Neva Tee's Carrot Cake

This cake is delicious! I used a bit less sugar in both the cake and the icing. I also reduced the butter in the icing. I used 2 loaf pans and increased the baking 5-7 minutes.
Toasted pecan pieces dotted the icing along with speckled Easter Egg candies and colored sugar.
Pretty!

I added a teaspoon of cardamom which was a fine addition. Not too strong, but you can taste it. I wanted to make smaller cakes so I adjusted the time. I ended up making two 6.5” (full!) and an 8” cake (not so full). Seemed to work! I also added finely chopped pecans on top of the icing of each layer.

Easy and refined carrot cake. I halved the recipe to put in 9" cake pan. It rose to about 1.5" (so I think this recipe could work for a 9", 2 layer cake). I used about half canola oil and half avocado oil (what I had on hand). I glazed just the top with a layer of cream cheese frosting following comments below on reducing sugar and butter and, adding more cream cheese. I adjusted by 1/3 and added a tiny pinch of salt, and few drops of lemon juice to balance flavor but suggest you taste as you go for your preferred consistency, mouthfeel and sweetness. Instead of mixing roasted pecans into the frosting, I dusted them on the surface of the cake (bigger chunks on outer edges with smaller bits and nut dust in the middle to create a "nut ombre" look). And it resulted in an elegant cake perfect for a potluck. This is not the unctuous super moist type of carrot cake - more like a light spice cake with a medium moist but tight crumb with a slight spring to it. The frosting and roasted pecans on top, is a nice foil to perk up this more subtle, not too sweet carrot cake (that works best as is -- without nuts or raisins). Tip on frosting - don't blend all the ingredients together at the same time or else you may get lumps. Make sure you first whip up the butter until it's light and creamy and then, whip in the cream cheese (as they melt at different temperatures). Meanwhile, sift in the powdered sugar gradually as you continue to whip. Or else you will get small chunks of butter and/or clumped sugar.

I am _not_ mad at this cake. I've been looking for a raisin-free carrot cake recipe, as raisins are the _only_ thing my boyfriend does not eat, & this'un really ticked all the boxes. I was super impressed by how quickly it came together & I love the tips others have provided about making it less sweet, as the original recipe was a little too sweet for my own taste. I also felt it was a little more frosting-forward than cake-forward, but suspect that adjusting the sweetness may address that, too. If anyone has any recos for pumpin' up the carrot cakey-ness of it, as well, I'm all ears.

The less sugar/butter idea worked really well. I added a half cup of chopped crystallized ginger to the frosting-a nod to Ina Garten’s carrot cake.

I never write reviews but am compelled to after making your Grandmother's cake, Mary Catherine - it was simply perfect!! I've always made a family recipe with crushed pineapple, but my now stepsons detest pineapple ... and so the search was on. I landed on your recipe and followed it almost to the letter - I subbed olive oil as that's what I had and it turned out to be the carrot cake of my dreams!!! Never going back to my family's version ... thank you also for sharing your Grandmother's story, so touching, my Mother has dementia <3

I love this cake’s flavor but I am having some issues with the structure. Specifically, the cake sags in the center. It’s almost like a cake that relies on egg whites or a soufflé that falls. Anyone else have this problem? If so, how did you remedy it? It hasn’t stopped me from making this delicious cake!

The search is over! This carrot cake plus the Silver Palate’s cream cheese frosting is like taking a time machine to the Just Desserts bakery of my childhood 💕

I make my husband a carrot cake every year for his birthday, trying new recipes each year. I'm done with that and only making this one from now on. It's perfection. Absolutely perfect! Thank you for the best carrot cake recipe EVER.

I made this recipe last Friday for a large family graduation gathering Sat. It was unbelievable! I got so many compliments and people asking for future orders! I added pecans and walnuts in my batter plus pecans in the frosting because they all love nuts. I only did 2.5C of powdered sugar + an extra 8oz cream cheese to make it less sweet & have more to spread. I also added some nutmeg but other than that followed the recipe to perfection. I wish I could post photos of it. It was my first 3 layer cake. This cake comes out moist, flavorful and light. love love love.

I made this for my Mom and brother’s birthday that happened on Easter this year, so a lot of pressure. I didn’t use the pecans, but otherwise stuck to the recipe. Delicious. I got raves from my family that is used to me buying cakes from my pastry-chef cousin!

Hello! I’m interested in using coconut oil rather than Crisco oil too. Has anyone tried it?

This is a delicious carrot cake! It was moist, super flavorful and the frosting was not too sweet. I loved the pecans. Every bite was a "mmmmm..."

Can coconut oil be substituted for Crisco in this recipe?

When I see Crisco I think of vegetable shortening - is that what is called for or do you just recommend Crisco brand vegetable OIL? Thanks!

Another amazing recipe ! I made this in the spring a few times and was amazing! It's completely different from other carrot cakes I've had, which I love. It's tender and moist. Carrot cake is my mom's favorite type of cake and she absolutely loves this one! My mother also enjoyed your story behind this great recipe. Said it reminds her of her grandmother. Thank you for the recipe and sharing your story! :)

Planning for dinner party tomorrow night. Best to make day of or can I make it today just a well?

I added a cup of both chopped walnuts and raisins to the cake batter, and now after 1/2 hour in the oven, the pans have overflowed. I'm sure they need at least another 10-15 minutes to bake. The pans looked a little too full when I put them in. Don't make my mistake. Either use 9 inch pans or don't add extra goodies- you'll be sorry. I'll be scraping the bottom of my stove. I'm making this for a birthday, so I'm hoping I didn't wreck them...

Made this for the first time yesterday, it was delicious.

This looks delicious!!! Could this be made with gluten free flour? I would love to make this this weekend but a family member visiting must eat gluten free. Thanks!!