My Best Carrot Cake

By Sally's Baking Recipes · 120 min

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat. Spread the chopped nuts on it and toast for 6–8 minutes, until fragrant, shaking the pan halfway through. Let cool 10–15 minutes.
2. Grease two or three 9-inch cake pans, line the bases with parchment rounds, then grease the parchment.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, eggs, applesauce and vanilla until smooth with no lumps of brown sugar.
4. In another large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. Pour in the wet mixture and fold until just combined. Fold in the grated carrots and 1 cup (about 120g) of the toasted nuts. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.
5. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean: about 20–25 minutes for three pans, or 30–35 minutes for two pans.
6. Cool the cakes in their pans on a rack for 1 hour. Loosen the edges with a knife, turn out, peel off the parchment and cool completely on the rack.
7. Beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. Add the icing sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Beat on low for 30 seconds, then on high for 3 minutes until creamy. If runny, chill the frosting for 30 minutes.
8. Level the tops of the cooled cakes. Place one layer on a serving plate and spread 3/4 to 1 cup (180–240g) of frosting over it. Add the second layer upside down and spread the same amount of frosting. Top with the third layer right side up and frost the top and sides with the rest.
9. Press the remaining toasted nuts on top. Chill the cake at least 20 minutes before slicing. If it has been chilled longer than 4 hours, take it out 2 hours before serving to soften slightly.

Summarized from Sally's Baking Recipes's video. Watch it for the details.

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