It's a small carrot cake with caramel cream cheese frosting is a one-layer cake for Spring and Easter!
First things first, did you know: I have 5 different sizes of small carrot cake on this site?
-this single layer carrot cake made in a 8x8” pan
-my 6” small carrot cake
-my carrot cake for two made in ramekins
-a healthy carrot cake made in a mini muffin pan
-and of course, a small batch of carrot cake cupcakes
While we love warm mini carrot cakes with melted cream cheese frosting, we also love cold carrot cake right out of the fridge. This is one of those cold carrot cakes you sneak for breakfast with coffee.
I'm not sure how big your Easter celebration is going to be, but I'm guessing carrot cake is on the menu. While I already have a mini carrot cake for two on this site, I thought I would make you a slightly bigger one.
This isn't your standard 3-layer carrot cake--which is super yummy but oh-so-much work; it's a smaller 8x8-inch single-layer carrot cake. (A 8x8-inch pan is your standard brownie pan, friends.)
I'm not skimping on the frosting here. Just because it's a single layer carrot cake doesn't mean we can't have mounds of frosting. And instead of cups and cups of powdered sugar in a standard cream cheese frosting recipe, we're going to stir in melted caramel sauce. Oh yeah, baby. This will be your new go-to cream cheese frosting recipe.
I'm in love with the honey-hued frosting:
A few notes about this small carrot cake:
My version of carrot cake has pineapple in it. I hope that's okay with you! My family can be purists about carrot cake and insist that it should not have walnuts, raisins, or pineapple. They love this version!
I should warn you that the cake is going to sink ever-so-slightly in the center as it cools. I've never met a carrot cake that doesn't sink a tiny bit. Carrot cake is warm, spicy, and so very moist. In order to make a non-sinking flat or domed carrot cake, the texture of the cake would have to be altered to be too light and fluffy. That is just not carrot cake, my friends. Carrot cake is dense and moist, and that's exactly the way it should be. My grandma's carrot cake sank, and my grandkids' carrot cakes will sink, too. It's just the only way to do it.
So, grab your brownie pan, a handful of carrots and caramels, and make this small carrot cake. Tell me it isn't the most delicious carrot cake you've ever had!
Small Carrot Cake with Caramel-Cream Cheese Frosting
Small carrot cake (single layer) with caramel cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
- ½ cup neutral oil (like canola or grapeseed)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup canned crushed pineapple, drained
- 1 cup grated carrots
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the caramel cream cheese frosting:
- ¾ cup caramel bits
- 8-ounces of cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350, and line a 8x8-inch square pan with parchment paper on all sides (see photo for reference).
- In a large bowl, stir together with a wooden spoon (do not use a mixer) the oil and sugar. Add the eggs, vanilla, pineapple and carrots.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
- Sprinkle the dry ingredients over the wet, and stir until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 33-36 minutes, until nicely golden brown and starting to pull away from the edges.
- Let the cake cool--it will slightly sink in the middle, but it's fine.
- As the cake cools, whip together the frosting: melt the caramel bits in the microwave with a splash of water. Set aside.
- With an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the caramel and vanilla.
- Frost the cake with the caramel cream cheese frosting, and serve.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 674Total Fat: 34gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 22gCholesterol: 100mgSodium: 546mgCarbohydrates: 89gFiber: 1gSugar: 71gProtein: 7g
SaveSave
Ethan says
Making this recipe for my boyfriend's birthday, but he's a bigger apple than pineapple fan—would substituting apple sauce require any other changes?
Christina Lane says
Hi Ethan! I haven't even thought about it, but you know, I do think apples would be just fine here. Grated apples and grated carrots have similar moisture levels. Plus, I love the caramel + apple combo. I think you just dreamed up a whole new cake recipe for me ;) Let me know how it goes! Tell your bf Happy Birthday!
xo
Christina
Sheila says
So was the melted carmel to be mixed into the cream cheese and powdered mixture? That's what the directions said, but the picture shows it swirled ontop. I did add it to 5he cream cheese mixture and it seems running and lumpy.
Christina Lane says
Follow the directions as written. Then, if you like, swirl extra caramel on top. If your cream cheese is lumpy, that means it's not at room temperature before you mixed it. If it's not soft, the liquid can't mix into it. Let it rest on the counter for a bit and then re-mix.
Laurie says
YUM!!!!! ????
Nikki Jo says
I made this from your new cookbook (LOVE!) and my family loved it so much they're demanding it for Easter this weekend so I'll be attempting to triple the recipe for a layer cake.
The recipe as is was perfect for 5 mini-6 inch layers, where I added some of the caramel between the layers, it was so delicious!
Wish me luck! :)
Barbara says
Made this today, the best carrot cake recipe I have ever made, so moist, and delicious. I did not even frost as we are not really frosting people, sprinkled the top with shredded coconut instead. Love the smaller size, as there are just the two of us, thanks for sharing!
chona says
Hi! Thank you for the recipe, i just made it and so delicious my husband and my 2 years old daughter loved it too. I'm thinking to make it on my daughter's birthday but i need a big size of cake, do you have the recipe for that? thank you.
Christina Lane says
I don't, sorry! You might be able to double this and bake it in a 9x13 pan?
chona says
Thanks
chona says
made this today and i doubled the recipe, used 9x13 pan as you said, it turned out almost perfect except one thing, it's a bit of oily, when i removed the cake from the pan, more oil is in the pan, is there any way i could use less oil, what can i substitute with oil? Thank you for the recipe. God bless.
Jenn says
Oh, man. I made this recipe as 6 jumbo cupcakes and it turned out amazingggg. Ah. Maz. Ing. I couldn't find caramel bits or melts, so I made a bourbon caramel sauce and added some lightly toasted walnuts with sea salt for a bit of crunch and a salty note atop the frosting. This is now my go-to carrot cake recipe. So fantastic.
Also, caramel deepens the flavor of the cream cheese icing brilliantly - it's subtle, but awesome.
Raimarie says
By any chance do you have this same recipe for cupcakes? I made this one and everyone loved it. It’s perfect! Thanks!
Christina Lane says
Hi Raimarie! Thanks for writing. I have a recipe for two mini carrot cakes in ramekins...but not a full batch of cupcakes: https://www.dessertfortwo.com/warm-carrot-cakes-with-cream-cheese-sauce/