Carrot Cake

I’ve never had a carrot cake better than this one. It’s a ‘heritage recipe’ & is completely from scratch. Topped with cream cheese icing – this cake is absolutely divine!

sliced carrot cake with pecans on top

Carrots are among my least favorite foods.  I can tolerate them when they are seasoned well & slow cooked all day in a pot roast dinner – but I really don’t care for them in any other ‘dinner’ item.  But, carrot cake is a whole different story.  I love me some carrot cake!  I’d like to think that since it has carrots in it, when I slice a big hunk of this – I’m eating my veggies!  ????

Today, I’m going to show you how I make carrot cake & hopefully inspire you to make one of your own. This recipe has been passed down for 3 generations & I’ve yet to have one better. It’s completely from scratch and oh-so-good.

sliced carrot cake with pecans on top

What ingredients do I need to make this carrot cake?

Here’s your cast of ingredients. You can get the exact measurements in the printable recipe at the bottom of this post.

Beat together eggs, vegetable oil, sugar, & vanilla extract.

Mix in the self rising flour & ground cinnamon.

Stir in the shredded carrots along with the chopped pecans.

Pour your batter into a greased, 9″x13″ cake pan.

carrot cake batter in a cake pan

Cook in an oven preheated to 350 degrees for 50 minutes.  Let cool for about 30 minutes to 1 hour before frosting.

baked carrot cake in a cake pan - unfrosted

When completely cooled, it’s time to frost it!  For the icing, beat together the softened cream cheese, softened butter, confectioners sugar, & vanilla extract until smooth & creamy.

Frost your cake generously!  There is no such thing as too much icing!! To finish off, sprinkle the top with a handful of chopped pecans.

carrot cake with pecans on top

If you like this recipe, you will love these delicious recipes!

My favorite old fashioned Carrot Cake a heritage recipe
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4.67 from 3 votes

Carrot Cake

Ingredients

  • For the cake:
  • 4 eggs
  • 1¼ cups vegetable oil
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups self rising flour
  • 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • 3 cups grated carrots
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • For the icing:
  • 1 stick of butter softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • Chopped pecans to garnish

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch pan.
  • In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and vanilla. Mix in flour and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.
  • Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour – or until completely cooled.
  • To Make Frosting- Mix together butter, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cake. Garnish with chopped pecans.
Carrot Cake a heritage recipe