20 Crave-Worthy Carrot Cake Recipes

February 13, 2011

Anna Williams

From a classic layer cake recipe to inspired thumbprint cookies, say hello to spring with these delicious carrot cake recipes.

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Anna Williams

There are a few key ingredients that make carrot cake so sweet and satisfying. First, let's talk about the number one essential component: shredded carrots. Their natural juiciness adds plenty of moisture to the batter, and their bright orange color is essential in giving carrot cake, cupcakes, and cookies their distinctive hue. The shreds blend seamlessly into the cake batter but also add a delicate texture to each bite. The other ingredients that put carrot cake in a delicious league of its own are a blend of spices. Cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg are the typical trifecta, but some of our recipes also feature ground cardamom, allspice, and cloves.

If you're looking for an all-around classic carrot cake recipe, our Carrot Cake with White-Chocolate Frosting should fit the bill. We love the organic look of the ruffled frosting, which is so much easier to create than it may seem. If you're hosting a birthday party, bridal shower, or Easter brunch, this is the dessert to serve.

We have plenty of riffs on classic carrot cake as well. Our thumbprint cookies are nutty and chewy, thanks to golden raisins, pecans, and rolled oats. Piped apricot jam and the signature cream cheese frosting are the icing on the, well, cookie. Or try the Carrot Cheesecake with Marzipan Carrots, pictured here. It's all the flavors of carrot cake but reinvented as a cheesecake. While the decorative carrots on top are made out of marzipan, the green tops are fresh carrot fronds.

Looking for something that's a bit more casual? Both of our carrot cupcake recipes—Hazelnut Carrot-Oat Cupcakes with Cream-Cheese Frosting and basic (but certainly not boring!) Carrot Cupcakes—are great options to make for a crowd.

Celebrate the arrival of spring with these fabulous variations on spiced carrot cake.

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Citrus-Glazed Pumpkin-Carrot Cake

Con Poulos

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Not only do pumpkin and carrots share the same vivid orange hue, but their flavors are so complementary in this spiced cake. And it's moister than every thanks to buttermilk and pure pumpkin purée.

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Carrot Cake with White-Chocolate Frosting

Ngoc Minh Ngo

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You'll be wowed by the ruffled appearance of this springtime cake and even more delighted by the flavor inside. The cake batter is classic—flavored with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. However, it's the white chocolate and cream cheese frosting that makes it something truly special.

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Carrot-Cake Thumbprint Cookies

Marcus Nilsson

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Instead of a slice of carrot cake, try these innovative cookies. They're like classic thumbprint cookies but topped with a rich cream cheese icing as well as apricot jam for bonus sweetness and color.

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Carrot-Cake Parfaits

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A shortcut to carrot cake deliciousness: Instead of filling and frosting layers, bake one thin cake and cut it into small rounds. Then layer apricot jam, orange cream-cheese filling, and cake in glasses. You get to scoop up a bit of everything in each delectable bite.

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Carrot-Ginger Layer Cake with Orange Cream-Cheese Frosting

Yossy Arefi

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This is one of Martha's hands-down favorite desserts. Fresh ginger, citrusy cream cheese frosting, and decorative candied carrot strips make this spectacular cake really stand out.

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Hazelnut Carrot-Oat Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Oat flour and hazelnuts switch things up in these delicious carrot cupcakes.

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Carrot Tea Cake

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A ring mold transforms this simple frosting-free carrot cake into something a bit more festive. It can be made up to three days in advance.

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Carrot Cupcakes

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We love the blend of spices (cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg) in these knockout cupcakes, as well as their moist, tender crumb. Orange zest gives the cream cheese frosting extra oomph.

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Spiced Carrot Cake

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Low-fat plain yogurt steps in for oil here, producing a light yet satisfying riff on classic carrot cake.

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Bunny Carrot Cupcakes

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Give your carrot cupcakes an elegant upgrade by using a springerle mold to imprint a rabbit design in circles of fondant. Seeking something more low key? Simply decorate with cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut.

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Bunny Carrot Cake

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Of course a bunny cake has to be carrot-flavored. Cream cheese frosting and mini marshmallows form the rabbit's fur, and it has got chocolate-covered espresso beans for eyes, a jelly-bean nose, licorice whiskers, and a cotton-candy tail and ears.

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Carrot-Cake Cookies

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Reminiscent of whoopie pies, these light and chewy carrot cookies are sandwiched together with a slathering of cream cheese frosting.

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Carrot Sheet Cake

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Using a food processor makes quick work of the batter for this crowd-pleasing dessert. Keep things simple by frosting and serving the cake from the baking dish.

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Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

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Gluten-free and Passover-friendly, this carrot cake is studded with golden raisins and buttery pecans. It's finished with a dusting of granulated sugar and potato starch in lieu of confectioners' sugar, which isn't kosher.

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Carrot-Coconut Cupcakes

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Sprinkled with shredded coconut, this scaled-down version of traditional carrot cake is a smart choice for parties and potlucks.

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Lollipop Garden Cake

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Cream cheese frosting is tinted two different shades of green for this springy dessert. The dark green is used to ice the carrot cake, and the light green is piped into decorative leaves. Colorful lollipops add an extra festive touch.

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Carrot-Pecan Cake

Kenji Toma

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This oversized cake feeds a crowd and is generous with the cream cheese frosting. Isn't frosting the main reason carrot cake is so beloved anyway?

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Spring Garden Cake

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Definitely a weekend project kind of dessert! This unforgettable number is bound to be the centerpiece of any party. Rounds of carrot-orange cake and zucchini cake serve as the base and are topped with cream cheese frosting, chocolate cookie crumb "dirt," marzipan fruits and vegetables, and a picket fence made out of pastillage (a thick sugar paste).

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Carrot Tea Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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We find ourselves coming back to this classic loaf again and again. It hits all the right spots when we're struck by a carrot cake craving.

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