Carrot Bundt Cake

4.78 from 45 votes
90 Comments

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This Carrot Bundt Cake recipe has all the flavors of classic carrot cake, with a lighter texture that is more like the Nothing Bundt Cake’s Carrot Cake. Light, fluffy, so delicious!

Carrot Bundt Cake on a cake stand with prop carrots on the side and a tissue pom pom in the center.
Featured with this recipe
  1. Ingredients in Carrot Bundt Cake
  2. Cream Cheese Frosting
  3. A Change in Cake Texture
  4. What’s the Difference?
  5. Options for this Carrot Bundt Cake Recipe
  6. Frequently Asked Questions about Carrot Bundt Cake
  7. Other Carrot Cake Recipes
  8. More Bundt Cake Recipes
  9. How to make Carrot Bundt Cake
  10. Carrot Bundt Cake Recipe

This Carrot Bundt Cake is one of the best copycat recipes I’ve ever tried. Our homemade versions of the Nothing Bundt Cake cakes are easy to make and so delicious! They are always a hit at birthday parties and special events. If you’ve never tried a Nothing Bundt Cake, you have to try one! They are the best bundt cakes you can find anywhere. This Carrot Bundt Cake is perfect for Easter dessert or anytime, is easy to make, and is always a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients to make Carrot Bundt Cake including carrot cake mix, vanilla pudding mix, shredded carrots, vanilla, butter, cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, eggs and crushed pineapple.


Ingredients in Carrot Bundt Cake

This carrot cake tastes like you made it from scratch, but this recipe gets a little help from some store bought ingredients to make things a little easier. Here’s what you need:

  • Carrot cake mix – if you can’t find carrot cake mix, you can try a spice cake mix. You won’t need additional all purpose flour, baking soda, salt or any other dry ingredients when you use a boxed cake mix. It’s all the flour mixture you’ll need. The cake mix has nutmeg, cloves ground cinnamon and other warm spices that taste delicious in carrot cake.
  • Instant vanilla pudding mix – you’ll just need the dry mix; don’t mix it according to the package. dry
  • Sour cream – substitute plain Greek yogurt if you like.
  • Large eggs – separate four egg yolks from the four egg whites.
  • Vegetable Oil – Half cup vegetable oil. Canola oil also works for this recipe
  • Water – you can also use pineapple juice if using crushed pineapple
  • Shredded carrots – you’ll never find a more delicious way to get vegetables into a cake!
  • Crushed pineapple – optional, but gives the cake an extra dimension of flavor and moisture.
Piping bag with cream cheese frosting and cut off tip with Carrot Bundt Cake in the background.

Cream Cheese Frosting

This cream cheese glaze is the perfect topper to carrot cake or any of our bundt cake recipes. And there’s only four ingredients!

  • Cream cheese – two packages, softened to room temperature.
  • Butter – also make sure your butter is softened but not completely melted.
  • Vanilla extract – two teaspoons
  • Powdered sugar – start with four cups and whisk in more if you want a thicker icing.
Spatula pulling out a slice of Carrot Bundt Cake.

A Change in Cake Texture

Many of our readers have tried our cakes and loved them too. We’ve had a few comments that our cakes are more dense than the actual Nothing Bundt Cakes. I like the dense, moist texture of our cakes, but I thought I would experiment a little with the recipe to see if I could come up with a lighter texture that is a closer resemblance to the original. I think I’ve come pretty close — you’ll have to give it a try and see for yourself. This Carrot Bundt Cake is more light and airy, but still has a moist, melt-in-your mouth taste and feel to it.

Cake Stand with Carrot Bundt Cake and a tissue Pom pom.

What’s the Difference?

There are two things I tried with this Carrot Bundt Cake that made all the difference between a more dense bundt cake and a lighter texture:

  1. The first thing I did was sift the cake mix. Once you try it, you’ll see what a difference it really does make. It gives the cake mix a fine, smooth texture. The batter is smoother and the cake comes out lighter.
  2. The second thing I did was to separate the eggs and whip the egg whites. I mixed the egg yolks in with the other ingredients. Then I beat the egg whites until they were white and fluffy, almost to the stage of a meringue. After all of the ingredients were well blended, I mixed in the egg whites. The batter at this point is very smooth and light, and the cake was amazing! I can’t wait to try this method on our other bundt cake recipes.
Plate with a slice of Carrot Bundt Cake eaten with a fork.

