This incredibly easy Small Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting is a perfect replica of my mom’s potluck favorite.
I’ve mentioned on the blog before that we weren’t huge bakers in my house growing up, BUT, my mom did have a few really good go-to recipes in her arsenal that she brought out for special occasions.
One of those recipes was (and still is) her carrot cake. If she gets asked to bring a dessert to a potluck, I guarantee you, that’s what she’s going to bring. And when she does, at least five people will tell her it’s the best carrot cake they’ve ever eaten.
And they’re not wrong. Her carrot cake is a pretty magnificent thing. You bake it in a 9×13-inch pan, so it’s huge and basically perfect. It’s soft and fluffy, with just the right level of spice, and the entire thing is just smothered in a killer cream cheese frosting. (Update: so many people have emailed me asking for her recipe, I put it on the blog. You can find her easy carrot cake here.)
With spring nearly here and Easter just around the corner, I thought today would be a good day to share my mini version on the blog, so here we go.
This is a direct replica of my mom’s cake, so it’s everything described above, plus, it’s a small carrot cake, so you don’t need the excuse of a party to whip it up. And look how cute and tiny it is!!
This cake will serve four very generously or make six smaller servings. Make it over the weekend for you and someone special, or if you have a couple of good lunch buddies at work, I totally recommend baking it and surprising everyone at lunch. If you bake it in a pyrex dish, you can even just snap on a lid and go.
Ingredient Notes
- Loosely packed grated peeled carrots: To grate your carrots, use the large holes of a box grater and then loosely pile them into your measuring cup for measuring.
- Allspice: This recipe uses allspice, but not all carrot cake recipes do, and some people don’t enjoy the flavor. You can omit the allspice if you don’t have/like it or cut the amount in half.
- Softened cream cheese: My go-to cream cheese brand for baking and frosting is Philadelphia cream cheese. Make sure to allow enough time for your cream cheese to soften at room temperature. Cream cheese that’s too cold will leave cream cheese lumps in your frosting.
- Walnuts for topping: Nuts are optional. I’m not a fan of nuts anywhere near my carrot cake so these went straight into the garbage post photo shoot. If you like nuts, great, cover your cake in them and enjoy that crunch. If you don’t, skip them! 😉
How to Make a Small Carrot Cake
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a small bowl.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, vegetable oil, and egg until well combined. Stir in flour mixture and use a rubber spatula to fold in grated carrots. Transfer batter to prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Place cake (in pan) on a cooling rack, and cool completely before frosting, about 45 minutes.
FAQ
I don’t have a 7×5-inch baking dish. What else can I use?
You can also bake this in a 6-inch round or square cake pan.
Can I double this recipe?
Yes. If you’d like to double the recipe, you can make a 2-layer 6-inch cake or bake it in an 8×8-inch pan, and extend the baking time as needed. To double the recipe ingredients, hover over the serving size in the recipe card below or click if you’re on mobile, and slide the slider.
If you’d like to make an extra-large version, go make my Mom’s Carrot Cake, which is this recipe but baked in a 9×13-inch pan.
Does carrot cake need to be stored in the refrigerator?
Yes. Because of the cream cheese frosting, this cake should be stored in the refrigerator. Unfrosted carrot cake, however, can be stored at room temperature.
More Small Cake Recipes
- Small Chocolate Cake
- Small Red Velvet Cake
- Small Banana Cake
- Small Lemon Pound Cake
- Small Pumpkin Cake
Recipe Notes
- This recipe has been updated to switch the baking soda out with baking powder, which creates a more stable cake and eliminates the slightly metallic flavor that some people sensitive to the taste of baking soda were experiencing. If you loved the old version, no problem! Simply continue to use the same amount of baking soda where the recipe now calls for baking powder.
Small Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Special Equipment
Carrot Cake
- ½ cup (60g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- ⅔ cup loosely packed grated peeled carrots
Frosting
- 2 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 tablespoons (2oz) unsalted butter softened
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup (80g) powdered sugar sifted
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease your baking dish.
- In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, vegetable oil, and egg until well combined. Stir in flour mixture and use a rubber spatula to fold in grated carrots. Transfer batter to prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Place cake (in pan) on a cooling rack, and cool completely before frosting, about 45 minutes.
Frosting
- Whisk together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until smooth. Add sifted powdered sugar and salt and whisk until well-combined and fluffy. Spread frosting over the cake. Chilling before serving is optional but recommended.
- Serve cake in the baking dish and enjoy!
Notes
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using them. There is absolutely no additional cost to you.
Star says
I’m looking at some of the dates of the comments, it looks like I’m late finding this recipe. Well, I made a double batch and baked it in an 8×8 pan. Cake came out great! It’s moist and cuts very nice. Cream cheese frosting is delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Laura says
Sooo good. I made this gluten free by using Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free baking flour, and it turned out perfect. I also baked this in a 1qt. Glass Pyrex, and only had to add about 5 minutes to the baking time (but my oven is a little off). Have made this twice this month already!
Ellen Shiraef says
This was damn DELICIOUS!!!
Annette Clark says
I’ve added a half cup of crushed pineapple and spice wise I’ve added pumpkin spice and to the frosting I’ve added a splash of pineapple juice and for the butter in the frosting I put in Kerry gold, it makes it richer.
Carol says
I wish there was a gluten free dairy free version of this. I really love carrot cake and this is the perfect size.
Tracy says
Hi Carol, I just had someone comment that they’d made successfully this with gluten-free flour. I don’t have a ton of experience with dairy-free cream cheese, but you should be able to use that and margarine to make the frosting dairy-free. Hope that helps!
Laura says
Made a gluten free version last night by simply substituting ap flour for gf flour, no other changes. It was delicious!
Cathy says
Made a mini bundt….wish I could share pics….it’s adorable! Delicious as well.
Kayla says
I made this for the first time and it’s so good. Thank goodness for the smaller portion. I have a bunch of the 7×5 pyrex dishes for food prep and now have another use for them. Thanks for the simple recipe and for providing weight measurements, really helpful.
Melissa F Pritchett says
My family hates carrot cake BUT I love it. This recipe was amazing. Tho I used store-bought cream cheese frosting because I happen to have some. Still it was delicious! Thank you so much!!!
Laynie says
SO delicious. It was so simple to make I was skeptical but it was incredible. Made it for Easter for my family of 3 and it was a perfect size!
Patricia says
Wow!!! I made this cake today and it turned out perfectly. The only thing that I changed was to add walnuts. I might try a little pineapple next time but it is PERFECT without making any changes. My husband even liked it and he doesn’t usually like carrot cake. I also like the fact that a mixer is not needed.. I will definitely make this again. Thank you for a great recipe.
Lana Skauge says
Absolutely agree! My niece loved it and I am about to make another! Perfect size, excellent balance of flavours. Thank you!!
Lisa says
Thank you!
Lisa says
Hi there, I bought some of those full loaf pans at the grocery store and I’m wondering if I could try to make it in one of those? I don’t know the exact dimensions but they’re basically the standard loaf pan size. I’d like to make some and donate them to the church bazaar.Thanks in advance!
Tracy says
They’d probably work out fine. Depending on how big the base of the pan is, the cake might be a little thin, so I’d probably do a test batch just to make sure you’re happy with the results before committing to making a bunch. Hope that helps!
IRMA says
Hi,
My husband and both loved your carrot cake. It’s the perfect amount for two slices each. Thank you. Irma
Claudia says
I made this in a 15 inch saucepan cooked on low to medium heat to save wasting power in the oven for such a small batch
Just make sure to use baking paper so the bottom doesn’t burn