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- April 13, 2019
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This incredibly moist pineapple carrot cake recipe is made with crushed pineapple, pecans and my ‘Cream Cheese Frosting’. Every bite is bursting with incredible flavor from the pineapple and carrots – both of which add moisture and texture. I also like to add a bit of warming spices – cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg. Garnish the cake with a bit of my home-made caramel sauce, chopped pecans and orange chocolate garnishes.Carrot cakes have long been synonymous with Easter and this cake is no exception – it’s perfect for the spring time holiday!
Watch My Cake Video!
Watch my video for step-by-step instructions and learn how to make that beautiful piped top! Want to receive email updates for new recipes? Make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and turn on notifications!
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Ingredients for the Best Carrot Cake!
Carrot cakes are all about moisture, texture and flavors! The secret is actually a combination of ingredients – canola oil, pineapple and of course, carrots.
- Oil: Using canola oil instead of butter makes for a thinner batter, which makes the cake a bit of dense.
- Crushed Pineapple: The pineapple adds both flavor, texture and moisture into every bite and the grated carrots add a bit of sweetness and texture. The moist texture of this cake means it can stand for longer in the fridge without going dry. If you’re making this cake for Easter, it should be just to make it a few days ahead of time.
- Carrots: grated, raw carrots should be used for this recipe.
- Pecans: diced pecans add great flavor and texture to the cake layers.
- Buttermilk: using soured milk for the cake layers makes them even more moist and delicious.
- Cinnamon & Nutmeg: these spices add a nice warm touch to the cake.
- Cream Cheese: for making the cream cheese frosting.
How to Make a Pineapple Carrot Cake
This cake is easy and simple to put together! Here’s how it’s done:
- Preheat the oven to 350F/177C and line three, 8-inch/20-cm baking pans with parchment paper. If using just 2 pans, increase baking time!
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Mix together on high speed for 3 to 4 minutes until the mixture is smooth. Add the buttermilk and mix again for a minute. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon and cardamom. Sift the dry ingredients into the cake batter, then mix just until the flour is incorporated; do not overmix.
- Add the crushed pineapple, pecans and carrots last; stir with a rubber spatula to fold the ingredients into the cake batter. Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake in preheated oven for 28 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake layers to cool on a wire rack before frosting!
- Once cake layers have cooled completely, use a long serrated knife to level the tops, if necessary. Prepare a batch of my ‘Cream Cheese Frosting’; linked above. Spread a generous amount of frosting between each layer, then smooth the frosting over the top and sides. Transfer any remaining frosting and garnish the top with dollops, using French star tip #8. Watch my video recipe to see how I did it.
The Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream cheese frosting is the perfect frosting choice for any carrot cake recipe! The tangy flavor of the cream cheese goes very well with the textured and moist cake. This particular frosting requires just 5 simple ingredients and it’s so delicious! I have a separate video recipe for this frosting with in-depth details for making it. It’s a great frosting recipe for many different cake and cupcake recipes. Watch it here:
Garnishing the Carrot Cake
I finished the top of this cake off with beautiful dollops of frosting, using French star tip #8; check out my product links below for a set of cake decorating tips that I use. I also added chopped pecans and drizzled some of my home-made caramel sauce, which adds great flavor (check out the video recipe)! For the orange chocolate triangles, I added a bit of powder orange food coloring to white chocolate melts and used my technique for making garnishes, like these.
More Recipes!
Enjoyed this pineapple carrot cake recipe? Check out some of my other classical cakes you’re sure to enjoy!
- Pineapple Banana Pecan Hummingbird Cake – the most delicious combination of flavors and textures! This moist banana cake is frosted with a cream cheese frosting and dotted with pecans!
- Maple Carrot Cake Cupcakes – sweetened with maple syrup, these cupcakes are so delicious, with cream cheese frosting!
- Pineapple Cake with Pineapple Buttercream – moist and fruity pineapple cake filled with pineapple curd! The most delicious tropical fruit cake!
- Pistachio Carrot Cake – another incredible version of carrot cake with salted pistachios and cream cheese frosting! You’ll love it from the first bite!
Need some supplies to make this recipe? You can get them here (Amazon affiliate links):
- This set of jumbo cake decorating tips has all my favorite tips for decorating cakes! Use them with these disposable pastry bags for easy cleanup.
- For a smooth finish, use these off-set cake spatulas and this cake scrapper.
- I love my classic Ateco turntable for cake decorating – a must for every baker!
- I use these aluminum round cake pans for all my cakes.
5 from 2 votes
Pineapple Carrot Cake Recipe (video)
1 hour hr 30 minutes mins prep + 30 minutes mins cook
16 servings
The best, moist and delicate carrot cake recipe, with crushed pineapple, pecans and cream cheese frosting!
