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Keto Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

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Myย keto carrot cakeย is here to satisfy your sweet tooth without guilt! Itโ€™s bursting with flavor, especially when paired with its partner-in-crime,ย cream cheese frosting.

Carrot cake and cream cheese frosting with dairy-free option. Gluten-free. Low-carb. Keto.

Easy to make with justย 20 minutes of prep time, using a handful of simple, everyday ingredients. Itโ€™s a healthy and indulgent treat indistinguishable from a classic carrot cake. The only bad news youโ€™ll get from me is that itโ€™s hard to eat just a single slice!

When I got good at baking, the first thing I did was to try my hand at making a healthy spin on traditional cakes. Spring couldnโ€™t be a more perfect time to prepare a wonderful dessert that the whole family will enjoy, and this is easily one of my favoriteย keto holiday dessert recipes.

Try it anytime youโ€™re craving a sweet, guilt-free treat to go with yourย adaptogenic coffee, or make it a special celebration cake for upcoming birthdays and anniversaries, potlucks and parties, Easter, Thanksgiving, Motherโ€™s Day, or Christmas. Itโ€™s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser and will be gobbled up down to its last morsel!

I know youโ€™re excited, so read on for the full recipe details. Donโ€™t miss out on our collection ofย easy keto recipesย for more culinary inspiration.

Simple ingredients for keto carrot cake on a white surface.

Why Youโ€™ll Love This Recipe

This keto carrot cake has a special place in our family recipe collection. Iโ€™ve tested this recipe many timesโ€ฆand then a few more times just to ensure it is still as good as the first 10 times.

Spoiler alert: It still is! Hereโ€™s why it deserves a spot in your culinary repertoire:

  • Simple ingredients
  • Budget-friendly
  • Family-friendly and kid-approved
  • Minimal cleanup
  • Short prep and cooking time: Takes less than an hour to prep and bake.
  • Amazing flavors: Sweet and moist like traditional carrot cake, with a blend of creaminess from the frosting, warmth from classic spices, and a nutty crunch from walnuts.
  • Basic kitchen equipment: Requires mixing bowls, a food processor, a whisk, a baking dish, and an oven for baking.
  • Easy-to-follow directions: Follow 6 simple steps, from mixing ingredients to baking the cake and adding frosting.

How to Make Keto Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

In just 45 minutes, you can enjoy a delicious keto carrot cake using coconut flour, natural sweetener, and other everyday ingredients you can grab from your fridge or pantry.

The recipe is a delightfully epic result of mixing dry and wet ingredients and popping it in the oven.

For the cream cheese frosting, you only need 5 simple ingredients to create a creamy texture that perfectly complements the moist, nutty cake. You can either frost the whole cake before slicing and serving or slice it into individual pieces before frosting. One way or another, youโ€™ll end up with the ultimate sweet treat thatโ€™s hard to resist!

Scroll to the bottom of this post for aย printable recipe cardย with a full list of ingredients, measurements, and step-by-step instructions to make this deliciously indulgent keto carrot cake.

A whole carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and nuts.

Ingredients You Need

This keto carrot cake recipe is all about ease and simplicity, a testament to my love for hassle-free, from scratch cooking. You can make this cake without the fancy, hard-to-get ingredients or equipment and itโ€™sย ketogenic dietย approved to boot! Below is an overview of what youโ€™ll need:

For the cake:

  • Ginger powder
  • Ground cinnamon
  • Walnuts: Chopped for a better crunch.
  • Large eggs: Go for pastured, free-range, or raise your own.
  • Butter: Use unsalted, grass-fed butter
  • Carrots: freshly shredded to give the cake a moist, spongy texture that keeps it from drying out.
  • Coconut flour: Keto-friendly wheat flour substitute that gives the carrot cake a thick yet fluffy structure.
  • Brown sugar replacement: Use Lakanto’s Brown Monkfruit Sweetener to match the sweetness of regular brown sugar without the extra calories.
  • Baking soda: Leavens the cake and creates a light, fluffy texture; must not be confused with baking powder.

