Pumpkin Carrot Cake

This moist and and scrumptious Pumpkin Carrot Cake combines the best of both pumpkin and carrot cake into one amazing cake. It has warm fall spices, and it’s finished with a classic cream cheese frosting. A great dessert to add to your Thanksgiving dessert repertoire!

If you’re looking for a new fall or Thanksgiving dessert recipe, you’ve come to the right place. This cake will be a star on your dessert table, and it won’t last long!

If you love both carrot and pumpkin cake, you’ll love this combination of the two. This cake is super moist and full of warm spices and so much flavor. I’m posting this recipe early, so you have plenty of time to try it before Thanksgiving, just in case your skeptical of this great combination. Hey, and you can even make it ahead and freeze it until Thanksgiving! 🙂

Ingredients for the cake

Pumpkin – Use canned pumpkin puree for this recipe, not pumpkin pie mix. I also don’t recommend homemade pumpkin puree. It’s hard to tell how much moisture is in the pumpkin, or how much you should try to remove.

Carrots – Make sure to shred your own carrots for this recipe. I grate mine on a box grater. The pre-packaged ones are dry and too thick. The carrots need to be thin so they bake up tender. They add moistness and flavor to the cake.

Pineapple – Pineapple is an added bonus to this cake. It adds flavor and lots of moistness.

Eggs – Eggs add richness, but more importantly, they act as a binder, holding all the ingredients together, and giving the cake structure.

Sugars – This cake calls for both brown and granulated sugars. Both add sweetness, and the brown sugar adds moistness and more depth of flavor, adding caramel notes.

Buttermilk – Use full-fat buttermilk in this recipe. Only use low-fat if that’s all you can find. In an emergency, you can make a buttermilk substitute by mixing 3/4 cup of milk with 2 teaspoons of white vinegar and allowing it to sit for 5 minutes. This is not as good as using real buttermilk but will work in a pinch.

Oil – Oil makes the cake very moist. Use a neutral oil such as canola or vegetable oil.

Spices – Cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice are the perfect warm spices to complement both the pumpkin and the carrots in this cake. Feel free to adjust them to your liking.

Vanilla extract – Use pure vanilla extract in this cake for the best flavor.

Leaveners- This recipe uses both baking soda and baking powder to help the cake rise. Make sure both are fresh. If you’re not sure, check here to see how to check them. If they are no longer active, pitch them and purchase new ones.

Pecans – I love the crunchiness of the pecans in this cake. You can use walnuts instead, but I highly suggest adding the nuts. You can add some raisins if you prefer. If you do, cut the nuts in half and add 1/2 cup of raisins, dark or golden. Feel free to decorate the top with these sweet and salty candied pecans, if you want to fancy things up some.

Flour – All purpose flour is used in this recipe. Don’t use cake flour. It is too light for this cake, and the cake will fall apart. Fluff up your flour before measuring. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and level it off with a knife.

Ingredients for the cream cheese frosting

Cream cheese – Make sure to use a block of cream cheese, not cream cheese in a tub. Make sure it’s at room temperature, and beat it separately by itself until it’s smooth and lump free before adding the butter or other ingredients.

Powdered sugar – Make sure to sift the powdered sugar into the bowl for the smoothest lump-free frosting.

Butter – Use unsalted butter. The salt is added separately. If you must use salted butter, don’t add the salt in the recipe. Don’t use margarine.

Vanilla – Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor.

Milk – Only use the milk as needed for the perfect spreading consistency. Add one teaspoon at a time, mixing and checking the consistency after each addition.

pro tips for this recipe

• Don’t use pre-shredded carrots from a bag. Shred your own, using a box grater. The ones from a bag are always dry and shredded too thick.
• Make sure all wet ingredients are at room temperature. Cold ingredients are harder to incorporate and combine evenly.
• Measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into a measuring cup and use a knife edge to level it off. Don’t dip your measuring cup into the flour or you’ll end up with too much, resulting in a dry cake. Flour in a container or bag is compacted. It’s important to fluff it up with a fork or spoon it into your measuring cup.
• Make sure to use a block of cream cheese in the frosting, not a tub of spreadable cream cheese. Make sure it’s at room temperature. Always beat the cream cheese until it is smooth and free of any lumps before adding butter or other ingredients.
• Refrigerate the cake for at least two hours before slicing, for neater slices.
• You can add raisins to this cake if you prefer. Reduce the nuts to 1/2 cup and add 1/2 cup of dark or golden raisins.

Can I freeze this cake?

Yes. It freezes beautifully. Wrap it securely. I place mine in the freezer for a few minutes until the frosting is firm. Then I wrap plastic wrap over and around it. I also place it in my cake container before placing it in the freezer. This cake will keep until Thanksgiving if you make and freeze it now. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator. Remove the plastic wrap the next morning and sit it out a few minutes before serving.

You won’t believe how many delicious pumpkin dessert recipes I have here at My Country Table. Check them out! 🙂

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Pumpkin Carrot Cake

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review

• Author: Cindy @mycountrytable
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
• Yield: 12 to 14 slices 1x
• Category: Cakes
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

Print Recipe

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Description

This cake is moist, flavorful and warmly spiced. It’s finished with a classic cream cheese frosting, and it’s a perfect holiday cake. It also freezes beautifully, so you can make it in advance.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

FOR THE CAKE

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 1/4 cups shredded carrots
• 1 8–ounce can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 cup pecans or walnuts coarsely or finely chopped
• 3/4 cup full-fat buttermilk, room temperature

FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

• 1 8–ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 2 sticks real unsalted butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• Tiny bit of milk as needed
• Pecans or walnuts for garnish, optional

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Instructions

FOR THE CAKE

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line three 9-inch cake pans with wax or parchment paper. Lightly grease and dust with flour. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, add the oil, eggs, sugars, vanilla, pumpkin puree, shredded carrots, crushed pineapple and nuts. Mix on medium high speed until all ingredients are well incorporated. Add the buttermilk and dry ingredients alternately, starting with the buttermilk and ending with the dry, mixing just long enough to incorporate the dry ingredients.
4. Divide the batter equally between the cake pans. Gently shake the pans and tap them on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
5. Bake the cakes for 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick test comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to loosen the cakes and invert them onto a wire rack to cool completely.

FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

1. Add the cream cheese to a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until the cream cheese is light and creamy, and free of any lumps. Add the butter, vanilla and salt. Mix on medium high speed until all ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is light and creamy, about one minute. Add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, sifting it in as you go (if you want smooth frosting with no lumps). Mix well after each one cup addition, mixing on low until it’s incorporated, then turning mixer to medium high. Keep adding the sugar until the frosting is the perfect spreading consistency. You might not use quite all of the sugar. If the frosting is a little too thick, simply add a tiny bit of milk to thin it down. If it’s too thin, add a little more sugar. It’s sort of a give and take thing. You’ll know when it’s of spreading consistency.
2. Spread the frosting on cooled cake layers. I like to refrigerate my cake layers for a few minutes before frosting. Decorate the top with pecan halves, if desired.
3. Refrigerate the cake in a covered container until about 1/2 hour before serving it. It slices much more neatly if it’s chilled.

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Notes

• You can freeze this cake for up to 3 months. Wrap securely. I place mine in the freezer for a few minutes to harden the frosting, then I wrap it in plastic wrap. I then place mine in a cake container and freeze it. Thaw is overnight in the fridge. Remove the plastic wrap. Slice it while it’s cold for neat slices and sit it out a least 1/2 hour before serving it.