World’s Best Carrot Cake
Hundreds of have spoken…this is The World’s Best Carrot Cake! Layers of moist flavor filled cake with coconut, crushed pineapple, carrots, spices, and nuts come together with a delectable cream cheese frosting.
I felt like I needed to add more veggies to my diet, so I made my favorite carrot cake! Ummm… Heck yeah! I’m happy to report that about three more slices of this baby and my eyesight should be back to normal!
I’m obsessed with this carrot cake recipe! It truly is the “World’s Best Carrot Cake”! That is no exaggeration. This recipe ALWAYS receives rave reviews! (It makes me look good!)
It’s the perfect balance of everything I love! This cake is bursting with flavor and ultra moist, but not overly sweet like some traditional carrot cakes.
How To Make The World’s BEST Carrot Cake
First you are going to place your wet ingredients into the mixer and blend.
Next add your dry ingredients and mix.
Then add your carrots, pineapple, coconuts and lastly the nuts and mix again. (Nuts are optional)
When you have blended all the ingredients together you’ll have a very thin batter like pictured below.
Grease and flour three 8-inch cake pans, or you can do two 8-9 inch cake pans too. I wanted a three layer cake with thinner layers because I love how this cake looks with three layers. It’s a personal choice and totally up to you!
Tip: I only had two cake pans, so I baked two, and then did the third after the first one had slightly cooled, and I could invert it onto my cake plate.
Once you have baked your cakes in a 350-degree oven for about 30–40 minutes, place on a cooling rack and allow them to completely cool in the pans!
The reason for this… remember how I said this cake is “moist”…it’s really moist! I placed mine face down on a cooling rack the first time, and had to carefully lift mine with two spatulas. (It’s a nightmare you don’t wanna live through! Trust me!) Place your cake pan up against your cake plate and invert.
Use your favorite cream cheese recipe (I’ll include mine… I promise) Frost the tops of each cake layer.
I love that this cake is only frosted between the layers. You could go around the outside if you really want to, but Mars and I are not huge frosting fans so this method of just frosting in between the layers and on top is perfect for us.
I don’t do a ton of frosting either, just a nice medium layer. Again this is a personal choice. You can do whatever floats your boat! (Don’t take all your baking advice from me! Lol I’m the lady eating cake to get her vegetable count in!) (wink, wink)
Here is the finished cake. I didn’t go all fancy with piping frosting around the edges or adding any garnish. I really believe sometimes more is just that…more! Not necessarily better.
This cake is so beautiful on its own! It doesn’t need all that “Froufrou”! (I hate my kitchen table and am re-doing it soon!!! Just in case you were wondering.)
I do think it deserves a moment of silence…. ticktock…tick-tock….
Okay… enough of that! Let’s get to the good part…the eatin’! Ooooh…so super moist and so yummy! Makes eatin’ your veggies a divine pleasure!
One bite, and you can feel yourself start to elevate to new heights! (I said “heights” not “weight”! This cake has fruit and veggies it cancels out all calories!… You’re Welcome! Lol)
I made this for dessert the other night and my kids… who both told me they don’t usually like carrot cake…loved it! Mars, who has always “Passed” on my carrot cake, asked for a slice and then proceeded to “ewww and ahhhh” and ask me why he’s never tried it before? (Mmmmm… That’s a question only the other Martians can answer! Us Venusians eat any carb covered in frosting!)
Here are some other great Cake Recipes
- Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- The Best Dark Chocolate Cake with Creamy Chocolate Buttercream
- Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake
- Best Vanilla Cake with Special Buttercream frosting
- Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese frosting
- Best Pound Cake Recipe from Julia’s Simply Southern
The printable recipe is located below.
If you try this recipe… I’d REALLY love to hear from you! I want to know if you love this splendid carrot cake as much as I do.
Have a GREAT day! Happy Veggie Eatin’!
