Serves a Crowd
Easy & Healthy(ish) Carrot Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep time 30 minutes
- Cook time 35 minutes
- Serves 12
Author Notes
Say hello to your snack for the week: easy & healthy(ish) carrot cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting. This cake is loaded with carrots & apple sauce, and it contains zero butter or dairy. The optional chocolate cream cheese frosting is insanely delicious on this cake. The cream cheese gives it a lovely tangy taste while the chocolate does what chocolate does best – nurtures the deepest parts of your soul.
This cake is the perfect snacking cake! It barely stays covered under the lid or plastic wrap on your counter, because you’ll be constantly slicing bites and slivers off to munch on. This is a simple cake that come together in one bowl with simple ingredients that you probably have in your kitchen already.
Eat well and enjoy! —Carissa Erzen
Ingredients
- Carrot Cake
-
2
eggs
-
⅓ cups
granulated sugar
-
⅓ cups
packed brown sugar
-
¼ cups
applesauce
-
1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
-
2 cups
all-purpose flour
-
2 teaspoons
baking powder
-
1 teaspoon
ground cinnamon
-
¼ teaspoons
ground nutmeg
-
½ teaspoons
ground cardamom (optional)
-
1 cup
grated carrot, with the water squeezed out (about three large carrots)
- Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
-
¼ cups
butter, at room temperature (½ stick)
-
4 ounces
cream cheese, at room temperature
-
1¾ cups
powdered sugar
-
½ teaspoons
vanilla extract
-
1 pinch
fine sea salt
-
¼ cups
cocoa powder
Directions
- Preheat the oven 350°F. Grate the carrots on a micro plane or the smallest holes on a grater. Squeeze out the water from the grated carrots in your hands and measure one cup of the drained grated carrots.
- Whisk the eggs, granulated sugar and brown sugar together until it is smooth and pale. (About four minutes with a hand mixer.)
- Whisk in the vegetable oil, applesauce and vanilla extract.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom. Fold in the sifted dry ingredients until there's no more dry flour visible.
- Fold in the grated & drained carrots until it's evenly mixed.
- Pour the batter (it will be very thick) into an 8-inch x 8-inch baking dish. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick of knife comes out of the center clean (not gooey.) Let cool to come to room temperature before frosting. Once the cake comes out of the oven, that is a good time to set out the cream cheese to come to room temperature for the frosting.
- To make the chocolate cream cheese frosting, whisk the room temperature butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl until it is a smooth, light and fluffy mixture. (About three to five minutes with a hand mixer.)
- Add the vanilla extract and salt to the butter & cream cheese and whisk to combine.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar, about ½ cup at a time, whisking the mixture until it's smooth and creamy after every addition.
- Add the cocoa powder and whisk until it's smooth and creamy frosting. Frost your cooled carrot cake and enjoy! Store in an airtight container or under plastic cling wrap on the counter for a few days while you snack on it.
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