Options for this Carrot Bundt Cake Recipe

  • If you like a nut texture, sprinkle chopped pecans or walnuts into the cake batter.
  • Add raisins, craisins, or chopped dates for a chewy texture.
  • This recipe makes one large bundt cake or you can use a mini bundt pan to make mini bundt cakes. They’re so cute to serve as individual cakes.
  • Sprinkle a dusting of light brown sugar or cinnamon on top as a garnish.

Frequently Asked Questions about Carrot Bundt Cake

How long should a cake cool before removing from the bundt pan?

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about ten minutes. Any longer and you run the risk of soggy cake. But if you try to invert the pan to a cooling rack too soon, the cake could break apart.

How do you get carrot cake out of a bundt pan?

Let the cake cool in the pan. Then tap on the pan firmly several times and shake it gently several times and shake it gently to help loosen the cake. Flip the cake over and once it’s out of the pan, let it continue to cool on a cooling rack or cake plate.Cake stand with Carrot Bundt Cake pan on top.

Why do bundt cakes have a hole?

Since bundt cake recipes are usually more dense and moist, the hole in the bundt pan helps the batter bake evenly and prevents sogginess or undercooking.

Do you use real carrots in a carrot bundt cake?

Yes, real shredded carrot is used in a carrot bundt cake. We put a whole cup of shredded carrots in this cake for taste and moisture! It also adds a great texture.

READ MORE: 25+ Best Easter Desserts and Treats

Other Carrot Cake Recipes

If you love Carrot Bundt Cake be sure to try our traditional Carrot Cake and Carrot Cake Cookies!

More Bundt Cake Recipes

How to make Carrot Bundt Cake

Angle view of Carrot Bundt Cake on a cake stand with a decorative tissue pom pom in the center. Plates and forks on the side.

Carrot Bundt Cake

4.78 from 45 votes
This Carrot Bundt Cake recipe has all the flavors of classic carrot cake, with a lighter texture that is more like the Nothing Bundt Cake's Carrot Cake. Light, fluffy, so delicious!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Cooling Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 12

Video

Equipment

  • Bundt Pan
  • Hand Mixer
  • Sifter

Ingredients

  • 1 carrot cake mix
  • 1 3.4 ounces instant vanilla pudding mix dry
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 4 large eggs separated into 4 egg yolks and 4 egg whites
  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1/4 cup water or pineapple juice if using crushed pineapple
  • 1 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/2 cup crushed pineapple *optional

Frosting

Instructions

Carrot Bundt Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using an electric mixer, beat the cake mix, pudding, sour cream, egg yolks, oil, and water for 2 minutes. Stir in carrots and pineapple.
    Mixing bowl with Carrot Bundt Cake batter with shredded carrots and crushed pineapple on top.
  • In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with a hand mixer until white and frothy (almost meringue consistency). Fold or mix egg whites into the cake batter until well blended.
    Mixing bowl with Carrot Bundt Cake batter folding with whipped egg whites.
  • Pour cake batter into a greased Bundt cake pan (nonstick cooking spray works best).
    Bundt pan with Carrot Cake batter.
  • Bake for 45-50 minutes. Let cool for 20 minutes.
    Baked Carrot Bundt Cake in a bundt cake pan.
  • Remove the cake from the bundt pan and place it on a serving plate or cake stand. See post above for details on how to easily do this.
    Cake stand with Carrot Bundt Cake pan on top.
  • Wrap the cake well with plastic wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight or for several hours before frosting and serving.
    Carrot Bundt Cake wrapped in plastic wrap on a cake stand.

