Carrot Snack Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This Simple Carrot Snack Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is loaded with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. It is super tender and moist from the carrots, buttermilk, and oil. It also couldn’t be easier to make.
Servings: 12
Calories: 408kcal
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 1 ½ cups (195 g) all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup neutral oil*
- 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar
- ⅓ cup (67 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup buttermilk*
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (210 g) freshly grated carrots*
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces full fat cream cheese (brick-style)
- ¼ cup (4 Tablespoons or 57 g) salted butter
- 1 ½ cups (180 g) confectioners sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- chopped pecans or walnuts, for garnishing, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare an 8x8 pan by spraying it with oil and lining it with parchment paper. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.
- In a separate larger bowl, whisk together the oil, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and carrots.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet. Fold until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 34-37 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. There should not be any raw batter. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes before removing.
- Place the cake in the refrigerator until it cools to room temperature or leave it on the counter for a few hours to cool at room temperature. While it cools, in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer (or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), beat the cream cheese on high until light and fluffy. This will take 2-3 minutes.
- Add the butter and beat on high until well combined.
- Add the confectioners sugar and vanilla. Mix on the low until the sugar is absorbed. Increase the speed to high and mix for another 1-2 minutes until creamy.
- Once the cake has cooled, spoon all of the frosting on top of it and spread into an even layer using an offset spatula, a spoon, or a butter knife. Garnish with chopped nuts if desired.
Notes
- Neutral Oil: Vegetable oil and avocado oil are great options. Olive oil will also work but it will have more of a distinct flavor.
- Buttermilk: Substitute for Greek yogurt, sour cream, or apple sauce.
- Carrot: Be sure to freshly grate whole carrots. Do not use the bag of pre-shredded carrots from the grocery store. These are much drier and will produce a dry cake.
- Weigh the ingredients. A kitchen scale is the most useful baking tool. Not only does it make clean up easier (no measuring cups needed), it is also much more accurate. Too much flour can make the cake dry and often when using a measuring cup the flour is overpacked. If you do not have a scale, be sure to spoon the flour into the cup and level it with a knife, instead of scooping the flour with the measuring cup itself.
- Use a cheese grater with a rotating handle to grate the carrots. You can also use a hand or box grater, but this gadget makes grating them super easy and quick.
- Do not over mix the batter. Just fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until the flour is absorbed. Do not continue to mix after it absorbs.
- Keep an eye on the cake as it bakes. Over baked cake will be dry. Check the cake with a toothpick around the 34 minute mark.
- Let the cake cool completely. Warm cake will melt the frosting and it will not stick to the cake.
- Use an electric mixer to make the frosting. You can use a stand mixer or a hand mixer. It will be almost impossible to beat the cream cheese by hand.
Nutrition
Calories: 408kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 57mg | Sodium: 347mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 38g