IngredientsUS Customary – Metric
US Customary – Metric
For Cake Layers:
3/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
4 large eggs
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp EACH: nutmeg, cardamom
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 large carrots, grated
6 oz crushed pineapple, drained
For Cream Cheese Frosting:
2 cups unsalted butter, softened at room temp
16 oz cream cheese, softened at room temp
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups confectioner's sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp cream cheese frosting extract, very optional!
Instructions
For Pineapple Carrot Cake:
Preheat the oven to 350F/177C and line three, 8-inch/20-cm baking pans with parchment paper. If using just 2 pans, increase baking time!
In a large mixing bowl, combine the oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Mix together on high speed for 3 to 4 minutes until the mixture is smooth. Add the buttermilk and mix again for a minute. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon and cardamom. Sift the dry ingredients into the cake batter, then mix just until the flour is incorporated; do not overmix.
Add the crushed pineapple, pecans and carrots last; stir with a rubber spatula to fold the ingredients into the cake batter. Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake in preheated oven for 28 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake layers to cool on a wire rack before frosting!
Assembling the Cake:
Once cake layers have cooled completely, use a long serrated knife to level the tops, if necessary. Prepare a batch of my 'Cream Cheese Frosting'. Spread a generous amount of frosting between each layer, then smooth the frosting over the top and sides. Transfer any remaining frosting and garnish the top with dollops, using French star tip #8. Watch my video recipe to see how I did it.
If desired, garnish the top with caramel sauce, chopped pecans and orange chocolate garnishes. Keep cake refrigerated; remove at least 30 minutes prior to serving. Cake will stand in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
For Cream Cheese Frosting:
Soften the cream cheese and butter at room temperature until slightly soft to touch – not melted or too soft! Place the butter into a stand mixer bowl and use a whisk attachment to whisk the butter. Whisk on high speed for about 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl often to get all the butter creamed.
Add the softened cream cheese next and whisk again for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl often, until the mixture is uniform and smooth.
Add the vanilla, optional cream cheese extract, salt and confectioner's sugar. Whisk on low speed first until the sugar is incorporated, then turn the speed up and whisk on high for 2 to 3 minutes, until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Nutrition
Calories: 643kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 134mg | Sodium: 358mg | Potassium: 154mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 38g | Vitamin A: 2438IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 1mg
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Course:
- Cakes
- Dessert
Cuisine:
- American
Holiday:
- Easter
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29 comments
- Jenny
Tatyana, I believe I have seen some of your recipes with metric conversions. But apparently you don’t do that all the time? I would love to make this cake, but I am in Germany so would appreciate metric measurements with weight.
The cake looks like a real proper carrot cake, so perfect for Easter!- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Jenny! I’ll get the metric measurements up in a few minutes, just for you! 🙂 It’s the perfect cake for Easter!
- Reply
- Jenny
Tatyana, you are a doll! Now I feel like I HAVE to make this cake asap! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
- Reply
- Lisa Hutchinson
Hi.. are there some metric measurements please?
Lisa x- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Lisa! Yes, I do have metric measurements. If you go to the recipe card, simply click on ‘metric’ next to the ingredient list. Enjoy! 🙂
- Reply
- Dalila G.
Hi Tatyana!
Another AMAZING cake!!
I really like how you show us the simplicity of baking.
This cake will look like I’ve been slaving away for hours, it will impress my friends….LOL!
Hope you’re feeling good, take care of yourself.
Happy Easter to you and yours!- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Dalila! It really is impressive and so easy to make! Thank you for your continued support! Happy Easter! 🙂
- Reply
- Mariya
Hi Tatyana, Could you please suggest any alternative for cream cheese. Which frosting recipe do you suggest for this pineapple carrot cake other than cream cheese frosting? I also want to know how to make the various frosting recipes you have on your page which have cream cheese as an ingredient. Can whipped cream be used instead and the same recipe be followed?? please let know soon as I need to make this cake today. Thanks
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Mariya! I would recommend going with a German Buttercream, it’s made with pastry cream. It’s light and fluffy which will be perfect for this cake: https://tatyanaseverydayfood.com/recipe-items/pastry-cream-recipe/
For the recipes that have cream cheese, like my whipped cream frosting, you can also use mascarpone cheese. I also have a stabilized whipped cream without any cream cheese, using gelatin 🙂- Reply
- Mariya
Hi Tatyana,
The cake turned out good but i really loved the combination of the German buttercream you suggested. It tasted so yummy. Thankyou so much. I also wanted to know if i can try the berry whipped cream frosting recipe using only heavy cream as i dont want cream cheese as an ingredient. Pls do let know. I have a recipe request from you too, pls make a nonalcoholic rich fruit cake recipe on your channel. Thanks alot! Take care!- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Mariya! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake with German Buttercream! It’s a great replacement option for this cake. Yes, you can enjoy the berry frosting without the cream cheese.
