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Photograph of Carrot Cake with Coconut and Pecans and a Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

Carrot Cake with Coconut and Pecans and a Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

Moist and bursting with flavours from spices, carrots, nuts and vanilla, this foolproof cake can be eaten as is or enhanced with a deliciously, smooth and creamy Cream Cheese Frosting.

Course afternoon tea, Cake, Dessert, Morning Coffee, Snack, treat
Keyword cake, carrot, coconut, cream cheese frosting, pecan nuts
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Author Susan

Ingredients

THE CAKE - for the carrot and nut mix: 

  • 80g pecan nuts or walnuts plus 16 complete pecan halves for the topping
  • 180g carrots, washed, trimmed and roughly sliced. (No need to peel)

Wet ingredients:

  • 140g sunflower or vegetable oil
  • 80g natural yoghurt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Dry ingredients:

  • 150g whole wheat or plain/all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of /baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine salt
  • 140g light muscovado or light brown sugar
  • 40g desiccated coconut

FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

(See Recipe Notes for Frosting quantity for 16 cupcakes. Make in the same way)

  • 100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 250g icing sugar
  • 100g cream cheese
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Make the cake:

  1. Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Preheat oven to Fan Oven 160°C/180°C/350°F/Gas 4

  3. Roast the pecan nuts in the oven for 10 minutes.

  4. Whilst they are cooking, collect together the rest of the ingredients.

  5. Take the nuts out of the oven. Remove the whole pecan halves for the topping of the cake and place ⅔ of the rest in the food processor. Blitz until the they are the texture of ground almonds.

  6. Add the carrots and blitz until broken down.

  7. Add the wet ingredients – the oil, yoghurt, eggs and vanilla and blitz until thoroughly mixed.

  8. Add the dry ingredients – the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, sugar and coconut. Pulse until nearly mixed in.

  9. Add the remaining ⅓/25g of the pecans. Pulse briefly to mix in and slightly chop. Alternatively, fold into the batter by hand. Be careful not to over-mix at this stage.

  10. Transfer the batter equally into lined and greased baking tins or cupcake holders.

  11. For the cakes, bake in the centre of the oven for 30 – 35 minutes or until the cake is cooked.

    For the cupcakes, bake in the centre of the oven for 20 – 30 minutes or until the cake is cooked.

    It is cooked when:

    – the centre feels slightly springy when lightly touched

    – a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean

    – the cake is beginning to come away from the sides of the tin.

  12. Take out of the oven but leave in the tins for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

  13. Leave to cool completely before icing.

Cream Cheese Frosting

  1. Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Put the butter into the bowl of your electric whisk and beat until light and fluffy.

  3. Gradually add the icing sugar whisking well in between each addition. (NB You may wish to first fold the icing sugar in with a spoon before whisking – this will help to stop the icing sugar clouding up and making a mess of your kitchen!)

  4. Beat until very light and fluffy – this can take up to 5 minutes.

  5. Add the vanilla extract with the final addition of sugar.

  6. Finally beat in the cream cheese. Taste and add more vanilla, if necessary.

  7. When the cakes are cold either:

    A) use one third of the frosting to top one of the cakes and then freeze the remaining frosting and cakes for later use, OR

    B) use two thirds of the frosting to make a 2 layered cake and then freeze the remaining third of the frosting and the remaining cake, OR

    C) use all three cakes and all of the frosting to make a three layered cake

    D) Decorate the top of the cakes with the complete pecan or walnut halves.

  8. When the cupcakes are cold:

    Decorate the cupcakes either using a piping bag or swirl on by hand.

Recipe Notes

Equipment:

  • Baking tray
  • Chopping board and knife
  • Kitchen scales and measuring spoons
  • Food processor
  • 7 inch round cakes tins greased and lined with baking parchment
  • electric whisk and mixing bowl

Balancing the cake tins:

  • It is important that the tins have as equal amount of batter as possible. You can do it by eye but this is a really simple way to be accurate. To do this, I:
  • put a cake tin on the scales and zero the scales
  • add half or one third of the batter. Take off the scales
  • place another empty tin on the scales and press to ensure the scales have gone back to zero
  • add the remaining or another one third of the batter and check it is the same weight. If not adjust. 

