Why This Recipe Works

This moist, lightly spiced carrot cake lets you eat vegetables . . . for dessert! It’s a perfect family baking project to celebrate a birthday, special occasion, or just a rainy weekend afternoon. A whole pound of carrots keeps this cake moist and speckled with bright orange bits! Carrots get their color from a group of pigments (very tiny molecules that give plants their color) called carotenoids. Carotenoids are what give red, orange, and yellow fruits and vegetables their warm, bright colors. Ask their carrot cake bakes, challenge kids to name as many orange, yellow, or red fruits and vegetables they can think of. How many can they find in your kitchen?

Before You Begin

There are two ways to grate carrots: with a box grater or with a food processor. If using a box grater, make sure to use the large holes on the grater and stop grating when your fingers get close to the grater. You can also use the shredding disk of a food processor to quickly and easily grate the peeled and trimmed carrots for this recipe. Kids, be sure to ask an adult for help when removing the sharp disk!

Instructions

For the cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray inside bottom and sides of 13-by-9-inch metal baking pan with vegetable oil spray. Line bottom of baking pan with 13-by-9-inch piece of parchment paper.

In medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg.

In large bowl, whisk oil, sugar, brown sugar, and eggs until fully combined, about 1 minute.

Add flour mixture to oil mixture and use rubber spatula to stir until just combined and no dry flour is visible. Add carrots to batter and stir until well combined.

Use rubber spatula to scrape batter into parchment-lined baking pan and smooth top (make sure to spread batter into corners to create even layer).

Place baking pan in oven. Bake until cake is golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes.

Use oven mitts to remove baking pan from oven and place on cooling rack (ask an adult for help). Let cake cool completely in pan, about 2 hours.

For the frosting: While cake cools, in bowl of stand mixer (or large bowl if using handheld mixer), combine softened cream cheese, softened butter, sour cream, vanilla, and salt. Lock bowl into place and attach paddle to stand mixer, if using.

Start mixer on medium speed and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. Stop mixer. Use rubber spatula to scrape down sides of bowl.

Start mixer on low speed. Slowly add confectioners’ sugar, a little bit at a time, and beat until smooth, about 4 minutes.

Increase speed to medium-high and beat until frosting is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Stop mixer. Remove bowl from stand mixer, if using.

Remove cake from baking pan and discard parchment. Use icing spatula to spread frosting evenly over top and sides of cooled cake (see photos, “Step-by-Step: How to Frost a Sheet Cake,” below). Cut cake into pieces and serve.