Spiced Carrot Cake with Vanilla Bean-Cream Cheese Frosting
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 22, 2007
Time
1½ hours, plus 2 hours cooling
Yield
Makes one 13 by 9-inch cake
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon ½ teaspoon ground black pepper 1 tablespoon ground cardamom ¼ teaspoon ground cloves ½ teaspoon table salt 1 pound (454 grams) medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled1 ½ cups granulated sugar (10 ½ ounces/298 grams)½ cup light brown sugar packed4 large eggs 1 ½ cups vegetable oil or safflower, or canola oilCream Cheese Frosting
2 vanilla beans 8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, softened but still cool5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, but still cool1 tablespoon sour cream ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar (4 ½ ounces/128 grams)Before You Begin
If you like nuts in your cake, stir 1 1/2 cups toasted chopped pecans or walnuts into the batter along with the carrots. Raisins are also a good addition; 1 cup can be added along with the carrots. If you add both nuts and raisins, the cake will need an additional 10 to 12 minutes in the oven.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 by 9-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with parchment and spray parchment.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pepper, cardamom, cloves, and salt in large bowl; set aside.
- In food processor fitted with large shredding disk, shred carrots (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Wipe out food processor workbowl and fit with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer. Scrape mixture into medium bowl. Stir in carrots and dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours.
- Using a paring knife, halve and scrape seeds from 2 vanilla beans. When cake is cool, process cream cheese, butter, sour cream, vanilla extract, and vanilla seeds in clean food processor workbowl until combined, about 5 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add confectioners' sugar and process until smooth, about 10 seconds.
- Run paring knife around edge of cake to loosen from pan. Invert cake onto wire rack, peel off parchment, then invert again onto serving platter. Using icing spatula, spread frosting evenly over surface of cake. Cut into squares and serve. (Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.)
for the cake
for the frosting
Time
1½ hours, plus 2 hours coolingYield
Makes one 13 by 9-inch cakeIngredients
Carrot Cake
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon table salt
1 pound (454 grams) medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled
1 ½ cups granulated sugar (10 ½ ounces/298 grams)
½ cup light brown sugar packed
4 large eggs
1 ½ cups vegetable oil or safflower, or canola oil
Cream Cheese Frosting
2 vanilla beans
8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, softened but still cool
5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, but still cool
1 tablespoon sour cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar (4 ½ ounces/128 grams)
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon table salt
1 pound (454 grams) medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled
1 ½ cups granulated sugar (10 ½ ounces/298 grams)
½ cup light brown sugar packed
4 large eggs
1 ½ cups vegetable oil or safflower, or canola oil
Cream Cheese Frosting
2 vanilla beans
8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, softened but still cool
5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, but still cool
1 tablespoon sour cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar (4 ½ ounces/128 grams)
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 ½ ounces/354 grams)
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon table salt
1 pound (454 grams) medium carrots (6 to 7 carrots), peeled
1 ½ cups granulated sugar (10 ½ ounces/298 grams)
½ cup light brown sugar packed
4 large eggs
1 ½ cups vegetable oil or safflower, or canola oil
Cream Cheese Frosting
2 vanilla beans
8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, softened but still cool
5 tablespoons unsalted butter softened, but still cool
1 tablespoon sour cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar (4 ½ ounces/128 grams)
Why This Recipe Works
When developing our carrot cake recipe, we wanted to avoid dense, soggy cake while streamlining the procedure. For a moist, rich cake with a tight and tender crumb, we tinkered with the amounts of all-purpose flour, carrots, and oil to get just the right balance. Conservative quantities of cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves gave our carrot cake recipe pleasant, but not overwhelming, spice. And we added some sour cream to our cream cheese frosting recipe for shine as well as flavor.
Before You Begin
If you like nuts in your cake, stir 1 1/2 cups toasted chopped pecans or walnuts into the batter along with the carrots. Raisins are also a good addition; 1 cup can be added along with the carrots. If you add both nuts and raisins, the cake will need an additional 10 to 12 minutes in the oven.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 by 9-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with parchment and spray parchment.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pepper, cardamom, cloves, and salt in large bowl; set aside.
- In food processor fitted with large shredding disk, shred carrots (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Wipe out food processor workbowl and fit with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer. Scrape mixture into medium bowl. Stir in carrots and dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours.
- Using a paring knife, halve and scrape seeds from 2 vanilla beans. When cake is cool, process cream cheese, butter, sour cream, vanilla extract, and vanilla seeds in clean food processor workbowl until combined, about 5 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add confectioners' sugar and process until smooth, about 10 seconds.
- Run paring knife around edge of cake to loosen from pan. Invert cake onto wire rack, peel off parchment, then invert again onto serving platter. Using icing spatula, spread frosting evenly over surface of cake. Cut into squares and serve. (Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.)
for the cake
for the frosting
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