World’s Best Carrot Cake
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups white sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 cups shredded carrots
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- 1 8 ounce can crushed pineapple with juice
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two or three 8 inch pans, depending on if you are doing a two layer or three layer cake. You can make either two thicker 8 inch cakes or three thinner layers. It’s up to you and the desired look you’re trying to achieve.
- In your mixer bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, oil, sugar and vanilla. mix well.
- Add in your flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix till well blended.
- Next add your carrots, coconut, crushed pineapple with juice and chopped walnuts. Mix till just blended.
- Pour into prepared 8 inch cake rounds, bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Check to see if done. If finger lightly pressed in center bounces back it is done.
- Allow to cool in cake pans. Invert onto cake plate and frost each layer.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 8 oz. cream cheese (softened)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 lb. powdered sugar
- Beat the butter and cream cheese until nice and fluffy. Add in the vanilla and sifted powdered sugar and beat until nice and smooth. Test the consistency of the frosting. Too thin? Add powdered sugar 2 Tablespoons at a time. Too thick? Add a teaspoon of milk at a time.
Nutrition
Meet The Author
Hi! I'm Norine, the cook, baker, and recipe creator behind Norine's Nest. I love sharing and creating recipes that invite family, friends, and neighbors to gather around the dinner table. Sharing good food and creating memories with those we love brings me happiness. Thanks for stopping by my Nest!
Thanks for the recipe. It was a pretty moist cake and it was delicious except for the bitter taste from the baking soda. Am I able to reduce this or will it affect the cake? How much can I reduce it to if so?
Hi Ezra!
I’m not sure why you had a bitter taste from the baking soda? I’ve never had that happen? How much baking soda did you add? If you reduce it, it may not rise as well, that’s my only concern. I’ve never had a bitter taste in this cake because of the baking soda. You did only use two teaspoons right? Not Tablespoons. You could possibly substitute Self-Rising Flour for the regular flour and baking soda. I’ve never done it…but I think it would work. If you want to reduce it…I would reduce it to 1 1/2 teaspoons and no more.
Sorry for the issues with the baking soda.
Hope you have a GREAT week. Thanks for stopping by.
~Norine
Good Morning
I have a question for you. I was wondering if I can use a 10- inch bundt pan instead of 3 cake pans?
Hi Teressa!
Yes you can use a bundt pan for the cake. However be careful you don’t over fill the pan and have cake batter every where in your oven. I have a feeling that the batter of this recipe is more than a 10 inch can handle. However, you could make a few cupcakes on the side.
Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you love this cake as much as I do. I say it all the time…but it really is my favorite. Have a Great Weekend.
~Norine
Hi there Norine. I am so excited to try this cake. My son is in 3rd grade and entering a cake for his FFA project and this is the cake he chose. 🙂 We’re going to do a couple of test runs and let some family and friends try the cake so we can be ready when contest day comes around, but judging from the comments, it looks like he picked a winner! We plan to do the 3 layers, but we do have 1 question. If we decide to frost the entire cake, how would you adjust your frosting ingredients? Thanks so much for your help. We can’t wait!
Hi Samantha!
Wow! I’m SO honored he chose this cake for his FFA project! I’m sure the judges will LOVE it. This makes a LOT of frosting, but just to be safe…I would make 1 and 1/2 of the frosting to cover an entire cake. Just to be safe. If you have extra you can store it in a container in the refrigerator up to a month. It’s great on cinnamon rolls or you could use it again on one of your test runs!
I’m SUPER excited to hear how he does. Please let me know! I see a winner in the making! I’d love a picture too!
Have a GREAT weekend!
~Norine
thank you so much for the quick replay. big thanks for sharing the recipe.
Hi Morgana!
You are so welcome! Thanks so much for visiting with me! I love making new friends. Have a wonderful day.
Happy Nesting!
~Norine
please, is baking soda same as baking powder? I have only found bicarbonate soda or baking powder I don’t find baking soda. please would you let me know if I can use baking powder?
Hi Morgana!
