A perfect, banana-bread style Carrot Cake Loaf made from carrots, butter, oil, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, mixed spice, flour and cinnamon.
We designed this Carrot Cake Loaf to be more like a banana bread - perfect for cutting thick slices and topping them with butter! This loaf can be enjoyed at room temperature, or toasted if you prefer. It also freezes well. By all means, feel free to ice this loaf if you want to. Or, check out my super popular Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing on the website!
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Ingredient notes:
- Carrots: These add a natural sweetness, moisture, and a tender crumb, making the loaf soft and flavourful. We add the salt to help bring out the flavour and balance the sweetness!
- Brown Sugar: This gives a rich caramel-like sweetness and helps keep the loaf moist. You could substitute for white sugar however the flavour won't be quite as rich.
- Spices: These warm spices (Cinnamon, Mixed Spice, Nutmeg) create the classic carrot cake flavour and complement the sweetness of the carrots.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.
Step by step instructions:
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan bake. Line a 23cm x 12cm loaf tin with baking paper. Peel and grate the carrots, then set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, melt the butter. Add the oil, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, spices and salt, then whisk until smooth.
Sift in the flour and baking powder. Mix until just combined, then stir through the grated carrots. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin.
Bake for 50-55 minutes, until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Slice and enjoy topped with butter.
Recipe FAQs:
Yes. You can replace the butter with more oil or use melted coconut oil for a different flavour. More butter will give a delicious flavour and have a firmer loaf once cooled down, more oil keeps it moist but doesn't quite have that delicious buttery flavour. We do a combination to get the best of both worlds!
Insert a skewer into the centre. If it comes out clean or with a few crumbs, the loaf is ready.
Yes of course, we designed this recipe to be like a banana bread, so you can slice it and toast it topped with butter. But if you'd prefer to ice it, we recommend using our cream cheese icing from the carrot cake recipe. A half recipe would be easily enough for a loaf this size. Make sure it's cooled completely before icing and store in the fridge to keep the icing fresh.
Storage:
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or in the fridge for up to 1 week. Freeze a whole loaf of slices wrapped in glad wrap. Thaw at room temperature before serving, or pop slices in the toaster to freshen them up.
Top tips:
- If your eggs are cold from the fridge, place them in a bowl of hot tap water for a few minutes to warm. This won't cook them, but it will stop the butter from setting into lumps when mixed.
- Wait until the loaf has cooled completely before slicing, otherwise it will crumble.
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Carrot Cake Loaf
A perfect banana-bread style Carrot Cake Loaf made from carrots, butter, oil, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, mixed spice, flour and cinnamon.
Ingredients
- 300g carrots, peeled and grated (about 2 large carrots)
- 60g butter
- ½ cup oil, unflavoured
- 1 cup brown sugar (200g)
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups plain flour (300g)
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170°C fan bake. Line a 23cm x 12cm loaf tin with baking paper.
- Peel and grate the carrots, then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, melt the butter. Add the oil, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, spices and salt, then whisk until smooth.
- Sift in the flour and baking powder. Mix until just combined, then stir through the grated carrots. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin.
- Bake for 50–55 minutes, until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Slice and enjoy topped with butter.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 385Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 4gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 42mgSodium: 367mgCarbohydrates: 56gFiber: 2gSugar: 22gProtein: 6g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Jackie says
This is lovely tasting but I think the liquid measurements may need adjusting. It was more of a dough than a batter to pour into the loaf tin, and the baked result is quite solid. Have you had similar issues from others as I’d really like to get the recipe more like a banana loaf?
VJ cooks says
Thanks so much for the feedback, I’m glad you enjoyed the flavour This loaf is designed to be quite dense and more dough-like rather than a pourable batter. That’s intentional, as it’s made to be sliced and toasted, similar to a carrot-cake-style banana loaf. The measurements are correct as written, and the firmer texture helps it hold up well when toasted and spread with butter or cream cheese.
If you’re after a softer, more moist cake-style finish, I recommend using the VJ Cooks carrot cake recipe and baking it in a loaf tin instead. Use about ⅔ of the recipe, - depending on the size of your tin, and roughly half the icing if you’d like to finish it with cream cheese icing although it doesn’t need it!
Ann says
Just wondered if you have tried cooking this in an airfryer?
VJ cooks says
I haven't.
Alex Fourie says
Made this today for the first time and it was delicious, a real hit with the whole family.
VJ cooks says
Awesome, thanks for the feedback, Alex.
Christine Harvey says
Have mine in the oven right now. Didn’t have any brown sugar so Putin about 1/4 cup of syrup and a little of white sugar so hopefully will turn out alright
VJ cooks says
I'm sure it will be delicious!