Best-Ever Carrot Cake

We understand that there's no short supply of carrot cake recipes in the universe, but ours is, quite simply, the best. There's already so much flavor going on in the cake that you don't need the rich taste of butter competing. Let the carrots, cinnamon, and pecans shine! Using vegetable oil also makes prep easier because there's no need to let butter soften or cream it with the sugar! PLUS, vegetable oil makes for a moister cake.

Classic old-fashioned carrots cake often include pineapple. While ours doesn't include any, this recipe works well with it. Add about 1/2 cup of chopped pineapple when you add the carrots, raisins, and pecans.

Best-Ever Carrot Cake


Yields: 8
Prep Time: 0 hours 30 mins
Total Time: 6 hours 30 mins

Ingredients:


For the cake:

• Cooking spray
• 3 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 c. granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 c. vegetable oil
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 3 c. grated carrots
• 1 c. pecans, roughly chopped, plus more for garnish
• 1 c. rasisins

For the cream cheese frosting:

• 1 (8-oz.) block cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 4 c. powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° and grease 2 - 8" round cake pans with cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.

In another large bowl with a hand mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), beat together sugar and oil until well combined. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition, then add vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients until just combined. Stir in carrots, pecans, and raisins.

Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, 45 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes then invert cakes onto a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Make frosting: In a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and beat again until smooth and a spreadable consistency.

Frost cake as desired and garnish with pecans.

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