This super moist carrot cake loaf is both easy and delicious, generously topped with a generous layer of tangy cream cheese frosting. This delicious loaf cake is perfect to enjoy any time of day or any time of year.
When it comes to my favourite cakes, carrot cake is right up there! And when it comes to my favourite carrot cake recipe, this is it.
I scaled back my favourite recipe to make a smaller carrot cake loaf. I have come to love the loaf-shaped carrot cake. Even though it’s a loaf, served thickly sliced, it’s still a plate-and-fork kind of cake.
The taller loaf also allows me to use a generous amount of cream cheese frosting, which is always a good thing in my books :)
Ingredients and substitutions
A few notes about the key ingredients …
Vegetable oil – I always make this loaf with vegetable oil, and I do recommend it, as years of making this loaf have proven it works perfectly. Other oils, such as canola oil or sunflower may work, though I haven’t tested them myself. I don’t recommend olive oil as it will introduce a flavour to the loaf.
Carrots – Of course, it wouldn’t be a carrot cake without carrots :) While any carrot will do, I do like to pick up some fresh, organic carrots if I can, for best flavour.
White sugar – Sugar in baking recipes performs more of a role than just sweetening. It contributes both to the texture and moistness of the finished loaf. While it may be possible to reduce the sugar, it generally comes at some cost to the quality of the finished loaf. I always recommend using the specified amount of sugar first, and then, if desired, slightly reduce it in subsequent bakes, until you find the sweet spot for you.
Walnuts – Nuts are optional in this cake, but do offer some nice flavour and texture to the loaf. I generally use walnuts, but pecans would work nicely as well.
If you don’t want to use nuts, but the idea of raisins or coconut appeals to you, you could add 1 cup of either, in place of the nuts.
Cream cheese – You can use either full-fat or fat-reduced cream cheese here, though you may find you need less confectioners’ sugar with the reduced-fat cream cheese, so keep that in mind when mixing the icing. Needless to say, full-fat cream cheese will produce the nicest cream cheese frosting.
How to make carrot cake loaf: step-by-step
This is a visual summary of the steps to make this recipe. Scroll down to the Recipe Card below for the complete list of ingredients and instructions.
Step 1: Start by lining a 9×5-inch or 4 1/2×10-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. If you have clips, it helps to keep the parchment out of the way.
Step 2: Add the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl and whisk them together well. Set aside.
Step 3: Add the sugar and oil to the bowl and cream together for 1 minute.
Step 4: Add the shredded carrot to the bowl and mix it in.
Step 5: Add the eggs to the batter and beat in.
Step 6: Add the nuts to the batter and mix together well.
Step 7: Add the flour mixture to the batter and stir in until there is no visible flour.
Step 8: The finished batter will be quite loose.
Step 9: Add the batter to the prepared loaf pan and bake.
Step 10: The baked cake will be relatively flat (not domed) and may settle a small bit in the very centre as it cools.
Step 11: Once the cake is completely cooled, mix together the cream cheese frosting until smooth and fluffy.
Step 12: Spread the cream cheese frosting over the cake. (I find it easiest to return the cooled cake to the loaf pan to frost, and then I store the cake in the pan in the refrigerator after frosting.)
Recipe Video
Recipe tips!
- Lining the loaf pan with parchment paper is highly recommended. This is a tender loaf when warm and there really is nothing worse that having a loaf break when trying to get it out of the pan. Parchment paper removes that worry completely.
- Be sure to measure your flour by using the stir, spoon and level method. That is 1) Stir your flour. 2) Spoon into a dry (usually metal) measuring cup, over-filling the cup then 3) use the back flat edge of a knife to level off the flour, even with the top of the measuring cup.
- Do note that baking time is never exact, as ovens vary and different types and colours of baking pans can also affect baking time. Be sure to test the loaf with a long skewer. It should come out clean. It make take longer in your oven, so just bake it until it tests clean.
- Be sure your cake is absolutely and perfectly cooled before attempting to frost it. Even the slightest bit of warmth left in the cake will soften/melt the frosting.
- To get the “lines” in the frosting, after spreading the frosting on the cake, use the tip of an offset spatula to run lines down the length of the loaf.
Storing and freezing
Cakes with cream cheese frosting should be refrigerated within 2 hours of frosting and should continue to be stored in the refrigerator. This cake will keep well for 4-5 days in the fridge.
I like to store this loaf cake in the loaf pan I baked it in, as it is easy to cover the top with plastic wrap, without disturbing the frosting.
You can remove slices to a plate and let stand at room temperature up to 2 hours before serving, if you prefer carrot cake at room temperature.
Carrot cake loaf can be frozen, even when frosted, though the texture of the cream cheese frosting may change slightly from the freeze/thaw process.
