Carrot Cake with a Soft Crumb

Set out all purpose flour, baking powder, and cinnamon before you start Carrot Cake with a Soft Crumb. The batch is written for 16 slices.

Count on 20 minutes of prep, 15 minutes of cooking, 25 minutes of resting, about 1 hour from the first measurement to the plate.

Ingredients Method

What goes in the bowl

Carrot Cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• 4 cups carrots shredded and squeezed
• ½ cup walnuts toasted and chopped
• ¾ cup raisins

The Best Cream Cheese Buttercream

• 21 ounces cream cheese room temperature
• 18 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

How the cooking goes

Prepare the Cake

1. Warm the oven to 350℉ conventional. Prepare cake pans with baking paper and nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Keep it to one side.
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs until the texture looks smooth. With the whisk running, slowly pour in the vegetable oil and stir until completely emulsified (you can’t see any oil). It will deflate a bit but should still look like a light, yellow cloud.
4. Whisk in the sugars, then fold through the dry ingredient mixture.
5. Turn through the carrots, walnuts, and raisins.
6. Divide between the prepared cake pans and bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until a cake tester or cake tester comes out with only a few clinging crumbs.
7. Allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack and cool upside down. Allow it to cool until it is no longer warm.

Prepare My Favorite Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Cream together cream cheese, butter, and sugar until the texture looks smooth.
2. Put lemon juice and vanilla extract. If it gets too warm, chill it—just pop the whole bowl and attachments in the fridge for an hour.
3. Whip with the paddle attachment on your electric mixer. Breathe. It’s just buttercream.

Assembly

1. Once the cake is cool, layer with buttercream!
2. For the easiest slicing, chill before serving. This cake is also delightful at ambient temperature.

After it comes off the heat

Let the pan settle before you slice, so the crumb stays together. Cover leftovers once they are cool.

If you want another plate from Cakes, open Moist Chocolate Cake Baked Until the Center Springs Back and Fig Olive Oil Cake with a Soft Crumb.