Easy No-fail Carrot Cake | One-Bowl Recipe

Super Easy Carrot Cake Recipe! This lightly sweetened Carrot Cake has a tender, moist crumb. It has lots of carrots, crystallized ginger, and walnuts. This no-fail, one-bowl, no-mixer carrot cake can be whipped up in no time. A keeper for sure!

Super Easy Carrot Cake Recipe

Super easy Carrot Cake Recipe! You can make this moist lightly sweetened carrot cake in a bowl with a whisk in just 5 simple steps.

You can serve this moist easy carrot cake just plain as it is full of flavor. You can also top it with a simple cream cheese frosting. Cream cheese frosting makes it much more indulgent. A perfect dessert for any time of the year!

Carrot cake tastes better the day after it is baked. This enhances the flavors and texture. So, it’s best to bake this cake at least a day ahead.

Here you’ll find an easy-to-follow recipe with a step-by-step guide, helpful info, and top tips. Give it a try and let us know what you think in the comments!

About this Moist carrot cake recipe

• This carrot cake is super easy and quick to make in one bowl. You only need a whisk and just 5 simple steps.
• If you are looking for an easy-to-make carrot cake recipe from scratch with great taste, this is it!
• This a fail-proof beginner-friendly cake recipe and the perfect go-to carrot cake recipe for your repertoire.
• This recipe is very versatile and forgiving, so you can easily modify it to your taste.
• This incredibly moist carrot cake is packed with freshly grated carrots, crystallized ginger, and walnuts to add texture. Brown sugar gives a hint of caramel flavor and it is also spiced up with ground cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
• You can use add-ins you like to enrich the cake. Examples include chopped nuts, raisins, coconut flakes, crushed pineapple, and chocolate chips.

About the Cream cheese frosting 

You can serve this moist easy carrot cake just plain as it is full of flavor. You can also top it with a simple cream cheese frosting. The frosting goes well with carrot cakes. I only frosted the top of the cake, and just leave the sides bare; it’s pretty that way. I decorated my cake with some sultanas feel free to decorate your cake as you like.

Butter and cream cheese are much easier to beat after softening at room temperature. They are likely to become more fluffy and light. I used fine granulated sugar. However, if you use icing sugar, you may need to sieve the icing sugar before using it. Adding a teaspoon of lemon juice enhances the flavor.

It is easy to frost the cakes when it is slightly chilled. Keep the cake in the fridge while you prepare the frosting. You can keep the cake at room temperature for a short period of time if your kitchen is cool enough. Otherwise, make sure to keep the cake in the fridge after frosting.

You can make the frosting a day ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. Remove from fridge and leave at room temperature until soft enough to spread. 

About the carrots

I wash the carrots well before using them but usually don’t peel them. It is totally up to you! You can use a grater to shred them up. If you like a fine texture you can finely chop the carrots in a food processor. You can use either finely grated carrots or roughly grated carrots or a mix of both types of grated carrots.

Moist CARROT CAKE – Ingredients

For the Cake Batter

• Sugar: Use brown sugar. I used a mix of light brown sugar and cane sugar.
• Salt: A pinch of salt balances out all the flavors.
• Eggs: Use eggs at room temperature.
• Oil: Use flavorless oil. I usually use rice oil and highly recommended.
• Flour: Use all-purpose flour or plain flour.
• Baking Powder and Baking Soda: Both are leavening agents that help the batter to rise when baked. Make sure to use fresh baking powder/soda for the best result.
• Ground Spices: Spices add flavor and aroma. I used ground cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and ginger powder.
• Freshly Grated or Shredded Carrots: You can use either finely grated carrots. You can also use roughly grated carrots. A mix of both types of grated carrots is also an option.
• Add-ins: I used crystallized ginger and toasted walnuts. You can also use raisins, currants, fresh or crystallized pineapple, and other kinds of nuts like pecans.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

• Cream cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese, softened at room temperature.
• Butter: Use unsalted butter, softened at room temperature.
• Sugar: I used fine granulated sugar. You can also use powdered sugar.

