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A photo of three layer old fashioned carrot cake with pineapple

Old-Fashioned Carrot Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

This classic old-fashioned carrot cake hits all the right notes. It's fluffy yet moist, and packed with all the familiar flavors that you know and love. Perfect for special events like birthdays, Easter, or Mother's day! The brown butter cream cheese frosting takes it completely over the top. If you want to skip browning the butter you can, but it's totally worth it.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Course Cake, Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8 people
Calories 807 kcal

Equipment

  • Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
  • Cake Pans

Ingredients
  

For the Cake Batter

  • 2 C flour sifted
  • 1½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 C sugar
  • 1½ C vegetable oil
  • 4 eggs room temperature
  • 2 C carrots finely grated
  • 1 C crushed pineapple drained
  • ½ C walnuts chopped, optional
  • ½ C raisins optional

For the Frosting

  • ½ C butter browned, see instructions
  • 1 package cream cheese room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3⅓ C powdered sugar

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F. Prepare all three cake pans by lining the bottoms with parchment paper, and spraying with cooking oil.
  • Combine drying ingredients in a large bowl or stand mixer. Stir until well combined.
  • Add the sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs. Mix until just combined.
  • Add the pineapple, carrots, and coconut (plus the raisins and walnuts if you're using them). Mix until just combined.
  • Pour batter equally into cake pans.
  • Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

For the Frosting

  • Brown your butter: cut butter into pieces, and add to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Let the butter melt, then whisk continuously until the solids at the bottom of the pan start to turn golden brown. This should take about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
  • Combine the cream cheese, brown butter, and vanilla in an medium mixing bowl (or a stand mixer). Using a hand mixer, cream well. Slowly add the powdered sugar until very smooth.
  • Ice the cake, and serve.

Notes

Don't over mix your cake batter, it will make your cake dry and tough. 
Don't burn the butter for the brown butter! You need to watch over it while it's cooking - it goes from brown to burnt in about three seconds flat. 

Nutrition

Serving: 150gCalories: 807kcalCarbohydrates: 90gProtein: 8gFat: 48gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 27gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 82mgSodium: 805mgPotassium: 313mgFiber: 3gSugar: 56gVitamin A: 5482IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 107mgIron: 3mg
Keyword best ever cream cheese frosting for carrot cake, cream cheese icing for carrot cake, old fashioned carrot cake, old fashioned carrot cake with pineapple
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