Simply The Best Carrot Bundt Cake
Simply the best carrot Bundt cake recipe ever. This carrot cake with pineapple has a creamy and fluffy cream cheese frosting. A super moist and tender Bundt cake. Easy to make.
That’s what this carrot cake is. If you are not baking this carrot cake, you are missing out on an extraordinary experience.
Why You’ll Love This Carrot Bundt Cake Recipe
- Uses a Bundt pan – A Bundt pan makes this cake very pretty. Plus no cake layers which makes it easy to prepare.
- Decadent – This moist carrot cake is absolutely decadent. Filled with fresh carrots, crushed pineapple and chopped pecans makes for a dense and satisfying dessert. Very moist with just the right amount of sweetness.
- Cream cheese frosting – You can’t have carrot cake without cream cheese frosting. This frosting is simple to make and easy to spread.
Pecans are a staple in my house. I seem to use them in everything. Like this southern pecan pie with bourbon and these exceptional butter pecan cookies. They keep well in the freezer. When they go on sale, I stock up. They are perfect for this carrot cake. I use them chopped in the cake and also as decoration for the top.
For another Bundt cake, this coconut pecan cake is a family favorite. It’s got pecans in it. My family loves pecans!
How To Grease A Bundt Pan
There is nothing worse than baking a perfect Bundt cake and it sticks to the pan. So frustrating but this mishap can be avoided. How you grease a Bundt pan is very important.
The best way to grease your Bundt pan is with shortening and flour. Do not use a non-stick cooking spray. Spread shortening in every crevice of the Bundt pan including the cone. Then sprinkle a small amount of flour into the pan. Shake the Bundt pan to coat with flour. Make sure the entire pan is coated with flour. Turn the pan over and tap out the excess flour.
Once the Bundt cake is baked, allow it to remain in the pan for ten minutes. Then turn it over onto a wire rack to cool. It should pop out quickly. If not, give the pan a couple of light taps to help loosen the cake.
Ingredients For Carrot Cake
- All-purpose flour – I prefer unbleached flour.
- Baking soda – This is a leavening agent to make the cake rise. Both the brown sugar and the pineapple contain acid which causes the baking soda to react and work it’s magic.
- Spices – Salt, cinnamon and vanilla extract for flavor.
- Sugars – Both granulated sugar and light brown sugar are used. Due to the molasses in the brown sugar, this adds more flavor to the carrot cake. It also adds moisture to keep the cake soft.
- Eggs – Use large eggs at room temperature.
- Vegetable oil – This increases the moisture in the cake. Even in the refrigerator, this cake is still soft and moist.
- Grated carrots – Use freshly grated carrots rather than the prepackaged shredded carrots in the grocery store. It’s quick to peel then use a box grater to shred whole carrots. This way you know how fresh the carrots are. They won’t be dried out either.
- Crushed pineapple – This needs to be drained before adding to the cake batter. I like to put it in a strainer before I start preparing any other ingredients. Leave the strainer in the sink and when it’s time to use, squeeze out any extra juice with a fork.
- Pecans – Chop the pecans into small pieces.
- Frosting – Full fat cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk and vanilla for the frosting. Keep some pecan halves to garnish the top.
If you own a food processor, use it to grate the carrots. It makes a fast job of grating. Chop up the nuts in the same bowl to save on clean up. Just don’t over process the nuts or you’ll wind up with pecan dust. A couple of pulses should do it.
How To Make This Recipe
For the complete ingredient list and instructions, see the recipe card below.
Prep Work
Doing these steps first will streamline the recipe process. This way, ingredients are ready to go when you need to add them. This is much faster than stopping in the middle of the recipe to prepare them.
- Grease and flour your Bundt pan.
- Drain the crushed pineapple.
- Grate the fresh carrots.
- Chop the pecans.
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a separate bowl.
Step 1. Beat the eggs till combined. Add the sugars, vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Beat till smooth.
Step 2. Beat in the flour mixture until just combined. Don’t over mix. Stir in the grated carrots, crushed pineapple and pecans.
Step 3. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared bundt pan.
Step 4. Bake for 40 – 50 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick is inserted into the middle of the cake and comes out clean. After ten minutes, invert cake onto a wire rack to cool.
If using a darker color metal pan, you may need to reduce your oven temperature to 325 ℉. Darker pans bake faster which could make your cake dry instead of moist.
To finish off this cake, I placed whole pecan halves all around the top. A simple decoration. This just makes the cake pretty. A cake stand helps, too. When you bake, you can pull out all the stops for a lovely presentation.
How To Store This Carrot Bundt Cake
Keep the carrot cake in the refrigerator due to the cream cheese frosting. Place in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
If you make a lot of Bundt cakes, you may want to invest in a special Bundt cake keeper. Making it very easy to get the cake in and out of the refrigerator.
The Best Carrot Bundt Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
- 10 to 15 cup capacity Bundt pan
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 4 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar (packed)
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
- 2 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup crushed pineappple (drained)
- ½ cup chopped pecans
Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk
- ½ teaspoon real vanilla extract
- pecan halves for garnish
Instructions
Carrot Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. For the Bundt pan, grease every crevice including the cone with shortening then dust with flour. Ensure that the entire pan is coated with flour. Shake out the excess flour. Set aside.
- Whisk the all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt and ground cinnamon together in a large bowl. Set aside.2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment; beat the eggs till combined. Add the granulated sugar, brown sugar, vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Beat till smooth.4 large eggs, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup light brown sugar, 1 cup vegetable oil, 2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
- Slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Stir in the grated carrots, crushed pineapple and pecans.2 cups grated carrots, 1 cup crushed pineappple, 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- Pour the batter evenly into the prepared Bundt pan.
- Bake for 40 – 50 minutes. (See notes below.) The cake is done when a toothpick is inserted into the middle of the cake and comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool for 10 minutes in the Bundt pan. Then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Let cool for 1 hour before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment; beat the cream cheese till smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract. Beat until fluffy.4 ounces cream cheese, 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon real vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon milk
- Spread the frosting on the top and partial sides of the cake.
- Garnish with pecan halves on top, if desired.
- Store in the refrigerator, tightly covered for up to 3 days.
That cake is beautiful and looks relish! Can’t wait to try it!
Do you drain the pineapple? And, I’m not sure how small of a can you used. 12 oz vs 32 oz or smaller?
Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Shelia. Yes, the pineapple should be drained. It is an 8 ounce can.
Let me know if you make this cake. It was so good!
Oops! That darned auto-correct! That should be delish, not relish. LOL
Great recipe. I have pinned it to try later. Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty
I followed directions and this came out dense and dry.
I will look for another recipe
Did you use a dark color pan? If so, the cake would have cooked too fast and dried out. That’s the only thing I can think of.
Can I put this in a 9×13 pan?
I have only made this in a bundt pan. Not sure how it would turn out in a different pan. Wish I could be more helpful.
One of the best carrot cakes I have ever had. I will definitely be making this recipe again. It was loved by all!
I am so happy to hear that!!! Thank you so much for the lovely comment!!!
Can’t wait to try. Sounds delicious with the pineapple and grated carrots. YUM!
I hope you enjoy it!!!