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Brown Butter Carrot Cake

Brown Butter Carrot Cake made with freshly grated carrots, rich butter and pecans! Easy carrot cake recipe with a fantastic cream cheese frosting, perfect for Easter!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
cooling2 hours
Total Time2 hours 40 minutes
Course: Cake, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Brown Butter Carrot Cake
Servings: 9 servings
Calories: 485kcal

Ingredients

Cake

  • 7 TBSP unsalted butter
  • 1 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cup flour
  • ¼ tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • 2 cups freshly grated carrots
  • ½ cup chopped pecans

Frosting

  • 4 TBSP unsalted butter room temperature
  • 4 oz cream cheese room temperature
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • ¼ tsp lemon juice
  • cup chopped pecans

Instructions

  • Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Grease an 8×8 in. pan and line with parchment paper. The parchment paper helps the cake release from the pan.
  • Next, clean and grate your carrots into a small bowl and set aside.
  • If you have whole pecans, chop them into smaller pieces and set aside. A time saving tip is to buy the pre-chopped pecans to skip this step.
  • Brown butter: First you will need to add your butter to a small pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once you see brown specks beginning to form at the bottom of the pan, remove the pan from the heat. Then, pour the melted butter into a large mixing bowl.
  • Cake batter: In the large bowl with the melted browned add in the brown sugar and mix until combined. Next, stir in the eggs and vanilla extract and mix well.
  • After that, fold in the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and ginger. Stir until the flour is fully combined and the white is completely gone.
  • Now it is time to add in the grated carrots and chopped pecans. Stir to combine.
  • Bake: Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Once it is finished baking, allow to cool completely. This could be 1-2 hours depending on the room temperature.
  • Frosting: In a medium size bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with a handheld mixer until smooth. This should take about 2 minutes.
  • Next, add in the powdered sugar and beat again for another minute. Lastly, add in the vanilla extract and lemon juice and mix until combined. The frosting should be soft but not runny.
  • Assemble: Once the cake has cooled completely, spread the frosting over the entire cake. If you want to, garnish with chopped pecans as well for added taste and appearance. Slice, serve and enjoy!

Notes

If stored properly, this cake will be good for up to 5 days. Store it in an airtight container to keep fresh longer. 

Nutrition

Calories: 485kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 86mg | Sodium: 147mg | Potassium: 236mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 5408IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 2mg