Carrot Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting (Easter Bundt Cake Recipe)

5 from 2 votes

Carrot Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting (Easter Bundt Cake Recipe)

This tender, easy-mix Bundt cake with flecks of carrot, crunchy pecan nuts, warm spices and cream cheese frosting is the perfect antidote to chocolate eggs, and a fantastic Easter Sunday dessert option.

Prep Time30

Cook Time1

Total Time1 30

Course: Afternoon Tea, Dessert, Morning Tea

Cuisine: Australian, Western

Keyword: carrot cake, easter bundt cake, easter cake

Servings:

Calories: 598kcal

Ingredients

2 Tbsp butter very soft, for greasing pan

Cake

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar firmly packed
4 eggs large
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil rice bran, grape seed or similar mild-tasting oil
1 cup chopped pecan nuts I break up by hand for better texture; can substitute walnuts if preferred
1 cup chopped dried apricots can substitute raisins or golden sultanas if preferred
1/3 cup candied ginger crystallised ginger or stem ginger (drained of syrup), finely chopped
3 large carrots finely shredded; equivalent to 3 cups firmly packed

Lemon cream cheese frosting

8 ounces cream cheese room temperature; full fat brick cream cheese; do not use spreadable or light as your frosting will be runny
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
3 cups confectioners' sugar icing sugar
1 lemon finely zested and juiced

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For conventional ovens

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C.

For combi steam ovens

Preheat oven to Combi Steam, 330°F/165°C, 30% humidity (if your oven doesn't have variable humidity, set to the correct function and temperature and the oven will take care of the humidity).

Prepare your Bundt pan

Using about 2 tablespoons of very soft butter and a pastry brush, brush a thick layer of butter all over the insides of a 10-cup Bundt pan, making sure to get into the crevasses and corners as well as right up the sides. Doing a good job of this is the difference between a cake that turns out perfectly and one that gets stuck in the pan.
2 Tbsp butter

Make the cake batter

Put the flour, baking powder, spices and both types of sugar into a large bowl and whisk to combine and get rid of any lumpy bits of sugar. Make a well in the center of the mixture.
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp ground allspice, 1 cup granulated sugar, 3/4 cup brown sugar
Crack the eggs into the flour mixture and add the oil, then whisk very well to combine.
4 eggs, 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
Add the pecans, apricots, ginger and carrot to the bowl and switch to a sturdy spatula or wooden spoon, mixing well until everything is evenly mixed and the batter has no lumps of flour or sugar left.
1 cup chopped pecan nuts, 1 cup chopped dried apricots, 1/3 cup candied ginger, 3 large carrots

Bake the cake

Scrape the mixture into the prepared Bundt pan and smooth the surface a little. Put the cake into the center of the oven and cook until it's slightly risen, golden brown and tests clean with a skewer, about an hour. A few crumbs sticking to the test skewer is fine, but you don't want pasty cake batter on there.

Cool and decorate the cake

When the cake is baked, leave it to cool in the pan for 20-30 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack and leave to cool completely.
While the cake cools, make the cream cheese frosting. Put the cream cheese and butter into the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Add the sugar, lemon zest and juice, and process again, stopping as soon as everything is blended and smooth. If the weather is warm, chill the frosting for 30 minutes to make it easier to work with when decorating.
8 ounces cream cheese, 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 3 cups confectioners' sugar, 1 lemon
When the cake is completely cool, spread the top with cream cheese frosting; go as far down the sides of the cake as you want, but not so far that you cover up the pretty pattern.
Decorate with edible or non-edible Easter eggs, bunnies, chicks and birds nests for an Easter theme; remove any non-edible decorations when serving.
Slice into wedges to serve. The cake will keep at room temperature for a couple of days or in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Video

Notes

If you don't have a Bundt pan, you can use a 10 inch (23cm) round cake tin to bake your cake. The cooking time will be similar; be guided by a skewer test rather than exact time.
Dairy free option: to make the cake dairy free, grease the pan with oil mixed with a teaspoon of flour (the flour is to stop the oil beading on the surface of the metal). Omit cream cheese frosting and replace with a simple glaze made from lemon juice and confectioners' sugar. Use dairy free decorations.
Gluten free option: I have successfully switched a supermarket gluten free flour blend for the wheat flour in this recipe. Use 250g GF flour instead of 300g wheat flour. Use gluten free confectioners' sugar (some brands contain wheat starch, it's important to check!) and GF decorations.
If you want to bake ahead, you can bake and frost the cake, then freeze (undecorated), covered, for up to a couple of weeks. Thaw overnight in the fridge before decorating and serving. For longer storage, do not frost the cake, wrap well in cling film and freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition