Mini carrot cake for two people made in a 6" round cake pan.
I make a lot of carrot cake this time of year.
It’s not just for Easter in my house; it’s also the birthday cake of choice for many friends with spring birthdays. We’ve been munching on carrot cake cupcakes, carrot muffins, carrot cake whoopie pies and the like since February.
I’m confident that this mini carrot cake is the absolute best carrot dessert to be had. The full-size recipe I used as a reference for scaling down is one of my grandmother’s. No one is quite certain of its origin but most of the time, in my family, a recipe without a source can be attributed to an old issue of Southern Living or a church cookbook.
Whatever the source, this cake makes all who taste it a little weak in the knees. The oil and egg make for a tender cake, the cinnamon adds warmth, and the cream cheese frosting provides its wonderful tanginess. The walnuts on top are optional, but I really love their crunch!
Oh, and this mini carrot cake is made without pineapple. A lot of people ask in my other recipe for small carrot cake (that recipe is made in a 8x8" pan; this particular recipe is made in a 6" round cake pan)
One small note here: You really need to manually shred the carrot with a hand grater. One year, I used my food processor to save time, but the thicker shreds made the texture of the cake seem off. Along these same lines, don’t be tempted to buy pre-shredded carrots. Use some muscle, we only need ¼ cup. Your reward is cake!
Mini carrot cake for two updated notes:
This recipe is quite a few years old, but people continue to write to me and tell me it tastes like their favorite carrot cake for Publix! Which tells me that Publix doesn't use pineapple in their carrot cake, and also has a heavy hand with the cinnamon, just like me.
I hope you and your family love this mini carrot cake. Let me know if you make it for your small Easter celebration.
Yields 1 small 6" carrot cake. This recipe uses a 6x2" small round pan that yields 4 small slices of cake.6 As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.Carrot Cake for Two
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
Recommended Products
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 515Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 83mgSodium: 197mgCarbohydrates: 51gFiber: 1gSugar: 37gProtein: 6g
Amalia says
This came out perfect! I love the concept of "for two" but actually wanted a little bigger than for two for Easter dinner but didn't want a huge cake so I appreciated that the recipe could be doubled easily. Not too sweet either just right!
Abby says
Can you add pineapple?
Christina Lane says
I wouldn't because it's too wet. It might make the cake sink :( I have other carrot cake recipes on the site with pineapple, though :) I love it!
Anne Calder says
Delicious!! I might double the batter next time, my cake is a little short. But the quantity on the icing is spot on, and the flavor is great!
Leandra de Labastida says
I do not have Canola Oil. Could I use Vegetable oil?
I also don't have the 6' pan. Could I use a Bundt Pan?
Thanks
Christina Lane says
Yes, vegetable oil is fine. I haven't tried this recipe in a bundt pan, sorry!
Heena says
Love this recipe. 2nd time making it. First time was perfect. 2nd time the middle is sunken in. Do you know why that could have happened? I’m new to baking!
Christina Lane says
A few things can make cakes sink, but usually cakes sink because it's pulled out of the oven before it's truly done cooking. The raw batter sinks in. Did you test with a toothpick? Also, did you measure the leaveners carefully?
bankingonkismet says
I made this last week for my nephew's 18th month (because buying cake from bakeshops these days is slowly becoming a dim memory, hello quarantine) and this carrot cake saved the day! And my family doesn't really like the smell of cinnamon but this recipe was flavored so delicately that my family didn't even noticed and then gobbled it up in minutes! Thanks Christine! This recipe saved the day.
Maariyah says
Hello,
Please can you share the recipe in grams? Can’t wait to try it! :)
Thank you.
Buckeyemom4life says
PERFECT-wouldn't change a thing!!!
Annie says
So, decided I wanted carrot cake and I wanted it now! Came across this and so glad I did. Delicious!!!! Perfect size. I used a little over 1/4 of a cup of carrots and cut the sugar down to 1/4 of cup . I think next time I may cut it to 1/8. Super yummy... Thank you.
Joely says
Can the cream cheese be substituted with something else? Just because I forgot it when I went grocery shopping, and it’s not something I usually keep at home.