A classic, lightly-spiced carrot cake with delicious mix-ins like coconut and pecans, topped with cream cheese icing— but it an easier bundt cake! It’s also made with browned butter, so it’s likely to be the best carrot cake you’ve ever had.
To be honest, I haven’t really been the biggest carrot cake fan. Growing up, I thought the only good thing about carrot cake was the frosting. But now that I’m older and wiser, I realize that carrot cake is actually super delicious and very special.
This carrot bundt cake has completely won me over! It’s moist and flavorful, and filled with all the traditional ingredients you love— coconut, chopped pecans, shredded carrots, crushed pineapple, cinnamon and ginger. It’s also made with browned butter, which adds a whole other layer of flavor and deliciousness. And of course, we can’t forget about the rich creamy frosting (which may still be my favorite part).
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love it
Here’s why I know you’re going to love this carrot cake recipe!
- No mixer required!
- Bundt cakes are so much easier and less fussy than layer cakes.
- It has all the cozy flavors you expect— warm spices, nuts, and coconut— with even more flavor thanks to brown butter.
- Shredded carrots and pineapple help create the perfectly moist texture.
- It’s topped with a very generous portion of cream cheese glaze so you get a bite of cake + frosting every time.
Make this carrot bundt cake for Easter, other holidays, birthdays and special occasions!
Ingredients you’ll need
Carrot cake ingredient lists can be a bit long! But there’s nothing too complicated or unusual here (you can find the full recipe down below):
- Salted butter
- Brown sugar— either light or dark brown sugar, but I always choose dark brown sugar for the extra flavor
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder, baking soda and salt
- Ground cinnamon and ginger
- Vanilla extract
- Canned crushed pineapple— not drained
- Sweetened shredded coconut— Unsweetened coconut is drier, so I prefer sweetened for the added moisture
- Chopped pecans— or walnuts, if that’s your preference
- Freshly shredded carrots— store-bought shredded carrots unfortunately are pretty dried out, so grate your own from whole carrots
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Heavy cream
How to make this carrot bundt cake, step-by-step
- Brown butter, grate carrots, and prep other ingredients. While the butter browns on the stove (and then cools), shred the carrots either with a box grater or food processor, and get the other ingredients measured and ready.
- Prepare batter. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (including carrots!) and then pour them in with the dry. Stir together just until a few streaks of flour remain, then stir in pecans and coconut.
- Bake. The carrot cake batter will be a little thick, so scoop and spread into a well-greased bundt pan. Bake in a 350°F oven for about an hour.
- Cool completely. Leave the cake in the pan for 10-15 minutes, then invert on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Top with frosting. Stir together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and cream to make a thick icing that’s still soft enough to drape over the bundt sides. Use a spoon to add it on top of the cooled cake.
- Serve and enjoy! The bundt can be served right away, or stored in the refrigerator for later. I recommend taking it back out the fridge 30 minutes before serving.
Recipe tips and FAQs
I recommend a 10-12-cup capacity bundt pan. Here’s the one I use. I also recommend a light-colored metal pan, as a dark metal pan will produce more browning and will overcook the edges. You can use a nonstick or regular pan, though either way your pan should be well-greased with nonstick baking spray (that contains flour, like Baker’s Joy).
Bundt cakes can be tricky because of their long bake time. You want to make sure it’s done all the way through, but you also don’t want to overbake it or the cake will be dry. You can insert a toothpick into the center and check for just a few moist crumbs. Or, for even more accuracy use an instant read thermometer and pull the cake out of the oven when it reaches 190-200°F.
Store-bought, pre-shredded carrots have lost so much of their moisture by the time they make it home with you, so don’t use them! Instead, use a box grater or a food processor (my preference). Once grated, give the carrots a rough chop with a sharp knife to cut them up even more.
This bundt cake will actually keep really well for about 5 days, though it will slowly loose its moisture over time. Since the frosting contains cream cheese, it should be stored in the fridge. You can also freeze the unfrosted carrot bundt cake for up to 1 month, wrapped in two layers of plastic wrap. Let it thaw overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a few hours, removing the plastic only once thawed.
baking tip:How do you know when bundt cake is done?
I usually start checking for doneness about 5-10 minutes before the recipe bake time is up, since ovens and baking times will vary.
Make it now, here’s the recipe
Carrot Bundt Cake
This carrot bundt cake is lightly-spiced carrot cake with fun and delicious mix-ins like coconut and pecans, topped with cream cheese icing. Browning the butter means there’s even extra flavor!
To make the carrot bundt cake:
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Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 10-12 cup capacity bundt cake pan generously with nonstick baking spray (which has flour in it).
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Add cubed butter to saucepan over medium low heat. It will melt and start to foam. Stir frequently with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom of the pan, and cook until you see brown specs in the butter and it has a nutty aroma. Remove from heat immediately and pour it into a large bowl to cool.
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While the butter is browning and cooling, prep other ingredients. Once carrots are shredded, use a sharp knife to chop them into smaller pieces (this is especially important if you use a food processor). I also prefer to more finely chop the coconut and pecans too, but do this after measuring.
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In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and ginger.
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Once the butter has cooled (it should be a slight warm room temperature), stir in the wet ingredients: brown sugar, pineapple, eggs, vanilla and shredded carrots.
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Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to combine. When only a few streaks of flour remain, add the coconut and pecans and continue stirring until incorporated.
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Spoon cake batter into the prepared bundt cake pan and bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs, or until an instant read thermometer reads 190-200°F.
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Let the cake cool in the pan 10-15 minutes, then invert it onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make frosting:
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Stir together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream (you can use an electric mixer, but it can also be done by hand). You want a very thick icing, but one that will drape down the side of the bundt. Add more cream if needed.
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Use a spoon to add the frosting to the top of the cooled bundt, encouraging it down the sides.
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Serve immediately or store in the fridge for later. Bundt cake will keep for about 5 days in the fridge, but will be at its best within 2 days.
- All recipes on completelydelicious.com are tested with the “spoon and level” method of measuring flour for accuracy. For best results, use gram measurements and a kitchen scale.
- I’ve found the cake has the best texture when all of the mix-ins are finely chopped so there’s no big chunks of anything, which is why I’ve included the extra steps of chopping the shredded carrots, coconut and chopped pecans. I start with “pecan pieces” instead of whole pecans.
- The unfrosted cake cake be frozen in a double layer of plastic wrap for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge or on the counter for a few hours, only removing the plastic wrap once thawed.
Calories: 442kcal, Carbohydrates: 56g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 13g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.5g, Cholesterol: 88mg, Sodium: 364mg, Potassium: 224mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 40g, Vitamin A: 3312IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 72mg, Iron: 2mg