For the keto cream cheese frosting:

  • Melted butter
  • Cream cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese thatโ€™s softened at room temperature for smooth and even spreading.
  • Lemon juice and lemon zest: Add bright, citrusy flavors to the frosting.
  • Natural sweetener: Choose Lakanto’s classic powdered monkfruit sweetener As it works better than granulated sweetener for the frosting.
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A slice of low-carb keto carrot cake on a plate with a fork.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Making a keto carrot cake isnโ€™t so different from the traditional version. From start to finish, the cake takes less than an hour using a handful of simple ingredients.

Make the cake over the weekend when you have more downtime to enjoy the baking process. By preparing ahead of time, you can savor the cake throughout the week as a delightful treat for any occasion or a satisfying after-meal dessert. Below are the steps for getting it right:

  1. Mix the wet ingredients. While preheating the oven, combine eggs, shredded carrots, and coconut oil in a large bowl of a food processor. Set aside.
  2. Mix the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix powders and natural sweetener in the food processor. Once thoroughly combined, blend with wet ingredients and add in folded or pulsed walnuts until evenly mixed.
  3. Bake the cake. Pour the carrot cake batter into a greased baking dish and bake until the edges are golden brown and the center is set.
  4. Add sugar-free cream cheese frosting. In a medium-sized bowl, mix cream cheese, butter, lemon juice and zest, and natural sweetener until well combined. Let cool completely before spreading the cream cheese frosting so it doesnโ€™t melt and run down on the sides. Serve and enjoy!

If you have leftover cream cheese, why not whip up a deliciousย no-bake cheesecakeย with it? Itโ€™s the perfect way to make the most out of your ingredients and enjoy another delightful low-carb dessert.

Easy gluten-free carrot cake with frosting.

Variations

I like the challenge of keeping recipes basic but interesting by making up new flavor combinations and suggesting ways to make variations on the original recipe.

A personal goal of mine is to always be working to demonstrate the variability and versatility of low-carb and ketogenic cooking or in this case, baking. Feel free to try out any of the following variations and alternatives:

  • If you can’t access coconut flour, use almond flour instead.
  • Add a splash of Lakantoโ€™s Sugar-Free Maple Syrup to the frosting and mix it up well to make a creamy maple frosting.
  • If Lakantoโ€™s sweeteners arenโ€™t your thing, use other sugar substitutes likeย stevia extractย or erythritol.
  • If you donโ€™t like cream cheese frosting, replace it with creamy peanut butter frosting orย whipped ricotta frosting.
  • Skip the cream cheese frosting altogether to save on calories (this cake is delicious enough to eat even without it, as you can see in ourย recipeย video).
  • Substitute walnuts with chopped pecans, almonds, or hazelnuts.
  • Keep the cake nut-free by omitting the walnuts.
  • Keep it dairy-free by replacing butter with coconut oil in the cake, and unsweetened whipped coconut cream instead of cream cheese frosting.
  • Bring more spice by adding ground nutmeg, ginger, or allspice to the cake mixture.

Take a look at our list of essentialย keto baking ingredientsย if you want to know more about what to store in your pantry.

Expert Tips

  • Taste and adjust. For the best flavor and texture, follow the measurements closely, especially with ingredients like coconut flour and baking soda. Adjust the sweetness of the cake or frosting to your taste by gradually adding natural sweetener.
  • Add more cake layers. You can easily double or triple this recipe simply by increasing the ratios found in the recipe card. Stack the layers with cream cheese frosting which will serve as the โ€œglueโ€ for your multi-layered keto carrot cake. Simply spread the frost on the flat bottom part of the first layer and put the second layer on top, then frost the entire top and all over the sides.
  • Advanced food prep.ย Consider soaking and drying the walnuts overnight before baking with them. According to theย Weston A. Price Foundation, this is supposed to help with digestibility and increase bioavailability. Walnuts tend to swell up quickly to at least twice their size. You can then dry them in a food dehydrator or the oven at low temp. The resulting dry nuts have a more robust and enhanced taste, with an extra crispy texture and a great mouthfeel thatโ€™s perfect for this recipe. Find more comprehensive directions in my cookbooks,ย The Ultimate Guide to Low-Carb Bakingย andย The Ketogenic Edge Cookbook.
  • Allow for cooling. To prevent the cake from looking wet and buttery, cool in the pan on a wire rack and let it cool completely for about an hour to absorb any butter that may have rendered out during baking. This also keeps the frosting from melting and ensures that it sets properly.

