form and the whipping cream is whipped. If you don’t have more than one bowl for your stand mixer, you can do this with a hand mixer, as well.
• Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture and mix on low until incorporated.

• Frost the cake as desired, then top with toasted pecans.
• Enjoy, and refrigerate any leftovers in an airtight container.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I don’t have round 8 inch cake pans?

If you don’t have 8 inch rounds, you can easily switch to a 9×13 inch pan and make this into a sheet cake! Just use the same baking time, but don’t forget your parchment paper.

Do I have to have parchment paper?

While not absolutely necessary, as long as you use non-stick spray, I do find that with the parchment paper I get a guarantee that my cakes wont stick. Sometimes, non-stick spray can be finicky, and I just like the added assurance when I’m making a cake this good!

Carrot Cake Tips

• When baking, it’s always best to let all of your cold ingredients come up to room temperature.
• If you prefer a less chunky cake, grate your carrots even more finely, and chop the pecans a bit more before adding to your batter.
• Always let your cake cool completely before frosting, or your frosting will melt. Ours was even a littly tricky to handle, but what I love about this whipped cream cheese frosting is you can toss it in the refrigerator while your cake finishes cooling, and it will help it firm up a bit more before you frost your cake.
• Definitely store this cake in the refrigerator, because the frosting includes so much dairy, you don’t want to leave it at room temperature long. I love my portable cake stand that lets me refrigerate cakes and take them on the go. You might need a 2nd refrigerator for your baked goods, though.

Have anything to add? Tell us in the comments below.

You can also print this recipe-

You might also like these other delicious desserts-

• Banana Pudding Cheesecake Bars
• Chocolate Caramel Brownie Cheesecake

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