Inside: A recipe for a deliciously moist carrot cake decorated with a lime cream cheese frosting and made with healthier ingredients.
Carrot cake is a timeless classic, and everyone in our family absolutely loves it. In fact, it’s my partner’s favorite birthday cake, so I get to make it at least once a year!
This has given me plenty of opportunities to tweak and test my recipe, and this one? Hands down, it’s the best I’ve ever made!
Because I love sweets and bake often, I always try to find ways to make my desserts a little healthier by incorporating some better-for-me ingredients.
For this carrot cake, I use a mix of white and whole-wheat flour, white and brown sugar, applesauce to cut down on the oil, and a frosting that uses a ton less sugar than classic frosting recipes, too.
I hope you enjoy this healthier version of carrot cake as much as I do!
How to Make This Carrot Cake with Lime Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients You’ll Need For This Recipe
For the carrot cake:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole-wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- Dash of ground cardamom
- Pinch of salt
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups grated carrots (about 4-5 medium carrots)
For the frosting:
- 12 oz full-fat cream cheese (like Philadelphia), softened
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons (fresh) lime juice
For topping:
- ¼ cup crushed walnuts
- ¼ cup crushed pecans
Step-by-Step Guide
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and line two 9×9-inch cake pans with parchment paper.
2. Peel and grate your carrots using the large holes on a box grater to give your cake some texture.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: all-purpose and whole wheat flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, cardamom, and salt.
4. In another bowl, beat together the oil, eggs, brown sugar, white sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract until smooth.
5. Stir the grated carrots into the wet mixture and combine well.
6. Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients using a spatula or whisk. Mix just until you don’t see any streaks of flour anymore. Overmixing can lead to a dry and flat cake, and we want it light and tender.
7. Divide the batter evenly between your two prepared pans and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Let the cakes rest in their pans for about 30 minutes before turning them out onto a cooling rack to cool further. Make sure they’re fully cooled before frosting – warm cake and cream cheese frosting are not a good mix!
9. To make the frosting, beat the softened cream cheese and butter together using a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
10. Fold in the powdered sugar with a spatula first so it doesn’t fly everywhere, then quickly blend again.
11. Finally, add in the lime juice and give it another quick whirl to blend everything properly.
12. To assemble, spread about one-third of the frosting on the first layer. Place the second layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake.
13. Sprinkle with crushed walnuts and pecans in any pattern you like, then refrigerate the cake for at least a couple of hours to let the frosting set.
Serve and enjoy!
Important Recipe Notes
- Although I make my cake in two pans, you can definitely use only one baking tray to make this carrot cake. Either bake it in two batches for 30 minutes each, or bake the whole thing at once for about 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Then you can either cut the cake in half and frost it like I did, or even frost just the top and sides.
- I prefer my cakes less sweet than traditionally, so make sure to taste the batter and add more sugar if you find it’s not sweet enough.
- This carrot cake keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days when stored in an airtight container or covered tightly with plastic wrap.
- The cake freezes well. You can freeze individual slices (frosted or unfrosted) by wrapping them in foil and placing them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- If you’ve run out of whole-wheat flour, you can use all-purpose flour instead.
📌 Carrot Cake with Lime Cream Cheese Frosting (Recipe Card)
Ingredients
For the carrot cake:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- Dash of cardamom
- Pinch of salt
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups grated carrots
For the frosting:
- 12 oz cream cheese
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp lime juice
For topping:
- ¼ cup crushed walnuts
- ¼ cup crushed pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line two 9×9-inch cake pans with parchment paper.
- Peel and grate carrots using the large holes of a box grater to give the came some texture.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: all-purpose and whole wheat flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, cardamom, and salt.
- In another bowl, beat together oil, eggs, brown sugar, white sugar, applesauce, and vanilla until smooth.
- Stir in the grated carrots and mix well again.
- Gently fold the wet mixture into the dry ingredients, just until combined, and you don’t see any streaks of flour anymore. Don’t overmix!
- Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cakes cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting, beat together softened cream cheese and butter with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
- Fold in powdered sugar with a spatula, then beat again quickly until fully blended.
- Add lime juice and give it a final mix.
- To assemble the cake, spread one-third of the frosting on the first cake layer. Top with the second layer and frost the top and sides.
- Garnish with crushed walnuts or pecans in any way you like.
- Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.