This easy One Bowl Carrot Cake is tender, moist and incredibly flavorful! Layer with my favorite Cream Cheese Buttercream or even the boozy Bourbon Cream Cheese Frosting for an easy and epic cake!
I’ve already shared my recipe for the Best Ever Carrot Cake and cupcakes, which is the recipe I make for clients and also the very same one I made for my hubs’ Grooms Cake. But sometimes you are short on time and/or patience (Who, me?) and you don’t feel like breaking out the mixer to make a whole egg foam extravaganza.
Time for the One Bowl Carrot Cake to make its grand entrance! You can make it all in one bowl, or not, baker's choice.
I did whisk my dry ingredients separately because you can take the pastry chef out of the professional kitchen but you cannot force her to whisk everything together willy-nilly. You cannot. Also, not advisable to try.
One Bowl Carrot Cake. Challenge Accepted.
After I perfected the one bowl brownie and one bowl chocolate cake this year, I just had to try my hand at a carrot cake. One Bowl Challenge accepted!
Unlike my other non-one bowl carrot cake, I mixed in all the things here. I love raisins so I threw them in. You can too or you can leave them in the cupboard for your oatmeal raisin cookies. You’ll get no shade from me.
If you've been following along on the CLF journey these past years and years, you'll remember that I have a real soft spot for carrot cake. It is my husband's favorite type of one bowl cake (and he's my favorite human). AND those carrot cake cupcakes linked above were the very first recipe I shared from culinary school! #nobigdeal
There are no shortage of carrot cake recipes on CLF. This is of those cakes that just instantly transports me to Spring. We have my ultimate Carrot Cake, which is a little more involved and a touch tricky to bake. Don't forget my Carrot Cake Roll which can also be made in one bowl!
One Bowl Carrot Cake
Ingredients
- 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 & 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
Instructions
Prepare the cake:
- Prepare cake pans with parchment paper and nonstick cooking spray.
- In a bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk eggs until smooth. Slowly whisk in the oil to emulsify. They should be pale and voluminous.
- Whisk in the sugars, then fold in the dry ingredient mixture.
- Fold in carrots, walnuts and raisins.
- Divide between the prepared cake pans and bake in preheated oven 15-20 minutes or until a cake tester comes out with only a few clinging crumbs.
- Allow to cool in pans 10 minutes then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Prepare Cream Cheese Buttercream:
- Cream together cream cheese, butter, and sugar until smooth.
- Add lemon juice and extract. If it gets too warm, chill it. Just pop the whole bowl and attachments in the fridge and give it an hour.
- Beat with the paddle attachment on your stand mixer. 🙂 Breathe. It’s just buttercream.
Assembly:
- Once cake is cool, layer with buttercream!
- For easiest slicing, chill before serving. This cake is DELIGHTFUL at room temperature though.
Carrot cake is my favorite cake, and this recipe is just master piece. The cake is sweet enough but too much with a sour twist. I just cannot get enough.
I am so happy to hear that, Vladka!
My 71 year old Daddy LOVES carrot cake and my Mom has always made the best - but, she now has dimensia and never wrote down her recipe. I have searched the whole internet for a version that I could make without being overwhelmed.
At first, the long list of ingredients scared me, but you did such a great job with the instructions that we all got to enjoy homemade carrot cake this past weekend for the first time in 2 years!! Thank you!! I'd give this a million stars if I could!
That is wonderful to hear, Kelli! I hope your Dad and family enjoyed it! Happy Spring!
That buttercream!! SO good. Made this over the weekend, and we loved it!
That is wonderful to hear, Sara! Thanks for commenting!
This was super moist and delicious. My party guests liked it.
I'm so glad, Elizabeth!
I served this at a baby shower - so light and delicious!
Amazing! Thanks, Sarita!