Carrot Loaf Cake With Tangy Lemon Glaze

By Yossy Arefi

Published September 22, 2020

  • Yossy Arefi for The New York Times (Photography and Styling)
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
1½ hours, plus cooling
Rating
4(5,118)
Comments
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This easy, breezy one-bowl loaf cake makes the perfect afternoon snack — and a perfect breakfast the next day, too. It’s lightly spiced and nut- and fruit-free, but feel free to add about ½ cup of chopped nuts or dried fruit, if that’s how you like your carrot cake. There is an optional bit of grated carrot in the lemony glaze, which doesn’t lend that much flavor, but provides a lovely light orange hue. If grating carrot for the glaze seems fussy, you can certainly skip it.

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Ingredients

Yield:1 (9-by-5-inch) loaf

FOR THE CAKE

  • ¾ cup/180 milliliters neutral oil or mild olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan

  • 1 cup/225 grams packed light brown sugar

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1 ¾ cups/225 grams all-purpose flour

  • 2 teaspoons baking powder

  • ½ teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 ½ packed cups peeled and grated carrots (about 6 ounces/165 grams, from 3 medium carrots)

FOR THE GLAZE

  • 1 lemon

  • 1 cup/100 grams confectioners’ sugar

  • 1 tablespoon finely grated carrot (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the cake: Heat the oven to 350 degrees and set a rack in the center. Oil a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan and line it with a strip of parchment paper that hangs over the two long sides. Oil the paper, too.

  2. Step 2

    Add the light brown sugar and eggs to a large bowl and whisk vigorously until pale in color, about 2 minutes. Add the oil, cinnamon, cardamom and salt. Whisk until well combined and smooth.

  3. Step 3

    Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and whisk, starting slowly to incorporate the flour without spilling it, until well combined and smooth, switching to a rubber spatula if necessary. Fold in the grated carrots. The batter will be very thick.

  4. Step 4

    Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to remove any big air bubbles.

  5. Step 5

    Bake the cake until golden and puffed and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Set the pan on a rack to cool for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, use the parchment paper to lift the cake out of the pan and set on the rack over a baking sheet to cool completely.

  6. Step 6

    When the cake is cool, make the glaze: Finely zest the lemon into a medium bowl. Juice the lemon, and set aside lemon juice. Add the confectioners’ sugar and finely grated carrot (if using) to the bowl with the zest, along with 4 teaspoons of the lemon juice. Whisk vigorously until smooth. Add more lemon juice as needed to make a thick but pourable glaze. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake and let it set for a few minutes before slicing. Store the cake well wrapped at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
5,118 user ratings
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Comments

EKSanfilippo

Halved the sugar because I am joyless inside, but otherwise stuck to the script and it was absolutely delightful.

Lanam

Those saying this is too salty - make sure you're using kosher salt (twice the volume of table salt). If using table salt, only use half the amount (1/2 tsp).

Tracey

I have made many carrot cakes over the years but was intrigued by this recipe using cardamom. I reduced the oil to 1/2 cup and carrots to 2 cups. Baked in a round 9" pan for 30 minutes. It was superb! Will definitely be making again.

Jacqui

Made this yesterday to take to a party today. My only change was to use a “scant” and unpacked amount of brown sugar, having found out too late that we were almost out. A good cake, that goes together quickly and easily, once done with the unholy mess of grating the carrots. The lemon glaze was very nice. Next time I might try lime instead.

PADR

In reckless disregard for the safety of my fingers, I microplaned the carrots rather than grating or food processing them. 10/10, would recommend if you have the time and patience — the resulting texture is fabulously light and fluffy! The sugar can definitely be reduced as well. I cut down to half but might not go quite as far next time, or maybe add back in some molasses/maple syrup/honey for depth of flavor. Brilliant template!

Coo Orloff

1 cup of brown sugar is not 225 grams, according to my scale. And 1.5 cups of flour equals 245 grams, again according to my scale. The recipe seems to work fine with 1 cup of brown sugar and 225 grams of flours, though...

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