An amazing, tender, and flavorful keto carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. The step-by-step baking and decorating instructions for this delicious layered cake will ensure that you get perfect results.
Aside from tasting amazing, this cake is also a very visually impressive low-carb dessert. Perfect for special occasions over the Holidays.
This dessert is gluten-free and grain-free. You may also want to try our Low Carb Carrot Cake Bars.
We love serving carrot cake with our low carb meatloaf when we have friends over.
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Why you'll love this recipe
If you love carrot cake, then we are kindred souls! Carrot cake is one of our favorite desserts. We've been making some version of this tender, spiced cake with cream cheese frosting and pecans for as long as we can remember.
Simple Ingredients: If you already do some keto baking, you probably have everything you need to make a keto carrot cake already.
Classic Flavor: Carrot cake is a sweet and spicy specialty, and this cake has all the right flavors in a sugar-free recipe.
Keto Cream Cheese Frosting: We're including a very easy recipe for a sugar-free, keto-friendly cream cheese frosting. You can choose to enjoy your cake with or without the frosting, but we promise it's way better with it! We also use this frosting on our easy keto pumpkin bars.
Easy Layer Cake Instructions: If you want to make a beautifully layered carrot cake like the photos here, we've included step-by-step instructions telling you how to assemble it.
Key carrot cake ingredients
Baking Soda - Gives rise to your batter and creates lovely pockets of air in your cake.
Cinnamon and Ground Nutmeg - Creates the perfect spiced flavor that carrot cake is known for.
Coconut Oil - If your coconut oil is solid, warm it gently to melt it and allow it to cool before mixing it into the cake batter. On a warm day, your coconut oil might already be melted for you!
Brown Sugar Swerve - The brown sugar Swerve variety has a richer, deeper flavor. A combination of both white and brown sweeteners is perfect.
Vanilla Extract - I suggest that you use a high-quality, pure vanilla extract. The better your vanilla, the better the flavor will be.
Grated Carrots - The more finely you can grate the carrots, the smoother the cake batter will be. Use a box grater, or make grating carrots easy with a food processor.
Pecans - Pecans are a must on our carrot cakes! We love the added crunch inside and on the outside of the cake. You can leave them out if you'd like to make a nut-free cake. You can also use walnuts if you prefer.
If you love pecans, try our keto candied pecans recipe. They make a great gift.
Cream cheese frosting ingredients
Cream Cheese Frosting - To make a keto-approved cream cheese frosting for your cake, you'll need softened cream cheese and butter, plus powdered sweetener, vanilla extract, and heavy whipping cream. The easy frosting recipe is in the recipe card for you.
We love using this frosting on our keto cinnamon rolls, but if you aren't a fan of cream cheese frosting, you can make the Keto Buttercream Frosting from this cake recipe instead.
If you have any questions about this keto carrot cake recipe, please leave a comment below and we will get back to you.
How to make a keto carrot cake
Step 1: In a medium bowl add the almond flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix well and set aside.
Step 2: In a large bowl add the melted and cooled coconut oil, sweeteners, vanilla, and eggs.
Step 3: Add the dry ingredients in gradually, stirring until well combined.
Step 4: Then stir in carrots and nuts. The cake batter will be thick.
Step 5: Place half the batter into each of the cake pans. Bake as directed in the recipe card below.
Step 6: Let the cakes cool completely and then remove from pans.
Step 7: For the frosting, add the cream cheese and butter to a large bowl. Blend until creamy.
Step 8: Then add in the sweetener and mix until well combined.
Step 9: Then add in the sweetener and mix until well combined. Add more heavy cream if you’d like a thinner frosting.
Step 10: Spread the frosting between the cake layers and on sides using a spatula. Below we explain how to stack and frost your keto carrot cake.
For the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please see the printable recipe card below.
For another recipe that uses healthy ingredients, try our easy keto pumpkin bread next.
How to stack and frost a layer cake
If you aren't a layer cake decorating pro, don't worry at all. It's simple!
Start with completely cooled cake layers and your prepared cream cheese frosting (the easy keto frosting recipe is in the recipe card below). You can place the frosting in a piping bag, or spread it using an offset spatula.
Put a small amount of frosting on your cake plate, then lay down the first layer cake, dome side down,
Spread about ¼ inch layer of frosting on top of the first cake, then top with the second layer.
Frost the top and sides of your cake now, and then decorate with chopped nuts and carrot curls if desired!
Now that you know how simple it is, give our layered keto chocolate cake recipe a try.
FAQs
While we're usually all about taking shortcuts, this one is not recommended. Pre-shredded carrots from the grocery store are not shredded finely enough for a carrot cake recipe. Plus, they tend to be dried out and don't soften while baking. Shred them yourself for best results.
You should grate your carrots as finely as possible. If left too large, they will not bake fully, leaving firm bits in your cake.
If you'd rather not fuss with a layer cake, it is completely acceptable to bake this recipe in a 9x13-inch cake pan instead. The baking time may need to be adjusted a bit for the size of the pan, so check on it a bit early and add extra time if needed.
Storage
This cake will stay fresh in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can also freeze to enjoy later! I like to freeze individual slices in small plastic or glass containers in the freezer. They will keep in the freezer for several months. Take a slice out and let it thaw in the fridge overnight before enjoying.
More keto baking recipes
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📖 Recipe
Keto Carrot Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 2 cups almond flour
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ¼ cup melted and cooled coconut oil
- 1 ¼ cup Swerve granulated
- ¾ cup Swerve brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 2.5 cups finely grated carrots
- 1 cup pecans chopped
For the Frosting:
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½-2 cups powdered sweetener of choice to taste
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 T heavy whipping cream
Garnish
- Whole Pecans layer along sides
- Chopped Pecans sprinkle on top
- Carrot Curls
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350°F/180°C. Grease with oil or butter 2 9-inch cake pans. Optionally, use parchment paper on the bottom and grease the sides.
- In a medium bowl add the almond flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix well.
- In a large bowl add the melted and cooled coconut oil, sweeteners, vanilla, and eggs.
- Add the dry ingredients in gradually, stirring until well combined. Then stir in carrots and nuts.
- Place half the batter into each of the cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Let cool and then remove from pans.
- For the frosting: In a large bowl add the cream cheese and butter and blend until creamy. Then add in the sweetener and mix until well combined. Finally, add in the vanilla and 1T of heavy whipping cream, mixing until fluffy. Add more heavy cream if you’d like a thinner frosting.
- Spread the frosting between the cake layers and on sides using a spatula. Serve or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Video
Notes
- Grate your carrots as finely as possible. Use a box grater or food processor.
- We prefer freshly grated over store-bought shredded carrots.
- Be sure that you allow the cakes to cool completely before stacking and frosting.
- Cake slices can be frozen to enjoy later. Freeze for up to 2 months. Allow to thaw in the refrigerator before enjoying.
- You can bake this cake in a 9 x 13 pan rather than two round cake pans. Adjust the bake time if needed.
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