This Carrot Cake Bundt is lightly spiced incredibly moist and topped with a velvety smooth orange flavoured cream cheese frosting.
Carrot Cake Bundt would be extra special and traditional to have at Easter. You might also like my E is for Easter Letter Cake or Easter Chocolate Poke Cake with a Hidden Surprise.
I must have been very young when I first tried a carrot cake. I remember baking one with my mother and being semi repulsed at the idea of putting carrots into a cake.
"Where does this idea come from?" I said, "Who first put carrots in a cake?"
My mum explained to me that she didn't really know but if I thought carefully about it, who decided mixing eggs, flour and sugar together was a good idea?!
Well, we got cake out of that idea, didn't we.
It's true.
So once you get over the idea that baking root vegetables into a cake is icky you realise carrots in cake is a match made in heaven.
Feedback from my taste testers
✔︎ This carrot cake is SO LIGHT
✔︎ It doesn't taste at all oily
✔︎ It's full of flavour
✔︎ The orange cream cheese frosting is perfection
How do you make a carrot cake moist?
It's all down to the ingredients and not difficult to achieve a really moist cake because this set of ingredients is working for you.
It would be really hard to screw this up and the only way you'll end up with a hard crumb is if you overbake the cake.
Here are the star ingredients you'll need to make a perfectly moist and tender carrot cake bundt.
- Brown Sugar: Use light brown sugar for a real depth of flavour. Brown sugar has molasses which provides a richness and extra deep flavour. The molasses also retains water so the end result will be moister.
- Eggs: Eggs create structure and stability to cakes. They help emulsify the ingredients - thus a moister bake.
- Sunflower Oil: A cake needs fat, the fat usually comes from butter which gives an airy texture and adds flavour. For carrot cake, the fat can be replaced with oil to ensure a really moist crumb. Sunflower oil is my preference as it has a very subtle flavour, you can use any flavourless oil and lots of recipes call for vegetable or canola oil either of which will work fine.
- Carrots: I buy whole organic carrots because the flavour is better. You'll need 3 or 4 large carrots to flavour this carrot cake bundt.
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
The orange cream cheese frosting is literally the "icing on the cake" it makes so much sense to smother a carrot cake bundt in velvety cream cheese icing. Adding the orange flavour really takes this cake to another dimension of yumminess.
Cream cheese frosting is not as sweet as buttercream and the consistency is just right for piping onto a carrot cake bundt.
You could keep it plain and just add a teaspoon of vanilla extract but I really like to add the zest of an orange because it pairs so well with the carrots and light spices in the cake.
You're going to love it!
Nordicware Bundt Pans
This recipe can be used to make a 20cm round layer cake or baked in a 2.4l (10 cup) capacity bundt pan. For this cake, I used the (affiliate link) Nordicware Heritage 2.4l bundt pan.
I ADORE making bundt cakes and have collected a few bundt cake pans over the years. I can not stress highly enough how much of a difference it makes using an excellent quality bundt pan.
My all-time favourite bundt pans are from Nordicware. They are the creme de la creme of bakeware and the pans produce the most beautiful cakes I've ever baked. The Nordicware pans perform SO well and come with so many different patterns, I want to collect them all!
To achieve a bundt with really sharp detail all you need to do is a quick spray of cake release before your cake batter is poured in and your bundt will turn out perfectly.
How to make a Carrot Cake Bundt
Step One: Preheat the oven to 180ºC/ 160ºC Fan/ 350ºF / Gas 4. Add the brown sugar, eggs and sunflower oil to a large bowl and whisk until combined using an electric or hand whisk.
Step Two: Add the flour a little at a time whisking between each incorporation.
Step Three: Whisk in the bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract.
Step Four: Add the grated carrots and walnut pieces to the bowl and fold them in gently by hand.
Step Five: Prepare the bundt pan by spraying liberally with cake release. Pour in the cake batter and bake in the centre of the oven for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the bundt pan.
How to make cream cheese frosting
Step One: Add the room temperature cream cheese and butter to a bowl and beat together. Add the icing sugar a few tablespoons at a time and beat until the mixture is smooth and there are no lumps.
Step Two: Add the zest of an orange to the cream cheese and beat well. The frosting should be the consistency of toothpaste.
How to frost and decorate
Step One: When the cake is completely cool release it from the bundt cake pan by inverting it onto a serving plate or cake stand. Transfer the cream cheese frosting to a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M nozzle (or any open star nozzle) Pipe the frosting on by following the lines of the cake.
