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frosted carrot cake garnished with crushed walnuts on marble cake stand.
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5 from 27 votes

JoJo's Carrot Cake

JoJo's Carrot Cake is a treasured family recipe dressed decadently in cream cheese frosting. It brings happiness with each bite!
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time1 hour 30 minutes
Course: cafe, Dessert, snacks
Cuisine: American
Servings: 16
Calories: 404kcal

Equipment

  • Mixing Bowl
  • Cake pans (2)
  • Rubber spatula or wooden spoon
  • Food Processor
  • Measuring Cups
  • Conventional oven
  • Standing or hand mixer

Ingredients

Cake

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour gluten-free 1:1
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 ½ cups vegetable oil
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ¼ tsp lemon flavoring
  • 3-4 cups carrots shredded
  • 1 cup chopped nuts walnuts and pecans are best

Frosting

  • ½ cup butter or margarine softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 2 - 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
  • 1 - 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 dash salt if desired

Instructions

Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and heavily grease two or three (depending on desired thickness and stack) cake pans with coconut oil spray or butter. I recommend using 9 x 12 x 2" circular pans or 9 x 9" square pans.
  • Add vegetable oil, sugar, and vanilla extract until sugar is dissolved. Note: the mixture will be really oily.
  • Add one egg at a time into the mixing bowl, beating well after each addition. Batter will start to form. Fold in shredded carrots.
    wet ingredients and shredded carrots mixed together in stand mixer.
  • Add the dry ingredients into the mixer: all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. After fold in chopped nuts and lemon flavoring.
  • Pour the mixture into two or three greased pans (depending on preference).
    three carrot cakes in circular pans, unbaked.
  • Bake for 40-45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool before removing from the pans.
    three carrot cakes in circular pans, baked.
  • For the frosting, combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl: butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt if desired. Blend frosting ingredients on medium speed until smooth. All of the clumps of powdered sugar should be dissolved.
  • Layer the cakes with frosting in between each layer.
    three layered carrot cake frosted between layers on marble cake stand.
  • Tip: Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes before frosting the top and outside layer. This will help with structure! Top with crushed nuts or other flavors and enjoy. Best chilled but can be served room temperature.

Frosting

  • Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl: butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt if desired.
  • Blend frosting ingredients on medium speed until smooth. All of the clumps of powdered sugar should be dissolved.

Notes

Can easily be made dairy or nut free. For the cake, exclude nuts from the batter and exclude any nuts as garnish. For the frosting, use a plant based butter and cream cheese.
Store in the fridge for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 slice | Calories: 404kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 76mg | Sodium: 265mg | Potassium: 130mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 47g