Moist CARROT CAKE – Steps to make

1. Prepare the carrots and grate them
2. Sieve the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and ground spices together
3. Combine the wet ingredients – oil, sugar, and eggs
4. Fold the flour mixture into the wet and then the other stuff (grated carrots, fruit & nuts)
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake

Tips for making the Best carrot cake

Use a kitchen scale. You’ll get the best & most consistent results if you use a kitchen scale. I always use a kitchen scale for most of my measurements. I sometimes use measuring cups to measure liquids and tablespoons/teaspoons to measure a tiny amount of the ingredients.

Adjust the sweetness-I want my cake to be sweet but not too sweet. So I Adjust the sweetness to my taste. But if you use too little sugar, it will affect the softness of the cake. We need to use the right amount of sugar. This ensures a nicely sweetened, soft crumb cake.

Sift the dry ingredients-Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and ground spices together. This ensures the leavening agents and spices are distributed in the batter evenly. It also helps remove any lumps.

Avoid over-mixing-Avoid over-mixing the cake batter as it’ll lead to a tough and rubbery cake.

Adjust the oven temperature and baking time-The temperature in different ovens is also different. When you bake this cake for the first time, adjust the oven temperature. Also, adjust the baking time as needed.

Avoid over-baking-Avoid over-baking the cake otherwise, it will become dry. Cover the top of the cake with foil for the final 15 minutes if the cake is browning too quickly.

Serving SUGGESTIONS

This moist carrot cake is wonderful on its own, or just with a sprinkle of powdered sugar. You can also top it with a cream cheese frosting. This frosting is more common for carrot cakes and it goes fantastically with them. You can also use a simple buttercream frosting.

Storing tips

This carrot cake is moist. It keeps well at room temperature for one day in an airtight container without the frosting. However, if your kitchen is warm, make sure to store it in the fridge.

This Carrot Cake freezes well without the frosting for about 3 months. Let it cool completely and then double-wrap it with plastic wrap, and place it in a freezer bag.

Thaw in the fridge night before you plan to serve or frost the cake. Do not thaw frozen cake in the microwave or oven as it will dry out and the taste will change.

More Delicious Cake Recipes

Easy Moist Carrot Cake One-Bowl
Step-by-Step Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Serving: 6 to 8 slices

Equipment

20 cm Round Cake Pan

Ingredients

For the Cake Batter

• 100 g light brown sugar
• 75 g cane sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 150 ml rice oil
• 200 g all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 ginger powder
• 1/8 nutmeg powder
• 200 g freshly shredded carrots
• 50 g crystallized ginger, finely chopped
• 50 g walnuts, finely chopped

Frosting

• 75 g butter, softened at room temperature
• 75 g fine granulated sugar or powdered sugar
• 100 g cream cheese, softened at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Instruction

Preparation

• Gather the ingredients.
• Roast the walnuts in the oven for ten minutes at 150°C
• Wash the carrots and pat them dry with a paper towel.
• Preheat the oven to 170°C.

Use fresh, sweet, bright-colored carrots.

Grease and line the pan with parchment paper.

Chop the walnuts and crystallized ginger.

Grate the carrots using a vegetable grater or a food processor.

Sift the flour, cinnamon powder, baking powder, and baking soda. You can also whisk them together with a balloon whisk in a bowl.

Make the Batter

In a large bowl, whisk cane sugar, light-brown sugar, and salt to combine.

Next, add the eggs, and mix until well combined.

While whisking, slowly pour in the oil.

Fold the flour in with a spatula, just until incorporated. Don’t over-mix the batter.

Add the carrots and mix until just combined.

Add chopped ginger and walnuts and mix until just combined.

Bake

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes at 170°C and 15 minutes at 160°C or until the cake is baked through. Cover the top of the cake with foil for the final 15 minutes if the cake is browning too quickly. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it’s done.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and then gently turn it out onto a wire rack. Let cool completely.

Chill the cake, covered, while you are making the frosting.

Make the Cream cheese frosting

While the cake cools, make the cream cheese frosting. Beat the softened butter, and cream cheese in a bowl until smooth and creamy. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl with your spatula once or twice. Add the sugar and lemon juice. Beat until light and fluffy. You can also use a wooden spoon instead of hand mixer.

The cream cheese frosting is ready.

Use an offset spatula to frost the cake, just leave the sides bare; it’s pretty that way.

Sprinkle some sultanas or chopped nuts on top, if desired.

Serve & Enjoy!

A slice of this carrot cake goes well with a cup of tea or coffee.

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