Step Two: Add a handful of whole walnuts to decorate.
Carrot Cake Bundt FAQ
I recommend buying whole organic carrots as they have the most flavour. Avoid precut packaged carrots as they tend to be completely lacking in flavour.
I haven't tested this recipe with a box mix and I don't think a box mix would fill the bundt pan enough. My recipe is really easy and much tastier than a box mix so give it a go. You won't regret it!
Yes, absolutely! A buttercream would work here too. Check out the vanilla buttercream for my 18th Birthday Cake recipe.
Bundt cakes are so beautiful in their natural state it's almost a shame to cover them but what's a cake without delicious frosting?!
I like to cover this carrot cake bundt in cream cheese icing by piping it all over with a Wilton 1M nozzle. Alternatively, you could pipe in the gaps or if you wanted to skip the piping stage altogether, add less icing sugar to the cream cheese frosting and spoon it over the bundt cake letting it drip down the sides.
I use Wilton Bake Easy which is a cake release spray. You can also oil/butter and then flour your bundt pan to stop your cake from sticking.
Fill a bundt pan ¾ full or it will spill over any less and you won't get the full impression from the pattern. ¾ full is just right.
Leave the cake to cool in the tin then invert it onto a cake plate or cake stand. As long as you used cake release (or butter and flour) Your cake should slip out easily.
It certainly *feels* a lot healthier because it's packed full of vegetables! However, the calories from carrot cake with frosting can add up. We don't believe in calorie counting here and live by the motto "everything in moderation INCLUDING moderation".
Yes, the recipe can be adapted and has enough ingredients to make about 15 cupcakes with orange cream cheese frosting.
Yes, this recipe can be adapted to make a two or three-layer 20cm cake with orange cream cheese frosting.
This carrot cake bundt should be stored in the fridge and will keep for at least 5 days.
More Tempting Cake Recipes
- Easy Chocolate Orange Cake
- Kinder Bueno Gold Drip Cake
- Vanilla Naked Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake
Carrot Cake Bundt with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
This is the most amazing Carrot Cake Bundt that has been lightly spiced. This cake is incredibly moist and topped with a velvety smooth orange flavoured cream cheese frosting and walnuts.
Ingredients
For the carrot cake
- 300 g light brown soft sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 300 ml sunflower oil
- 280 g plain flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 300 g carrots, grated
- 100 g walnut pieces
- 50 g whole walnut pieces, to decorate
For the orange cream cheese frosting
- 180 g cream cheese, at room temperature
- 125 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 450 g icing sugar, (powdered sugar)
- zest of an orange
Instructions
For the carrot cake bundt
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC/ 160ºC Fan/ 350ºF / Gas 4. Add the brown sugar, eggs and sunflower oil to a large bowl and whisk until combined using an electric or hand whisk.
- Add the flour a little at a time whisking between each incorporation.
- Whisk in the bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and vanilla extract.
- Add the grated carrots and walnut pieces to the bowl and fold them in gently by hand.
- Prepare the bundt pan by spraying liberally with cake release. Pour in the cake batter and bake in the centre of the oven for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the bundt pan.
For the orange cream cheese frosting
- Add the room temperature cream cheese and butter to a bowl and beat together. Add the icing sugar a few tablespoons at a time and beat until the mixture is smooth and there are no lumps.
- Add the zest of an orange to the cream cheese and beat well. The frosting should be the consistency of toothpaste.
To decorate
- When the cake is completely cool release it from the bundt cake pan by inverting it onto a serving plate or cake stand. Transfer the cream cheese frosting to a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M nozzle (or any open star nozzle) Pipe the frosting on by following the lines of the cake.
- Stick a handful of whole walnuts on the top and sides of the bundt cake to decorate.
Notes
This carrot cake bundt and orange cream cheese frosting recipe can be adapted to make a 2 or 3 layer 20cm round cake or 15 cupcakes.
If you wish, you can add 100g raisins or sultanas to this recipe.
Storage: This carrot cake bundt should be stored in the fridge and will keep for at least 5 days.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 14 Serving Size: 1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 669Total Fat: 41gSaturated Fat: 10gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 73mgSodium: 228mgCarbohydrates: 73gFiber: 2gSugar: 54gProtein: 5g
Gavin Degiorgio
I agree with you
SANDI SHEPARD
Could you please change the gram(s) ingredients to cups?? Thanx