Easy Carrot Cake Sheet Cake Recipe
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This Easy Carrot Cake Sheet Cake covered in fluffy Cream Cheese Frosting is moist, delicious, and a favorite carrot cake recipe that everyone loves! Made from scratch with simple ingredients like fresh carrots, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and ginger, this recipe makes a scrumptious dessert for Easter or any time!
Are you are carrot cake lover? If you are, this scrumptious, easy sheet cake recipe is one to add to your recipe box! This Carrot Cake Sheet Cake is so delicious – and one of our favorites! Loaded with 3 cups of freshly grated carrots this is such a hearty, moist cake with the most amazing flavor – butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and ginger bring the cake together into a sweet and spicy cake that is just divine topped with the fluffy cream cheese frosting and toasted pecans. Yum!
It’s perfect to serve a crowd and great for when you want to make a carrot cake that is a bit simpler than a layer cake. While I think this cake is absolutely perfect for Easter, it really is a favorite anytime!
My husband is a huge fan of carrot cakes, and I have some family members who love them for their birthday cakes. While I love to make my layered, gorgeous Favorite Carrot Cake for so many occasions, this Carrot Cake Sheet Cake is a recipe I turn to often to take to a large gathering, potluck, or to serve a lot of people. Both are delicious, but this sheet cake is simpler, serves a large crowd, and is easier to transport.
Let me share how to make it.
How to Make Carrot Cake Sheet Cake
- Prep the baking sheet as directed to prevent the cake from sticking.
- Mix the butter, coconut oil, sugars, and vanilla as directed. Add eggs and yolks one at a time, beating after each addition.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Combine the butter and half of the flour according to the recipe. Then, add the buttermilk, beating until just combined before stirring in the remaining flour mixture.
- Add the carrots and pecans and spread onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the cake as directed until done, then remove from the oven and allow to cool in the sheet pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes. I have tips for how to tell when your cake is done.
- Frost the cake with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with toasted pecans.
Tips for the Best Carrot Cake Sheet Cake
Don’t drain/dry the moisture from the grated carrots. Add grated carrots (moisture and all) to the cake batter mixture. It makes the cake incredibly moist!
Storage Tips
Make ahead or store: Cover the frosted cake and store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To freeze: Cool the sheet cake completely, then wrap it well and freeze the cake layers for up to one month. To frost the cake, simply remove it from the freezer and allow it to thaw in the refrigerator with the wrapping intact. Then, frost the cake once it has completely thawed.
More Favorite Cake Recipes
Here’s my Carrot Cake Sheet Cake Recipe. Enjoy!
Easy Carrot Cake Sheet Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons (56.5 g) butter, softened
- 5 tablespoons (70.6 g) coconut oil, or vegetable oil or canola oil
- ½ cup (99 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (213 g) packed brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons (6.9 g) vanilla extract
- 3 large (150 g) eggs
- 2 large (28 g) egg yolks
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) baking soda
- 2 teaspoons (4 g) ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon (1.4 g) ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon (2.8 g) kosher salt
- ⅓ cup (75.6 g) buttermilk
- 3 cups (297 g) grated carrots, (about 6 medium carrots)
- 1½ cups (171 g) roasted pecans, divided
- Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
Instructions
- Preheat oven 350º F. Coat one baking sheet (18×13) with butter or shortening and lightly dust with flour to prevent the cake from sticking while baking. Alternately, coat well with baking spray or brush with homemade cake pan release.
- Mix together butter, coconut oil, granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until well combined. Mix in vanilla extract until well incorporated. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition before adding the next. Add egg yolk making sure well combined.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a medium bowl.
- Add half of the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture and beat until well incorporated. Add buttermilk, beating until just combined before stirring in remaining flour mixture.
- Fold in carrots, 1 cup of pecans and spread into the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake until cakes spring back when gently touched in the center and the edges begin to turn loose from the sides of the pan, about 30 – 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the sheet pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes. You can follow my tips for how to tell when your cake is done.
- Frost cake with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with toasted pecans.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Rave reviews! One of the best cakes I have made in a while. Followed the recipe, but made it as a two layer cake. Everyone kept talking about how good it was – so moist and flavorful!
Thanks, Deborah. I’m so glad everyone loved the cake.
Are we supposed to chop the roasted pecans that go into the cake? Or leave those halved? I saw the ones on top of the frosting roughly chopped so wanted to make sure before I tried. Thank you!
Sarah, I use roughly chopped pecans in this cake. I hope you enjoy.
Mine baked in 20 mins… I did everything exactly to the recipe any idea why?
I have no idea why it baked that fast, Ava, other than your oven may be heating higher than 350ºF or you used a larger sheet pan than the 18×13-inch pan I used.
Hi was thinking as I’m not keen on nuts would it be okay to leave them out ?
Anja, you could omit the nuts if you wish. However, the texture and volume of the cake will be affected as well as the baking time. You will have thinner layers.
I just love it
Is it possible that you can sub half canned milk half water for the milk in this recipe??
Have you done a cupcake version of this recipe?
I’ve not baked cupcakes from this yet, but I think they’d be delicious! I would bake at the same temperature of 350º for 15 – 20 minutes, Hannah. You could use this recipe or my Best Carrot Cake Recipe that makes a layer cake if you want a larger quantity of cupcakes.
Delish! Wouldn’t change a thing. Will definitely make this again.
Just finished making this…quick question. I am hesitant to frost while it is so warm. Is there a reason why it should be done after only 5 mins of cooling. The frosting is so fluffy. Seems to me that it will just melt and lose that nice consistency.
he sheet cake should be cool enough after about 5 minutes to frost but you can wait til you think it is cool enough, Gail. Hope you enjoy the cake!
LOL!!! Who can only eat a 2″x2″ piece of this awesome cake? Not anyone I served it to! So yummy & moist!
Thanks, Jane. It is hard sometimes to just eat one piece of this cake. xo