Carrot Pound Cake

You've got to try this carrot pound cake! It's a fun twist on a traditional cream cheese pound cake and a classic carrot cake. The freshly grated carrots give the cake a beautifully moist texture while the warm spices loads of cozy flavor.  The cake is then topped with a honey cream cheese frosting that's the perfect combination of flavors

For more indulgent pound cake recipes, try my peach cobbler pound cake and chocolate sour cream pound cake! 

Jump to:

• Why You'll Love this Carrot Cake Recipe
• Carrot Cake Ingredients
• What is the best way to grate carrots for carrot cake?
• Step by Step Instructions
• Tips for Success
• Recipe FAQs
• More Pound Cake Recipes
• Carrot Pound Cake

This pound cake recipe merges a classic carrot cake recipe with my spiced bundt cake. It's moist, it's perfectly spiced, and then topped with a honey cream cheese frosting that is just out of this world.

The honey in the frosting compliments the spices and sweet floral notes that make this the best carrot pound cake ever. 

This recipe is for carrot cake lovers who don't have time to bake a while layer cake. This recipe is so easy, you make begin to prefer it over the carrot layer cakes.

Make this carrot bundt cake recipe for any celebration. It's the perfect cake for Easter, Thanksgiving, or just because you want to enjoy something delicious. 

Why You'll Love this Carrot Cake Recipe

• The texture, the flavor, and the frosting all make this pound cake so delicious! 
• Tastes even better the next day! 
• Classic Easter dessert but also perfect for birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any celebratory meal!
• Easy to make! 

Carrot Cake Ingredients

(full list of ingredients in the recipe card at the bottom of this post)

• Cake Flour - you can use all purpose flour, however, cake flour provides the BEST texture for this cake. It makes the cake tender and velvety 
• Brown Sugar - for sweetness, moisture, and flavor!
• Salted butter - you can use unsalted butter too, just be sure to increase the amount of kosher salt added to 1 tsp as opposed to a ½ tsp as listed in the recipe card.
• Fresh Carrots - for the love of all thing holy, please don't use pre-shredded carrots! The pre-shredded carrots tend to be dry and quite a bit larger than the carrots you shred with the box grater. Use fresh carrots, the give the cake a natural sweetness and moist texture, and it's just the right amount of indulgence without being too heavy.
• Pecans (or walnuts) - ok this is a huge debate. Some people prefer walnuts and others prefer pecans in their carrot cake. I say use whatever you like, however, I grew up eating pecans in my carrot cake. Use what you prefer. Also, if you don't like nuts at all, you can just omit them entirely. 
• Vegetable Oil - just a touch of oil makes this a super moist carrot pound cake. This recipe stays soft for days! 
• Pure Vanilla Extract - I highly recommend using a quality vanilla extract or even vanilla bean paste. It truly makes a difference and gives the cake so much flavor. 
• Crushed Pineapples - the pineapples add so much moisture to this cake. It also adds a touch of citrusy flavor!

Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting 

• Honey - the natural sweetness makes the cream cheese frosting sweet but not over the top. 
• Cream Cheese - to smooth out all of the spices and add creaminess to the cake.
• Lemon Zest - just a little lemon zest pairs really well with the pineapples in the cake to keep the flavors balanced and bright.

What is the best way to grate carrots for carrot cake?

1. Prepare the Carrots: Wash the carrots thoroughly under cold water to remove any dirt. Use a knife to trim off the ends of the carrots.
2. Select the Grater: Choose a box grater or a handheld grater with medium-sized holes for grating carrots. You can also use a food processor with a grating attachment too if you have one.
3. Grate the Carrots: Hold the grater firmly with one hand and the carrot with the other. Rub the carrot against the grater's surface in a downward motion, using steady pressure. Be mindful of your fingers and keep them away from the grater's blades to avoid hurting yourself! 

Step by Step Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grate the carrots and set aside. 
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, ground ginger, baking powder, and kosher salt. Set aside. (Image 1)

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add room temperature butter and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Then add cream cheese and cream together for an additional minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add brown sugar and sugar. Continue to mix for another two minutes, then begin to add eggs, one at a time, making sure that each egg is fully incorporated into the batter prior to adding the next. (Image 2)
• Scrape down the sides of the bowl again and add vanilla extract and milk. Mix until combined, then add the dry ingredients mix until just combined.
• Fold in the nuts and grated carrots. (Image 3)

• Spray a cake pan with nonstick baking spray. Pour the carrot cake batter into the pan and bake for 1 hour and 10-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn over onto a wire rack to let the cake cool completely.
• For the frosting, combine cream cheese, heavy cream, honey, and vanilla extract in a bowl and use an electric hand mixer to mix everything together until smooth. Pour on top of the cake once it has cooled completely.

Tips for Success

1. Grate the carrots finely for a smooth texture or coarsely for a more rustic feel.
2. Consider toasting nuts like walnuts or pecans before adding them to the batter for enhanced flavor.
3. Don't overmix the batter to avoid a tough cake; mix until just combined.
4. Let the cake cool completely before frosting to prevent the frosting from melting.
5. Store the cake in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese frosting, but bring it to room temperature before serving for the best taste and texture.

Recipe FAQs

More Pound Cake Recipes