Carrot Cake with cream cheese frosting is an Easter Dessert everyone will love. Additionally a carrot cake with a baked in cream cheese filling and baked in a bundt pan really makes this dessert outstanding! Not to mention, the crispy cinnamon ginger carrot baked shreds on top of the piped cream cheese frosting. This cake bakes perfectly and no mixer is required. Your dessert table will be so beautiful with this showcase easy-to-make carrot cake.
How to Make a Carrot Bundt Cake with Creamy Filling
Nothing better than a bundt cake… right? So this recipe begins with a great baking bundt pan. I purchased mine from Williams & Sonoma, the Nordic Ware Nonstick Cast Aluminum Anniversary Bundt® Pan. The 10 1/2 ” pan will hold 10-15 cup capacity making a tall bundt cake, which I love. This recipe is perfectly baked in this pan. The cake is moist, firm and browns evenly. You will love it too.
Secondly, it is very helpful to prepare your ingredients before you actually mix the cake together as well as make the carrot garnish if you decide that is what you want to garnish with.
1.Preheat your oven to 350, prepare your bundt pan with shortening and dust with flour. You could use the baking spray if you’d like.
2.To prepare your ingredients, set them aside in separate mixing bowls, placing carrots, chopped pecans, coconut and raisins in one bowl, flour with baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices in another, and crushed pineapple in the third bowl.
Tips: Grate your carrots with a box grater using the widest grid, you will need 2 cups plus about a 1 cup for shredded garnish.
3. In a large mixing bowl, place sugars and 4 eggs, whisk together until smooth. Add vanilla, vegetable oil and crushed pineapple undrained. The juice will help with keeping the cake moist. Add flour and spices to batter, whisk to blend. Last, add raw shredded carrots, raisins, shredded coconut sweet or unsweetened, toasted pecans folding into batter with spatula.
4. Place 2/3 of cake batter into bundt pan, spreading evenly. Set aside while you whip up the cream cheese filling.
5. In separate mixing bowl, add 8 ounces of softened cream cheese, granulated sugar, 1 egg and vanilla, mix together until smooth and creamy. Add spoonfuls around the bundt pan on top of cake batter. Gently spreading to smooth but still keeping filling in the center ring. Add remaining cake batter over the cream cheese. Take a knife and gently swirl the cream cheese with the batter. Do not over swirl to prevent inside of cake look messy or lost after baking.
6. Bake cake on a baking sheet to help level the pan at 350 for 60 minutes. Depending on your oven it may be 55-75 minutes for baking. Remove from oven cool upright in pan for 25 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack. Cake should release easily.
7. While cake cools make cream cheese frosting and gather piping materials. In small mixing bowl mix 3 ounces of softened cream cheese, 1 tablespoon softened butter, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1-1/2 cups confectioners sugar, whip on high speed until smooth and creamy. Do not add cream or other liquid to the frosting. This frosting is perfect for piping swirls as you can see the design.
Tip: If you do not want to make pipe swirls on top of cake as a garnish, you can thin the frosting with cream to make a thinner glaze.
Fit piping bag with tip # 1 M or 2 D large star opening, fill bag with cream cheese frosting. Pipe swirls or kisses on top of widest sections of bundt cake, sprinkle with carrot garnish.
How to Make Carrot Garnish
With reserved 1 cup shredded carrots, pat dry with paper towel, then place in a bowl, add honey, ground cinnamon, and ginger, stir to coat. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, spread carrots evenly, yes they will be a sticky mess. But the results are great. Bake carrots at 350 for 5-7 minutes. Watch carefully as not to burn. Once almost baked, remove from oven and allow to cool. When cool, use a small spatula and pick up the tiny shreds of carrots for garnishing your cake.
Pineapple Cream Cheese Carrot Bundt Cake
Super moist carrot cake with crushed pineapple, chopped pecans, coconut, raisins, and baked in cream cheese filling baked in a large bundt pan. Cream cheese frosting dollops or swirls with candied carrot shreds garnish this cake beautifully.
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 12–16 slices 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
4 large eggs
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla + 1 teaspoon orange extract
1 cup vegetable oil
1–8 ounce can crushed pineapple, undrained
2 teaspoons Baking powder
1–1/2 teaspoons Baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 cups raw grated carrots + 1 cup for garnish
1/2 cup shredded coconut, sweet or unsweet
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
1 cup raisins
Cheesecake Layer
1–8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
Cream Cheese Frosting
4 ounces softened cream cheese
1 tablespoon softened butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1–1/2 cups confectioners sugar
Carrot Garnish
1 cup shredded carrots, patted dry
2 teaspoons honey or maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger-optional
Instructions
1.Preheat oven to 350F (175 C). Grease bundt pan with shortening and dust with flour. Set aside.
2. Shred carrots, separate 2 cups for batter, 1 cup for garnish.
3.In a large mixing bowl add sugars, eggs, oil and whisk to combine. Add pineapple and extracts, continue to whisk to blend.
4. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger sift together. Add flour mixture to batter, whisk or use spatula to mix blend.
5. Add carrots, raisins, pecans, coconut to batter, stir to incorporate. Set aside while you prepare filling.
Filling:
6.In medium mixing bowl, add 8 oz cream cheese and remaining ingredients for filling, stir to combine.
7. Fill prepared bundt pan with 3/4 cake batter, smooth top with rubber spatula. Spoon filling over the batter around the center ring. Cover filling with remaining batter. Smooth top of cake with spatula. With a knife, gently swirl the filling with the batter. Be careful not to over swirl less you create a muddy mess inside the baked cake. 3 to 4 swirls should be good.
8.Place pan on baking sheet for stability. Bake cake 60-75 minutes. Depending on your bundt pan size and oven temperature. Cake will be firm and slightly separate from edge of pan when done. Remove from oven, allow to cool 25-30 minutes upright before inverting onto a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
In bowl of an electric mixer, combine softened cream cheese and butter. Whip to cream together. Add vanilla and confectioners sugar. Whip until smooth and creamy. Do not add milk or cream to the frosting,* this is a stiffer frosting for piping dollops or swirls.
9. Fit a disposable piping bag with tip # 2 D or 1 M, fill bag with frosting. Pipe dollops on widest part of bundt design on top of the cake or as desired. Sprinkle with carrot garnish.
Carrot Garnish
10. In medium bowl, add grated carrots pat dry with paper towel, add honey or maple syrup and spices. Toss with fork to combine. Line a small baking sheet with parchment and spread carrots over the paper. Try to separate the carrots as much as you can for even and quick baking. This is a sticky mess so don’t panic if you have carrot clumps. Bake in 350F oven for 5-7 minutes. Watch carefully as not to burn. Carrots will be partially dried out when done.Remove from oven and allow to cool. If they are not crisp enough to pick up, return to oven for a few more minutes. Once cool, sprinkle over the top of dollops on cake.
11. Slice and serve. Cake should be covered and stored in refrigerator.
Notes
* If you want to do a cream cheese glaze, add milk or cream to thin as desired for drizzling over cake.
Recipe can be made in 2-9″ round cake pans or standard cupcake pans, just use cupcake liners for the cupcakes as this recipe is very moist. Recipe will make 20-24 cupcakes, baking time 17-20 minutes. Baking time for 9″ round cakes would be 20-25 minutes.
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