Frosting

  • In a medium bowl or mixer, combine the cream cheese and butter until smooth and creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually add the powdered sugar. Start with 2 cups and then keep adding until the frosting is nice and thick.
    Mixing bowl with cream cheese frosting for Carrot Bundt Cake.
  • You can completely cover the bundt cake with the frosting or you can frost it as pictured. Spoon all of the frosting into a gallon-size plastic bag. Squeeze the air out and seal it. Cut a corner off of one end of the bottom of the bag. Squeeze the frosting out in long strips as pictured starting at the outside of the cake and ending in the center. Fill the center of the cake with the remaining frosting. Keep refrigerated.
    Piping bag with cream cheese frosting and cut off tip with Carrot Bundt Cake in the background.

Notes

  • For a lighter cake texture, sift the cake mix. Once you try it, you’ll see what a difference it really does make. It gives the cake mix a fine, smooth texture. The batter is smoother and the cake comes out lighter.
  • Also, separate the eggs and whip the egg whites. I mixed the egg yolks in with the other ingredients. Then I beat the egg whites until they were white and fluffy, almost to the stage of a meringue. After all of the ingredients were well blended, I mixed in the egg whites. The batter at this point is very smooth and light, and the cake was amazing! I can’t wait to try this method on our other bundt cake recipes.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 702kcalCarbohydrates: 90gProtein: 6gFat: 36gSaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 111mgSodium: 537mgPotassium: 290mgFiber: 1gSugar: 73gVitamin A: 2545IUVitamin C: 3.1mgCalcium: 103mgIron: 2.6mg

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About the author

Echo Blickenstaff

Echo lives in Spanish Fork, Utah with her husband, Todd, who works in advertising. She has four kids: two girls and two boys. She deploys her accounting degree as the blog’s resident problem solver. In her time outside the kitchen, Echo loves to get away from the phones and busy schedules and spend quality time with the family. Anywhere’s great – but getting out into nature in the mountains or on the beach – is the best kind of getaway.

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4.78 from 45 votes (29 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. I made the white chocolate and raspberry and it turned out amazing. However, I live at an altitude of 6500 feet. Does the recipe need to be adjusted ( the first one , white chocolate raspberry had high altitude adjustment). I want to make it for my friend’s birthday and I’m hoping I will be able to do so. Thank you 😊

    1. I haven’t done this in a convection oven, but I think the rule of thumb is to decrease the bake time by 25%. Hope this helps!

  2. If I use pineapple on the carrot cake recipe, do I drain the pineapple and reserve the juice to add to the 1/4 c juice, or do I just measure 1/2 c of crushed pineapple then add 1/4 c of juice

    1. Drain and save the juice, add 1/2 cup of drained crushed pineapple, and add 1/4 cup of the juice. Hope this helps!

  3. Did I miss where it told how much sour cream or yogurt and how much water or juice to add? I love baking and know it’s about measurements.

  4. Do you have a gluten free version?? making for my granddaughter who loves the Nothing Bundt cake carrot cake but its not gluten free. I did not buy the box mix so i wanted to know if you would have the measurements for the scratch version.

    thank you

    1. We don’t have a gluten free version right now but we will keep that in mind for future recipes!

  5. 5 stars
    Absolutely the best and most moist carrot cake ever! And the frosting OMG.

    I made this for Easter Friends Dinner and everyone loved it! Only thing I did different was I added 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 1 teaspoon of lemon extract to the frosting.

    It was amazing how much sifting the cake mix made a difference. I also sifted the powdered sugar for the frosting and it was the lightest and fluffiest I have ever made.

  6. 5 stars
    I made it for Easter and mine fell. The taste was still great, but there was nothing fluffy about it. Do you know what could have caused this? I used my Kitchenaid mixer so maybe over mixing? Any thoughts are appreciated.

    1. There are a couple of things that can cause a bundt cake to fall, usually it involves the oven temperature. If the oven door was opened during cooking, if the oven wasn’t fully preheated. It could also be due to the climate where you live. Do you live in a more dry climate?

  7. If I make this in 3 smaller bundt cake pans – how long and what temp would you recommend baking it? I also have the mini bundt pans which would be 6 little bundt cakes – how long and temp for that?

    1. We haven’t tried making it in smaller bundt pans so I am not sure! I would look up other mini bundt cake recipes and base it off of those!