How to Store This Recipe

Keto carrot cake can be servedย warm, chilled, or atย room temperature. You really canโ€™t go wrong with this one!

If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container lined with parchment paper on the counter forย 3 to 4 daysย or in the fridge forย up to a week. The cake also freezes well, provided itโ€™s not frosted.

If youโ€™re planning to keep it for much longer, remove or omit the frosting, cover the cut edges tightly with plastic wrap, and store it in a freezer-safe bag or container in the freezer. It should last forย 2 to 3 months. Once ready to enjoy, simply defrost on the counter at room temperature forย 30 minutes to an hour.

What to Serve with Low-Carb Carrot Cake

Keto carrot cake is a delightfully versatile treat that makes an amazing dessert for just about any meal I can think of. Below are some of my favorites you can serve before bringing out the cake:

  • For brunch, serve unfrosted alongside aย keto frittataย or Greek yogurt with nuts and berries.
  • For lunch, enjoy with a bowl of grilled chicken salad topped with sliced avocado and balsamic vinaigrette, or stir-friedย cauliflower riceย with shrimp.
  • Make it an after-dinner indulgence for your baked salmon with roasted veggies or marinaraย zucchini noodlesย with mozzarella-stuffed meatballs.

More Keto Cake Recipes to Try

If you make this keto carrot cake recipe, please leave a review. I really appreciate each and every 5-star rating and comment!

Easy gluten-free carrot cake with frosting.

Ketogenic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Enjoy a healthy healthy sugar-free, low-carb, and ketogenic carrot cake made with coconut flour and other simple everyday ingredients.
4.71 from 103 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Desserts
Cuisine American
Servings 12 pieces
Calories 264 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

Cream Cheese Frosting

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 ยฐF.
  • Combine carrots, eggs, and butter in the bowl of a food processor.
    2 cups carrot, 4 whole eggs, 1/2 cup butter
  • In a medium bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. Reserve the nuts. Stir the contents into the food processor and blend to combine. Fold or pulse the walnuts a few times to mix evenly.
    1/4 cup coconut flour, 1/4 cup Keto brown sugar substitute, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ginger powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 cup walnuts, 2 teaspoons Keto sugar substitute
  • Bake in a greased 8 by 8-inch glass baking dish for 25 minutes, until edges are golden brown and the center is set.
  • While the cake is baking, prepare the frosting. Add cream cheese and butter or coconut oil to a medium bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. Mix in Lakanto. Set aside until the cake has cooled.
    8 ounces cream cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • Remove the cake from the oven and cool before frosting. Slice and frost individual pieces or frost the whole cake before dividing into portions. Serve warm, chilled, or at room temperature.

Video

Notes

Add a splash of Lakanto’s Maple Flavored Syrup to the frosting and mix it up well to make a ultra creamy MAPLE frosting! Coupon code “primaledgehealth” for 20% off.

Nutrition & Macros

Calories: 264kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 3gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 17gSodium: 240mgFiber: 2gNet Carbohydrates: 3g

To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in a given recipe, please calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients and amounts used, using your preferred nutrition calculator. Under no circumstances shall the this website and the author be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on the given nutritional information.

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23 Comments

  1. 3 stars
    im confused. ingredients isnt listing coconut oil anywhere
    Combine carrots, eggs, and coconut oil in the bowl of a food processor.
    2 cups carrot,4 whole eggs,1/2 cup butter
    am I missing something? is that instead of butter??

    1. Hi Rosemary, You’re right butter is listed in the ingredient list but coconut oil is referenced in the directions. I’ll correct the reference to oil so it reads as butter. Thanks for pointing this out.