Baking soda and baking powder are different. However, the good news is that Bicarbonate Soda is the SAME thing as baking soda. Hope that helps you out. This is a great cake just be sure not to substitute baking powder for baking soda in any recipe. 😉
Have a wonderful week! Thanks for stopping by and visiting.
~Norine
Hi, Norine! I’ve been looking for a good Carrot Cake recipe. Something with lots of chunky goodness in it and yours sounds like it! The comments have been very enlightening and interesting. I absolutely love coconut but my husband hates it and we both love Carrot Cake. How much can you taste the coconut in your recipe? He doesn’t like mayonnaise either but I manage to sneak it into a lot of recipes and he doesn’t have a clue.
Hi Cherie!
Okay this is a really hard question for me to answer because I LOVE coconut but the flavors in this cake all blend together so beautifully that I can’t say I pick out the flavor of coconut over the other flavors. However, you can tell it’s in the cake! Just from texture. You could leave it out and sneak in a tsp. of coconut flavoring. lol (Look at me trying to be sneaky with you…lol) It’s such a GREAT Carrot Cake and I know he’d love it. One of my favorite ingredients in this cake is the coconut, but again I love it. So I’m no help to you am I? Sorry.
I appreciate ya chatting with me and I highly recommend making this cake…with or without coconut. It’s just SO good!
Have a GREAT weekend!
~Norine
It’s really looking awesome and so beautiful cake. I have remembered it’s recipes and also bookmarked this site for my party for my next birthday. You have really make a very beautiful and innovative cake. Thank you so much for such a nice work.
Thank you so much! I hope you enjoyed the cake. I love hearing from my foodie friends and appreciate you stopping by. Have a wonderful day!
Happy Nesting!
~Norine
Hello Norine,
This recipe produced a wonderful (delicious and moist) cake. I had to use a substitute for the buttermilk and walnuts (peanuts). But the result was just as good.
You now have a new fan/follower from the beautiful island of JAMAICA! 🙂
Hi Jeanelle!
Thank you so much for sharing with me. I love your nut substitution. It’s always good to hear from a friend who has tried a substitution and liked it. I hope someday I get to come to your beautiful island of Jamaica! That would be a dream come true.
I’m truly touched you took the time to share with me and I’m even more touched to know I have a new follower/friend from such a beautiful part of our world. Please come back and share with me again!
Have a wonderful day!
Happy Nesting!
~Norine
Thanks Norine! I made the cake 2 days before my husband 60th birthday; wrapped it and frozen. Put it on the fridge the night before the party, then still wrapped let on my kitchen bench for couple of hours before preparing some other things then put the frosting and decorated it. Everybody said it was delicious and moist.
Hi Rose!
I’m so happy it turned out so great! I hope your husband had a wonderful 60th birthday. Thanks for letting me know what you did and how it turned out. I love hearing from my blog friends. It truly makes my day.
Have a Wonderful New Year.
~Norine
I was ready to make a chocolate cake for my husbands 70th birthday tomorrow. He said can’t I have a carrot cake? So found what I’ve made before, then searched pinterest and found this one, so it is in the oven and ready for party time tomorrow. From all the comments, I’m sure it will be a winner. We lived in SLC for many years before moving to Ohio. Our neighbor was Norene!! Lovely name.
Hi Diane!
Happy 70th Birthday to your husband! I hope he enjoys this cake as much as I do. It truly is my very favorite cake recipe.
My brother’s all live in the Salt Lake Area. We’re down South in Cedar, but I love to visit Salt Lake. I have good friends in Ohio! Watched those Buckeye’s win their bowl game last night!
I can’t believe you had a neighbor with the name Norene! (Hers was spelled correctly…my parents wanted to torture me. LOL) Thank you for that sweet compliment. It’s not a very common name and when I was younger I wished my parents had given me a different name. As we grow older we appreciate things a whole lot more…like our names!
I hope you and your family have a WONDERFUL and HAPPY NEW YEAR! Thank you so much for stopping by and visiting with me. I love making new friends! Enjoy the cake!
~Norine