Almost everyone loves a good carrot cake!
This one is from Ellise Pierce of The Cowgirl Chef.
I’ve been following and have been a fan of The Cowgirl Chef for years. So, when she posted this recipe, originally from 2012, on Facebook recently I had to try it.

Here is my finished cake, ready to take to a pot-luck dinner a few weeks ago. It was a hit!!
- 2 cups of flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- ½ teaspoon of sea salt
- 2 ½ teaspoons of cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon of cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1 ¼ cups of vegetable oil
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 cup of brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons of vanilla
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 cups of grated carrots
- 1 cup of walnuts, roughly chopped
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line two 9-inch pans with parchment paper and generously grease the sides with butter.
- In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Set this aside.
- Now you’re ready to make your cake. In your stand mixer or in a bowl, mix the oil, sugar and vanilla. Add the eggs and beat for a couple of minutes, or until the mixture is light and fluffy. While the motor’s running on low, add your flour mixture, carrots, and walnuts, and mix just until it comes together — don’t overmix.
- Pour into your pans, and bake for 40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans.
Now for the frosting.
I strayed from Ellise’s original recipe and went over to Ina Garten’s
Ginger Marscapone Frosting
- 12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup minced crystallized ginger (not in syrup)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the mascarpone, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, cream, and vanilla together for about 1 minute, until light and fluffy. Add the crystallized ginger and salt and beat for 30 seconds more.
I also “drizzled” more crystallized ginger on top.
As you can see, I used my trusty white cake stand. While it was just fine…I have my eye on this wonderful, colorful Bauer Pottery Cake Stand:
Now wouldn’t that be FABULOUS? Go to the Bauer Cake Stand page and tell us which color you would choose. Can you actually choose just one? I, of course, love this orange but would settle for almost any one at all.
On a housekeeping note: I will be in and out of the blog for the next month or so. It’s summer, so things slow down in the blog world. And, I have a major “renovation” happening here! We’re working on a new format, colors, layout, sidebar etc. And you know that all takes time.
Thanks for your patience and continued support!
I’ll take a big slice please! This looks delicious! And Adam’s comment is right on point – I’m so tired of all the perfection out there. Your cakes looks like you had fun making it and your guests had fun eating it!
Heather @ New House New Home recently posted…Dishing It & Digging It #100
Your carrot cake looks delicious. Thank you so much for reminding me of your Sissinghurst post and Vita’s meadow. I have now amended my post to incorporate the link back to your post. I was also using an Austrian scythe and the sound of the blade cutting through the wet grass mixed with the church bells ringing was a sound from ages past. The muscles in my middle arms are feeling it today! Sarah x
Sarah recently posted…Hazy Days
Yum. It’s high time I made a carrot cake. It’s been on my baking “To Do” list for a while. I would choose the bright yellow cake stand. So pretty! Hope you’re well, Libby.
Hi Claudia: It’s been ages! Well, try this cake, and certainly the icing; you will love it! Enjoy your garden and the summer!
Ahhhh. Carrot cake is my hubby’s favorite. I will definitely have to pin this.
Thanks for swinging by BeColorful Coastal. We are up north right now but hoping to get back down to Florida for part of July. It’s crazy but it is warmer up here in Iowa than it is in Florida. Hope your summer is going well. The new blog header looks amazing. It takes a lot of time and sometimes trial and error to get the look and functionality you want and need. I admire you for taking on the challenge.
Thanks for stopping by, Pamela! Still working on blog changes…yes, it is endless and the tweaking is getting to me. I’m also about to (re)open my Etsy shop, so we are coordinating that with the blog. We will see………