  2. Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve been making it for about 2 years now and just finally leaving a review{sorry}. I believe it is my FAVORITE keto recipe. I like it best without icing but, that’s just my preference. Again, thank you!

  3. Hi there, Am I missing something?

    Most [similar] recipes that I have been looking at have at least 2 cups of almond flour + 1/4 cup of coconut flour (and 4 eggs, 1/4 cup oil, etc…). Of course, that is in a 9×13″ pan instead of a 9×9.

    Just a 1/4 cup of coconut flour seems like almost nothing. I mean the spices alone are 1/4 the amount of the flour….

    1. If you want to fill a 9×13 inch dish, double the amount of ingredients. You’re not missing anything, this is the recipe. Hope you enjoy it!

  4. Two things:
    been looking for a great cheesecake recipe and was hoping that you had one in your book but I didnโ€™t see it.
    Secondly, I canโ€™t use beef gelatin, is it absolutely necessary and are there substitutions?

    1. There is a Lemon Cheesecake Bar and Boysenberry Bar in the Sweet Treats and Bars section, make these in a spring form pan and you’ll have cheesecake. I don’t know if any sub for beef gelatin.

  5. Thanks, Jessica. I should have investigated the Lakanto closer. Good to know it’s zero net carbs.

    Love the videos.

    Ciao

  6. Hi Jessica
    I’m just looking at your carrot cake recipe and and it looks delicious, but I’m trying to see how it works out to be only 2.2 grams net of carbs. The Lakanto sweetener by itself is 4 grams of carbs per teaspoon and 1/4 cup equates to 12 teaspoons. But apparently, because it’s sugar alcohol, one is supposed to reduce the carb count by half. So each serving of cake has 2 grams of carbs from the sweetener.
    The 2 cups of carrots have 21 grams carbs, of which 25% is fibre, so 15.75 grams net divide by 12 pieces = 1.3 grams per piece. So now we’re at 3.3 grams net carbs per piece.
    The coconut flour has 8 grams net for 1/4 cup. That brings it up to 4 grams carbs per slice of cake.
    Another 4 grams net carbs for the walnuts. So that’s now 4.3 grams per slice.
    16 grams carbs in the cream cheese, so now it’s 5.6 grams carbs per slice. And the 2 teaspoons of sweetener in the icing brings the grand total to just over 6 grams carbs per serving.

    I’ll still make the cake, and I’m curious to check out your other recipes. But I’d really like to know why my carb calculation is different from yours.

    Cheers
    Ross

    1. The carbs from Lakanto are non-digestible and do not count toward “net carbs”. The macros per serving are for the cake only, frosting macros would be calculated separately. I use spark recipes to calculate macros, perhaps there is some variation in their numbers than the source you are using.

  7. Made this for my grandsons 1st birthday. Used coconut sugar because thatโ€™s what I had. Put into muffin tins. Had two girls aged 5 and 6 as my helpers and they loved it!!! Will make this often! Thanks for recipe

  8. Jessica! You’re a genius. This is delicious! I just made it last night and had a piece today. I’m licking my lips. Made some for a friend who is in her second week of keto and sent a distressed text of “I NEED SUGAR!!!” She’s not a baker so I figured I’d help her out. Like you guys say, lead by the delicious cooking right? Thanks lovely! <3
    -Joy

    1. I’m so glad you and your friend enjoyed this together! Thank you for taking the time to share your kind words here ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Just to let you know. The recipe here is slightly different from the one in the book. You have two tablespoons of cinnamon here and two teaspoons in the book.

    Love the recipe though!

    1. Oh wow – hahah, I’ll fix that, thank you ๐Ÿ˜‰ Did you try with 2 tablespoons? That’s quite a difference! Now i’ll have to try it out to compare. Good think Aryana asks for this cake all the time!

  10. Speaking of kid friendly, would the cake work in a mold? I have a super cute silicone bunny mold I want to try for Easter.

    1. I would think so! Don’t see why not. I know a lot of people that are making it for Easter. Let me know how it comes out!

    1. It will be great for Easter! Have you tried using muffin tins = individual servings = yuuuummmmm <3

4.71 from 103 votes (102 ratings without comment)

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