Cream Cheese Frosting for 16 cupcakes:

  • 150g unsalted butter
  • 150g cream cheese 
  • 390g icing sugar 
  • 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ plus  ⅛ teaspoon salt 

No food processor?

If you do not have a food processor, I recommend you use ground almonds instead of the pecan nuts and you can grate the carrots using a box grater. Combine the nuts, carrots and wet ingredients with a whisk or beat vigorously with a wooden spoon. Fold in the dry ingredients. 

If you only have a small food processor, you can blitz the pecan nuts and either blitz or grate the carrots and make up the cake as explained above. 

4 EGG VERSION FOR 3 X 20 cm/8 inch LAYERS; 4 X 18 cm/7 inch LAYERS OR 28 – 32 CUPCAKES/MUFFINS

For the carrot and nut mix: 

  • 140g pecan nuts or walnuts, plus 16 extra for topping the cake
  • 360g carrots, washed, trimmed and roughly sliced. No need to peel

Wet ingredients:

  • 280g sunflower or vegetable oil 
  • 160g natural yoghurt
  • 4 large eggs 
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

Dry ingredients:

  • 300g whole wheat or plain/all-purpose flour 
  • 2 teaspoons bicarbonate of /baking soda 
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons cardamom powder
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
  • 1 teaspoon fine salt
  • 280g light muscovado or light brown sugar
  • 80g desiccated coconut

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 150g unsalted butter
  • 150g cream cheese 
  • 390g icing sugar 
  • 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ plus  ⅛ teaspoon salt 

 

3 EGG VERSION FOR 3 X 18 cm/7 inch LAYERS OR 21 – 24 CUPCAKES/MUFFINS

For the carrot and nut mix: 

  • 105g pecan nuts or walnuts, plus 16 extra for topping the cake
  • 270g carrots, washed, trimmed and roughly sliced. No need to peel

Wet ingredients:

  • 210g sunflower or vegetable oil 
  • 120g natural yoghurt
  • 3 large eggs 
  • 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract 

Dry ingredients:

  • 225g whole wheat or plain/all-purpose flour 
  • 1½ teaspoons bicarbonate of /baking soda 
  • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1½ teaspoons cardamom powder
  • 1½ teaspoons cinnamon powder
  • ¾ teaspoon fine salt
  • 210g light muscovado or light brown sugar
  • 60g desiccated coconut

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 125g unsalted butter
  • 125g cream cheese 
  • 325g icing sugar 
  • 1¼ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ¼ plus 1/16 teaspoon salt 

2 EGG VERSION FOR 2 X 18 cm/7 inch LAYERS OR 14 – 16 CUPCAKES/MUFFINS

For the carrot and nut mix: 

  • 70g pecan nuts or walnuts, plus 16 extra for topping the cake
  • 180g carrots, washed, trimmed and roughly sliced. No need to peel

Wet ingredients:

  • 140g sunflower or vegetable oil 
  • 80g natural yoghurt
  • 2 large eggs 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Dry ingredients:

  • 150g whole wheat or plain/all-purpose flour 
  • 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of /baking soda 
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine salt
  • 140g light muscovado or light brown sugar
  • 40g desiccated coconut

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 100g unsalted butter
  • 100g cream cheese 
  • 250g icing sugar 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt 

1 EGG VERSION FOR 1 X 18 cm/7 inch LAYER OR 7 – 8 CUPCAKES/MUFFINS

For the carrot and nut mix: 

  • 35g pecan nuts or walnuts, plus 16 extra for topping the cake
  • 90g carrots, washed, trimmed and roughly sliced. No need to peel

Wet ingredients:

  • 70g sunflower or vegetable oil 
  • 40g natural yoghurt
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 

Dry ingredients:

  • 75g whole wheat or plain/all-purpose flour 
  • ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of /baking soda 
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt
  • 70g light muscovado or light brown sugar
  • 20g desiccated coconut

Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • 50g unsalted butter
  • 50g cream cheese
  • 130g icing sugar 
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt