Classic Carrot Cake Recipe – Must Love Home (2024)

FAQs

Why not use butter in carrot cake? ›

Oil-Based Cakes: Carrot cake recipes often use vegetable oil (e.g., canola or sunflower oil) instead of butter as the primary fat. Oil-based cakes tend to be moister and have a softer, more tender crumb. The mild flavor of vegetable oil also allows the carrot and spice flavors to shine through.

Most of its flavor comes from brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and carrots. Ginger adds the most delicious zing, but it isn't overpowering at all. The cake is dense, but each forkful tastes super soft and extra lush.

If the middle of your cake never rises, there's probably an issue with your oven heat: maybe not properly preheated, the wrong temperature, you open the oven door too much, the thermostat is broken, etc.

I keep it covered with plastic wrap or use a cake keeper, or large bowl turned upside down to cover the cake. I do not recommend freezing frosted carrot cake (the frosting does not thaw well).

It's true that carrots are the star of the show, but aim for finely grated pieces rather than chunky. The finer you grate the carrots, the more evenly they will be distributed throughout the cake (for the perfect texture), and the more evenly the cake and the carrots will bake.

Canola oil is, without doubt, one of the best types of oil for baking. It's preferred in many recipes since it has the most neutral flavor compared to other types of oil. It also tends to be lighter in flavour, so it will not negatively affect the baked product's flavor and texture.

However, even though carrot cake has a higher fat content, it can bit a healthier choice compared to regular cakes especially because carrot cake is made with whole wheat flour, which is a healthier choice of flour, unlike white flour.

The key to getting an intense carrot flavor in my cake is using two types of carrots: a caramelized carrot puree and finely shredded carrots. Roasted and pureed carrots make this cake intensely carrot flavored. Carrots are a natural source of sugar, and roasting them at a high temperature caramelizes the sugars within.

Carrot cake is thought to have originated in England where housewives used sweet products (e.g carrots) to naturally sweeten their confections during World War II.

The idea behind this test is you can insert a toothpick or paring knife into the center of the cake to see if the crumb has set. If the tester comes out clean, it's done. If it comes out gummy or with crumbs clinging to it, the cake needs more time in the oven.

Why is my carrot cake so heavy? ›

Also, make sure that all of the ingredients are at room temperature as if the eggs and carrots are fridge cold then the ingredients in the batter will not mix together as well and the cake will be heavier.

Cream cheese frosting and carrot cake are a little unruly when they're warm, so the fridge is your friend. The cake itself is much easier to frost and slice when it's been refrigerated — the soft, moist crumb contracts when it's chilled and doesn't tear or fall apart as easily.

Refrigerator: If you have cream cheese frosting on your homemade carrot cake, it's best to refrigerate it. A carrot cake with cream cheese frosting can last in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days. Make sure to keep it in an airtight container or cover it with plastic wrap to maintain its quality.

If you don't wish to mix and bake this sourdough carrot cake straight away, you can ferment the cake batter overnight. In order to do this, you will want to mix the batter a little differently. To ferment the cake batter overnight, leave out the baking soda, but mix the rest of the ingredients as instructed.

Unlike many other recipes, mine makes use of brown butter instead of oil, a simple swap that layers in some toasty toffee flavors while keeping the cake as moist and rich as those made with oil.

A cake made with butter will be dense and chewy if it's been refrigerated and not allowed time to come back up to room temperature whereas a cake made with oil will have the same texture and fluffiness cold as it has when it is warm. Cakes made with oil are moister and stay that way longer than those made with butter.

The job of butter in baking (besides being delicious) is to give richness, tenderness and structure to cookies, cakes, pies and pastries. We alter the way butter works in a recipe by changing its temperature and choosing when to combine it with the other ingredients.