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Get the Recipe: Carrot Cake Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Carrot Cake:
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and levelled
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch salt
- 1 cup (200 g) white granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) vegetable oil, *see Note 1 below
- 1 1/2 cups (170 g ) shredded carrot, well packed
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (100 g) walnuts, or pecans, finely chopped (optional)
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 4 oz (113 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (195 g) icing/confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Spray a 9×5-inch or 4 x 10-inch metal loaf pan with cooking spray and then line the bottom and two long sides with a sheet of parchment paper, allowing the parchment to extend the sides of the pan by a couple of inches, to use as handles to lift the loaf out after baking. (If you have metal file clips, you can clip the sides to keep the parchment in place. This is especially helpful when pouring the batter into the pan, as it keeps the sides of the parchment from getting in the way.)
- Preheat oven to 350F. (regular bake setting/not fan-assisted) (Reduce to 325F if you are using a glass loaf pan.)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and Pinch salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with an electric beater or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the 1 cup white granulated sugar and 1/2 cup vegetable oil for about 1 minute. Add the 1 1/2 cups shredded carrot and mix in. Add the 2 large eggs and beat them in. Add the 1 cup walnuts and stir to combine. Stir in the flour mixture and mix until well combined, with no visible flour. The batter will be quite loose.
- Pour the batter into prepared baking pan.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the centre of the loaf comes out clean. (Expect the baked loaf to have quite a flat top, which may deflate a tiny bit in the centre as it cools.)
- Cool the loaf in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift it out of the pan using the parchment paper "handles" and remove it to a cooling rack to cool. When the cake has cooled a bit, gently remove and discard the parchment paper and let the loaf continue to cool completely on the wire rack.
- To make frosting: Beat together the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until smooth. Add the icing sugar and beat until fluffy and smooth. Spread onto the top of the carrot cake loaf and swirl or use the tip of an offset spatula to run lines down the length of the loaf (as shown in the photos).
- Once frosted, the loaf must be stored in the refrigerator, where it will keep well for up to 4 days. The frosted carrot cake loaf can also be frozen, though the cream cheese frosting may change slightly in texture from the freeze/thaw process.
Notes
Watch how to make it
More loaf cake recipes to love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
This recipe turns out perfect easy to follow – delicious
So glad to hear, Julie! Thanks so much :)
So good! Perfectly moist and delicious. Took around 55 mins to bake. I did add a little more cinnamon than the recipe stated. I decorated the top with pumpkin seeds, cranberries and walnuts and it looked great. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it, Morgan! Thanks :)
I am new to making carrot cake. I am now making this recipe for the second time. The only change I am trying is instead of 1/2 tsp cinnamon I added 3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice to add more spiced flavour! The cream cheese frosting is delicious and makes a generous amount! I also needed to bake mine for much longer, and I just think it was TOO moist because the toothpick never came out clean, but it was fully baked.
Glad you enjoyed it, Chris! Thanks :)
I made this recipe for my group at work on Sunday . I did one with nuts and raisins , and one without . They were delicious !! But he clients fell on them like a pack of wolves , and everyone was happy !!
So pleased you enjoyed it, Jeanine. Thanks so much!
This cake was absolutely delicious. I can’t eat nuts, so instead added 1/2 cup raisins lightly floured. The cake was moist and the icing was amazing. So easy and a real winner.
Thanks so much, Sally. So glad you enjoyed it!
I added about two tablespoons of crushed pineapple and about a tablespoon of shredded coconut, because my normal recipe has both. I may cut down on the nuts next time, but it came out perfect with no extra baking time.
So glad you enjoyed it. Thanks so much!
I have made this 2 times. LOVE LOVE it. It has become my go to recipe.
Love using Vietnamese cinnamon and maybe a little more grated carrots, that adds to the time to bake.
Does not last a day in my house!
So glad you are enjoying it, Nancy :) Thanks so much!
I love this recipe! It’s definitely a favorite in my home. If I do muffins how long do I cook them? Do I use the same temperature as well?
Hi Rachel and so glad you are enjoying it! As for muffins, I have never made this one as muffins, so I’m just guessing here, but generally muffins take 18-25 minutes. I would bump the temperature up to 375F. Just watch them closely and test when they look close to done. Thanks!
Not completely sure what I did wrong on this recipe- seems to be foolproof for most but unfortunately I made a double batch and the middles of the loaves collapsed. Wondering what you think could have caused this? Cake still tasted great but the looks left something to be desired 😂
Hi Ashton, there are a number of reasons quick breads collapse. Over-mixing is one, old baking powder or baking soda is another. Over-filling the pan can also be an issue (if was baked in too small a pan) and finally, under-baking.
Altitude will also affect the outcome!! If you are baking in the mountains, increase the temp by 25 degrees and go slightly under on the leavening agents.
Mine also collapsed in the middle. When I initially took the loaf out it was even but not baked through so I put it back in for another ten minutes then it had collapsed. Any tips?
Hi Elizabeth, It sounds like it was just underbaked. You would want to test it while still in the oven and leave it in the oven until the tester comes out clean when inserted right into the centre of the loaf.
Thanks so much. I will do that the next time. The loaf was delicious BTW.