  8. This recipe looks perfect, I can’t wait to make this for my niece’s babyshower!
    I was going to make these into cupcakes, either regular size or mini, aside from time to cook….any other suggestions?
    Thank you!!

  9. 5 stars
    This was my first time making carrot cake and was super nervous. This was a great recipe and I received many compliments so thank you. I did use the pineapple juice and crushed pineapple and it turned out perfectly and was very moist just like nothing Bundt cake’s version.

    1. Yay! I’m glad this recipe was a win for you! Congratulations! Thank you for letting us know how you liked it – and thank you for the 5-star rating. 🙂

  10. I’ve made this cake 3 times. All with great success. However I am unable to find a carrot cake mix. Can I use a spice cake mix and add an extra cup of carrots? Will the spices in the mix still work?

    1. You can definitely use a spice cake mix instead! I wouldn’t add the extra carrots because it will make the mixture too moist.

  11. 3 stars
    I just made the carrot cake and really very disappointing because it didn’t rise I just wonder if you could tell me what the problem was I followed the directions completely.

    1. I am so sorry that this recipe didn’t work for you! Besides expired ingredients, the only thing I can think of is if the batter was over-stirred or if the batter was left too long before baking. Both of these things can decrease the effectiveness of the baking soda in the cake mix.

  12. 5 stars
    This was the first carrot cake i made. It was easy and it was delicious. I have already been asked to make it again.

  13. 3 stars
    I have made several recipes from this website with good success, but this one was a bit of a flop. We live in Germany, and I was so hoping it would be similar to a Nothing Bundt Cake, but it wasn’t at all. We buy our ingredients from a military base commissary, so we used all the U.S. ingredients listed here, and I even used an oven thermometer to make sure our oven was the right temperature. I followed all of the steps exactly. The cake turned out with a strange consistency — more like a bread pudding than a cake. I even cooked it for 8 extra minutes beyond the max timing. I’m so bummed it didn’t work out. It was my birthday cake, and I probably won’t even have a second slice, which is super disappointing, but at least it’s better for my waistline. Next time, I’ll stick to my Grandma’s tried and true traditional carrot cake recipe. Bottom line — I don’t recommend making it — at least overseas.

    1. I am so sorry that this recipe didn’t work out for you. I have made this recipe multiple times and I’ve never had it come out like that. What kind of cake pan did you use?

      1. Hi, thank you for your note. I used a bundt pan — the very same one I use back home in the U.S. It was for a birthday cake, and so when it didn’t work out, I just reverted to my tried and true carrot cake recipe and poured my own carrot cake recipe in a sheet pan. That recipe turned out just fine. The only thing I can think of is that with this recipe (and perhaps all bundt recipes here), is that it may be an “oven” thing — our ovens here are very small and they also have a combination of conventional and convection settings. I used the conventional setting for your recipe, but it may be that with bundt pans in these ovens, they need one of the convection settings? I have noticed that my recipes turn out better here when the cakes are “thinner.”

    1. There are a few things that can cause cakes to sink. One of the most common is over-beating the batter. Try beating the batter only until the ingredients are just barely combined. Also make sure to check the expiration date on your baking soda and/or baking powder.

      1. Hi 🙂 it doesn’t say in your ingredients to add baking powder or baking soda..? I’m not a baker or at least never really tried so I’m a little nervous and want to make sure I put all the right things in it.

    1. Carrot cake mix is available in most grocery stores. Many brands carry it. It can also be found on Amazon if you can’t find it locally. Thank you for asking!

  14. 5 stars
    This is a simple way to boost a cake mix and make it taste homemade. Love it. Have made it several times.

  15. 4 stars
    I’ve made this recipe 2 times and the cake came out pretty good but it for sure needed to be cooked over 50 minutes because it was still a little under cooked both times. Also I can’t get the frosting part to come out like it did in the video, it’s not thickening for some reason and I even added an extra cup of powdered sugar, is there any advice you could give me that would possibly help with how I can make the frosting thicker and not come out too watery when I pipe it onto the cake. Even though both times it’s came out not looking to great it still tasted amazing.