Any of my fruit cakes that are made with alcohol can be made without it, too! I recommend replacing the alcohol with fruit juice instead 🙂- Reply
- Kelly Hayes
Dear Tatyana,
Another success! I made this for my friend’s birthday this past weekend and it was a hit! I have a gluten allergy so I substituted Caputo gluten free flour (1/1 ratio) and no-one noticed. The cake was (and remained) beautifully moist and flavourful. My only glitch was with the cream cheese frosting; it seemed to curdle a bit when it came to the piping stage. I’m not sure if it had warmed up too much? If I had over-beaten it? I put it in the fridge for a bit and put in some more icing sugar, which did help but it still didn’t pipe as beautifully has yours. Also, do you have a tip for icing the top edge of cakes? I often have difficulty getting the icing to adhere well there.
This is the second cake I’ve made from your site (previous one was the lemon meringue cake – heaven!) and I have now ordered your book from Amazon. Can’t wait!!!!
Kelly Hayes- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Kelly! I’m so glad to hear that everyone enjoyed the cake recipe! 🙂 If the frosting starts to do that, often that’s just an indicator that it’s too warm. I would place it into the refrigerator or even the freezer to cool down quickly for at least 30 minutes, then rewhip. That usually saves it and adding more confectioner’s sugar can also help stabilize it! 🙂 Do you do two coats of frosting? If the frosting isn’t sticking too well, apply a thin layer all over first (crumb coat), then refrigerate or freeze the cake for 10 to 15 minutes. Once the first thin layer is set, apply the top coat of frosting. I recommend using offset cake spatulas to really smooth everything out.
I hope you enjoy all the new recipes in the cookbook! 🙂- Reply
- Vlada
Hello Tatyana,
Thank you for your wonderful recipes! Every single one I tried was amazing! I love the cake, wondering if I could use same batter for cupcakes. Do I need to make any modifications to make it just as delicious?
Thank you!- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi! I’m so glad to hear you’re enjoying my recipes! 🙂 Yes, you can absolutely use this recipe for cupcakes. You don’t need to adjust anything but the baking time. The cupcakes will bake a little bit quicker than the cake layers. To check for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center and it if comes out clean, the cake is done. Enjoy! 🙂
- Reply
- Louise
I would love for you to have along with these large cakes, a break down recipe for just one layer. That way if we only want to make a smaller version of it, a recipe has been figued out for us.
For those of us, who are on a low budget, who live alone, and want to treat ourselves, but not over indulge, this would be great! It wont look as luxurious, but the taste will still be there!- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Louise! My new recipe cards actually have that feature built in! If you go down to the recipe card, find the servings amount, and adjust the number of servings. You can reduce the amount of servings and the recipe card will automatically update with the adjusted amounts. This will probably work best on a desktop or laptop computer. Let me know if you have any issues with it. Enjoy!
- Reply
- CHERYL
Can this cake be made in a bundt pan?
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Sure! Just make sure to spray the inside of the bundt pan with a non-stick baking spray, or use the butter and flour method. Bake at 350F for about 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Invert the baked cake onto a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!
- Reply
- Nadia
This recipe was a complete failure. I followed it by letter and it came out not a “tasteless” but sort of a “confused” by all unnecessary spices (cardamom??) whatever cake which was definitely NOT a carrot cake. Carrot cake is my favorite and I make it for my birthday every year. Decided to change a recipe and try something new. The only good part about it was the cream cheese icing.
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Nadia! I’m very sorry you didn’t enjoy the recipe! This has actually been a favorite of mine and many others for 3 years so I’m not sure what could have happened on your end. Did you add the required amount of sugar? Drain the crushed pineapple?
- Reply
- Sandy
My cake never cooked properly. Please don’t follow this recipe
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Sandy! I’m so sorry the recipe didn’t work well for you. I’ve used this recipe for many years with no issues. Please make sure your baking powder/baking soda are not expired. Each oven bakes a little differently so adjust my timing accordingly.
- Reply
- Kathleen R.
Can you add raisins to this recipe?
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Sure! That would be a great addition. I personally like golden raisins for carrot cakes. Enjoy!
- Reply
- Yahlia
Hi Tatyana,
This recipe looks delicious, and I would like to try it. However, can you please specify how many cups the two large carrots should yield? I want to make sure I do not add too much or too little.Thank you.
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Yahlia! I’m glad you found my recipe! This cake is so delicious! You’ll need approximately 2 1/2 cups of grated carrots. Hope you enjoy the recipe!
- Reply
- Julia
Hi. Can be buttermilk be changed on Greek Yougurt?
- Reply
- tatyanaseverydayfood
Hi Julia! Yes, Greek yogurt will also work well. I would add a little bit of milk to thin it out if it’s too thick. Enjoy!
- Reply
