If you’re looking for a fabulous carrot cake recipe, look no more. This Layered Tropical Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting is the best carrot cake I’ve ever tasted. It’s sweet but not too sweet; moist but not too dense or heavy. The frosting was a perfect match for the cake – light and creamy.
This cake has become one of my daughter’s favorite cakes. She’s not a cooked carrot lover, but the carrots in this cake just add sweetness and moisture.
Tropical Carrot Cake Details
- Two layers of moist, flavorful carrot cake loaded with pineapple, macadamia nuts, and coconut. Spiced just right with cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.
- Two layers of rich and delicious coconut cream cheese frosting. The cream cheese does a wonderful job of balancing all the sweet.
- When the above are eaten together they melt in your mouth.
It’s a tropical version of Cook’s Illustrated’s Simple Carrot cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. I added shredded coconut, crushed pineapple and macadamia nuts, topped with a Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting. I also reduced the spices so the tropical flavors would shine through.
The method for mixing the cake is a little unusual. You use the food processor to emulsify the oil with the sugar and the eggs before incorporating the rest of the ingredients. You could use an immersion blender, a mixer, or even a wire whisk.
Tips For A Great Tropical Carrot Cake
- All ingredients should be at room temperature, this will ensure even baking temperature so your edges are not over baked while your center is under baked.
- Clean your carrots well prior to shredding, remove the ends and any little wispy roots that are still hanging on. Using a food processor to shred your carrots will save you a lot of time and energy.
- When mixing the sugars, eggs, oil in the food processor this is emulsifying (combining) these ingredients into one. Be certain to process them well according to the recipe so they become completely emulsified together.
- When mixing in your additions (carrots, pineapple, nuts, etc) make sure they are evenly distributed throughout the batter so each bite gets all that flavor.
- When adding in your flour mixture make sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of your bowl so everything gets mixed in completely.
- The frosting is a wonderfully rich and creamy and melts into each bite of cake. Due to its decadent nature and the cream cheese, it has a softer consistency.
- When toasting your coconut for garnish, do so on a parchment/Silpat lined baking sheet in a thin layer at 350 degrees F. Do not walk away to work on something else, the coconut can burn quickly. I suggest setting a timer for 2 minutes at time and keep an eye on it. Ideally, it will toast within 5 minutes. Let cool before adding to your cake.
- This cake is best served at room temperature.
Here’s a before and after baking picture of the carrot cake layers. I love that they bake up so nice and level and the color of the baked cakes is beautiful and there’s no need to ice the sides of the cake.
Can I bake this Tropical Carrot Cake in a 13 x 9-inch pan?
Yes, you can bake this cake in a 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake it for 35 to 40 minutes. I think it would make a great bundt cake too. Just make the frosting a little thinner so you can drizzle it over the bundt and then sprinkle with toasted coconut. Sally, Sally’s Baking Addiction, has a Cheesecake Swirl Carrot Bundt Cake and she cooks it for 55-75 minutes, or when the Internal Temperature Reads 210°F.
This Layered Tropical Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting is easy to make and everyone who’s tried it loves it. I’m sure your family will love it too.
Tropical Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour**
- 1 teaspoons baking powder *
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 cups peeled shredded carrots, (6 to 7 medium)
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar*
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup melted [Earth Balance Coconut Spread] or vegetable oil
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
- 1 can 8 oz. crushed pineapple, undrained
Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¼ cup [Earth Balance Coconut Spread] room temperature
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups confectioners' sugar
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut toasted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking pan or 2 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in medium bowl; set aside.
- Shred carrots in food processor fitted with large shredding disk; transfer carrots to bowl and set aside.
- Wipe out food processor bowl and fit with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer.
- Pour mixture into large bowl. Stir in carrots, coconut, nuts, and pineapple. Mix in dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain.
- Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pans halfway through baking time.
- Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours. For 9-inch rounds Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. *I reduced the amount of baking powder and sugar for high altitude baking. Original recipe calls for 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder and 1 ½ cups sugar. **How to Measure Flour Note: Substitute ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon plus ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg and ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves for 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice.
Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting:
- When cake is cool, beat together cream cheese, coconut spread, sour cream, and vanilla until combined, scraping down bowl as needed. Beat in confectioners' sugar until smooth.
- Frost cake and sprinkle toasted coconut on top. Store in the fridge.
Nutrition
The Best Ever Coconut Bundt Cake, Barbara Bakes
Carrot Raisin Coffee Cake, Barbara Bakes
Triple Layer Chocolate Cake with a Coconut Cream Cheese Filling, Barbara Bakes
Carrot Cake Cheesecake, Easy Dessert Recipes
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Jill McKeever
Just stumbled across your site this evening. I’m drooling all over my keyboard. I need to make this carrot cake recipe for my husband. It’s his absolute favorite cake that he typically wants for his birthday cake.
I look forward to reading more!
Deb
The combination of coconut, carrots, pineapple and macadamias is delightful! I just might be enticed into trying the Earth Balance Coconut Spread, just so I can replicate your tempting recipe.
Maris (in Good Taste)
Really pretty cake. carrot cake is my brother’s favorite cake and I have bookmarked this to make for him!
blackbookkitchendiaries
this is my kind of carrot cake! thank you for sharing this:)
Claire @ Claire K Creations
How could anyone choose between them? Unless there’s one thing that I know I really don’t like I always have a little bit of everything. The carrot cake looks so summery and delicious!
Bex kitchen
Yummi cake and the photos are grwat x
Lyndsey
This looks so good, I like how moist it is. That is the one thing I don’t like about carrot cake is the too sweet frosting. This is perfect!
Pam
I want this cake for my birthday – it looks beautiful and delicious!
P.S. Thanks for the mango/strawberry salsa – my kids loved it
Tracey
So pretty Barbara! I love the way you decorated the cake. I can never resist anything with cream cheese frosting 🙂
Becky at VintageMixer
Two cakes in a row!!! They are both beautiful. I am especially excited to try this carrot cake recipe. I’ve always wanted to make carrot cake but wanted to make sure and find a good recipe first!
Katrina
That looks delicious and beautiful. I just made some zucchini/carrot cupcakes and now I’m in the mood. Will have to try the EB Coconut Spread.
Kalyn
I have been curious about that Earth Balance Coconut Spread, which seemed like a natural for baking. This sounds quite amazing. I can’t bake worth a darn, but if you put this in front of me I would happily eat it!
anncoo
I love carrot cake and the frosting is so pretty 🙂
Nutmeg Nanny
Such a gorgeous looking cake! I love the flower on top 🙂 Now I really want some cake…
Rosa
Heavenly! That is the kind of cake I could eat till I explode… ;-P
Cheers,
Rosa
Renata
me too!! I always want to try ALL the desserts haha.
Love the idea of this cake, Barbara. I’ll bookmark it, gotta try it.
Eliana
This tropical twist on carrot cake is irresistable! Such a lovely combination of flavors.
Erin
I love a good carrot cake! I actually thought I had found the only carrot cake recipe I would ever need a few years ago but I might have to try this one.
Judy
Love the spin you put on CI carrot cake. Their version is also my fave.
a spoonful of yumm
love the combination you’ve used…carrot and coconut ! looks yummy and something different. you’ve also added pineapple in the cake….delicious 🙂