    1. Cook times can vary due to altitude and some variation in oven temperatures. As far as the frosting, I’ve never had a problem with it being too thin. If your kitchen is warm, it might be making it soft. Have you tried refrigerating it for a bit before using? Also make sure the butter and cream cheese are softened but not melted. I hope this helps!

  16. You say 13.4oz pudding mix…..is that right? Most packets are 3.4oz. I’m presuming it’s a typo!!!! Want to check before I try it.
    Thanks.

  17. 4 stars
    First of all was looking for a Nothing Bundt Cake carrot cake recipe and this was the only one I found! So thank you thank you ! I did not have an electric mixer so I hand beat everything pretty much. My frosting was not stiff at all and did not stay the way it does in yours. Oh well.

    1. They easiest solution for a stiffer frosting is just to add more powdered sugar until you reach the consistency you are looking for. It is VERY hard to beat by hand and get the right consistency. Hopefully you can try again and get the consistency you are looking for. Hope this helps!

  18. I got the Betty crocker cake mix that says pudding in the mix. Does this matter or do I still also add the instant pudding?

    1. Yes, you will still want to add the pudding. 🙂 The box mixes don’t really add a whole lot of pudding in it. You are fine adding more. Hope this helps!

  19. The video shows using water and pineapple. The directions say to skip the water if using pineapple which is correct the video or directions.

    1. Sorry that was confusing. If you drain the pineapple from the can, then add the water, but if you use the liquid in the can of pineapple then you can eliminate the water. Hope this helps!

    2. Yikes! I am reading this after having made my cake last night… frosting today. I drained the pineapple and skipped the water because , as you say, the directions were not clear on this. I do not post this to be critical, just to help improve the recipe going forward. My bad for not having read reviews.
      I have made all of the other copycat “Nothing Bundt Cakes” posted here and have had raved reviews! Thank you!!

      1. Thanks for pointing that out! We have rewritten that part a few times trying to make it more clear, and I just edited it again. Thank you for trying our recipes!

  20. If I make the small bundt cakes like those that are made at Nothing Bundt Cakes, what temperature and cooking time should I use for the copy cat carrot cakes? My pan makes 6 of the 4” cakes. Thanks.

    1. I haven’t tried cooking them smaller, so I’m not sure. I would guess that you would have to lower the temperature a bit and cook until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

  21. 5 stars
    Made this today… I have a wonderful recipe I have made for years from scratch but this was just as good and easy!! Thank u for sharing this recipe!

        1. You can use any kind of cake brand, I think we just used Betty Crocker for this particular recipe. Hope this helps!

          1. Sure! It will just make it less chocolatey and you won’t get those little melty chocolate pieces throughout. Hope this helps!

        2. 3 stars
          The cake smelled amazing while baking however even after cooking a good 20 + minutes longer than it called for; it still came out undercooked in the middle.
          I made it twice with the same results. Made it exactly by the recipe.
          The icing is amazing!
          I will not be making the cake again but will definitely make the icing.

          1. Oh, that is so weird! I am sorry! What size of bundt pan were you using?

  22. Is it just me or is there no mention of the shredded carrots going into this cake?? They are listed in the ingredients but not in the instructions.

    1. 3 stars
      Hi I made this recipe last night for my husbands Birthday, and I inserted a tooth pick in cake to make sure it was done after 45min and it came out clean so this afternoon after frosting cake we cut a piece and the cake wasn’t bready inside but it wasn’t mushy inside either but it looked like it still needed to be baked longer, like maybe 5-10 more min. Instill cut a piece lol and ate it. It was good. Anyways I was a little disappointed.

    1. 5 stars
      This recipe is amazing! Hands down one of the best cakes I’ve ever tasted!! I ended up with twice as much frosting as I needed however the cake really doesn’t even need it. Yum!

      1. So glad you liked this recipe! We always love having extra frosting on hand, it tastes great spread on crackers or cookies 😉 Thanks for the 5-stars!

        1. I love Nothing Bundt Cakes and I can’t wait to try all your recipes. I just want to know if there is a substitute for instant pudding mix? I understand that the pudding mix plays an integral part in keeping the cake moist. I am travelling to India and would love to bake this cake for my family. But I seriously doubt the availability of pudding mix in most parts of the country.