Layered Carrot Cake

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A moist three tiered carrot cake, layered with lemon cream cheese icing.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – I love carrot cake. And you guys have loved my carrot cake loaf, so I’ve decided to write up one worthy of showing off.

I really love this recipe and I hope you guys do too.

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Layered Carrot Cake

A moist three tiered carrot cake, layered with lemon cream cheese icing.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Decorating Time20 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Keyword: cake, carrot cake, cream cheese, tiered
Servings: 12 people

Equipment

  • Three 20cm (8in) sandwich tins

Ingredients

Carrot Cake

  • 400 ml tasteless oil sunflower, rapeseed, canola
  • 300 g light brown sugar
  • 100 g caster sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 400 g plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp mixed spice
  • 400 g grated carrot freshly grated

Cream Cheese Icing – this will ice between the three layers and on top

  • 250 g unsalted butter room temperature
  • 250 g icing sugar
  • 450 g cream cheese FULL FAT
  • zest of a lemon optional

Instructions

Prep

  • If you haven't already, take your butter and cream cheese out of the fridge for your icing later.

Carrot Cake

  • Preheat your oven 180°C/160°C fan and grease and line three 20cm sandwich tins.
  • Whisk together your oil, eggs and sugar until thick. Stir through your vanilla.
  • Fold through your dry ingredients. Try not to over mix.
  • Add your grated carrots.
  • Divide the mixture evenly between the three prepared cake tins. Bake for 20-24 minutes. They should feel bouncy to touch. Inserting a skewer should come out clean. Wet batter means it's not done.
  • Leave them cool for ten minutes in the tins. Then tip the cakes out and leave cool on a wire rack. If they gets stuck, run a knife around the edge between the cake and the tin and give it a good bang on the bottom. Leave to cool completely before icing.

Cream Cheese Icing

  • Beat your butter by itself first to make sure to get rid of any lumps. About 3 minutes.
  • Add the icing sugar and beat for 3-4 minutes until light, fluffy and smooth.  Gently does it or you'll end in a puff of icing sugar. I often put a tea towel over the bowl with my hand whisk underneath to catch the sugar cloud.
  • If there is a lot of water on top of your cream cheese, just pour it off first before using it.
  • Beat in your cream cheese. It might look lumpy at first, but just keep beating – about 2 minutes.
  • Put a teaspoon of icing in the centre of your serving plate. Place the first cake layer on top. This little bit of icing will stop the cake sliding on the plate.
  • Put one third of the icing on the cake layer and smooth out evenly to the edges.
  • Place the second cake layer on top and repeat with another third of the icing.
  • Finally put your third final layer of cake on and top with the remaining icing and any additional decorations you fancy. I used these.
  • I like to run a knife around the edge of the cake to smooth out any icing that's poking out between the layers.
  • I also like to put the cake in the fridge for an hour or two so that the icing can firm up a bit. Helps with neater slices later on.

Notes

  1. Feel free to use all caster sugar or all brown sugar. Dark brown sugar would also work.
  2. The un-iced cake will freeze very well.
  3. Please use full fat cream cheese for your icing.
  4. This cake should be stored in the fridge once iced, as the icing needs to be kept refrigerated.

Enjoy, R x

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