This carrot traybake cake is soft and fluffy with the most delicious flavour. It is topped with cream cheese frosting and chopped walnuts which all together create a scrumptious dessert.
If you love carrot cake then you will love this carrot yoghurt cake. It’s very similar to a traditional carrot cake but contains yoghurt which you wouldn’t normally find in carrot cake. I use yoghurt in this cake as I love the texture and creamy flavour it gives to the cake.
Most carrot cake recipes use vegetable oil only as the fat component but this cake is made using oil and baking spread such as stork. I find the combination of the two create the perfect fluffy textured cake. The ingredients that make the cake extra special are the ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg and you can adapt the quantities of these ingredients to your own liking.
The cake is so good that I sometimes make the cake without the frosting and it is equally delicious to the cake with frosting. Without the frosting it is less sweet and contains less calories so you can still have carrot cake even if you are watching your calorie intake.
Ingredients for Carrot Yoghurt Traybake Cake
Cake Ingredients
- Self-raising flour – self raising flour is plain flour mixed with baking powder.
- Salt – I use regular table salt.
- Spices - ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon, ground ginger.
- Bicarbonate soda -also known as baking soda.
- Vegetable oil – you can also use canola or rapeseed oil.
- Vegetable spread – I use stork.
- Brown sugar – I use soft light brown sugar.
- Caster sugar – you can also use granulated sugar.
- Eggs – room temperature eggs are ideal.
- Vanilla extract – use pure good quality vanilla extract.
- Natural yoghurt – or plain yoghurt. I use low fat.
- Carrots – grated or shredded.
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
- Unsalted butter – soft at room temperature.
- Full-fat cream cheese - use full fat.
- Icing sugar – confectionary sugar or powdered sugar. You can use less if you prefer.
- Vanilla extract – optional.
Decoration
- Chopped walnuts – This is optional.
How to Make Carrot Yoghurt Traybake Cake
1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/350oF/180oC and line a rectangle cake tin that measures approximately 13 x 9 inch (33 x 22cm). To a large bowl, add and combine the self-raising flour, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and bicarbonate soda then set aside.
2. To a large mixing bowl, add the vegetable oil, vegetable spread, brown sugar and caster sugar. Cream them together until well combined then mix in the eggs, vanilla extract and yoghurt.
3. Pour in the dry ingredients set aside earlier then add in the grated carrots. Once all the ingredients are well combined, pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 40 minutes or until cooked throughout. Once baked, place the baking tin on a wire rack to completely cool.
4. Make the frosting by adding the butter to a mixing bowl and beat for 40 seconds using a paddle attachment on a medium setting. Add in the cream cheese and continue to mix for around 1 minute until creamy and fluffy. Gradually add in the icing sugar and mix until you can no longer see any icing sugar. Spread the cream cheese icing onto the cooled cake then sprinkle on the chopped walnuts. Place in the fridge for around 30 minutes to help the frosting set then cut and serve.
Recipe Tips
- To make this recipe easier, grate the carrots before you start mixing the ingredients together.
- You will need a stand mixer or hand mixer to make the cream cheese frosting.
Nutrition
Plain without Cream Cheese Frosting: Nutrition based on 1 serving - Calories: 261kcal | Fat: 12.2g | Saturates: 2.5g | Carbs: 34.2g | Sugar: 20.8g | Fibre: 1.4g | Protein: 3.7g | Salt: 0.36g.
With Cream Cheese Frosting: Nutrition based on 1 serving - Calories: 465kcal | Fat: 21.3g | Saturates: 8.4g | Carbs: 64.2g | Sugar: 50.8g | Fibre: 1.5g | Protein: 4.6g | Salt: 0.45g.
Storage
- Due to the cake having cream cheese in the frosting, it is advised to refrigerate any left-over cake for around 3 days.
- Just remove the cake from the fridge 10 minutes before serving.
- If you don't frost the cake it can be stored in an airtight container and left at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Unfrosted cake can also be frozen for up to 3 months
Recipes that may interest you!
Carrot Yoghurt Traybake Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 290g self-raising flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate soda
- 100ml vegetable oil
- 100ml baking spread such as stork
- 140g soft light brown sugar
- 140g caster sugar
- 3 medium eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 120ml natural yoghurt low fat
- 260g carrots grated or shredded
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 110g unsalted butter soft
- 220g soft cheese cream cheese full fat
- 440g icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Decoration
- 2 tablespoon walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/350oF/180oC and line a rectangle cake tin that measures approximately 13 x 9 inch (33 x 22cm). To a large bowl, add and combine the self-raising flour, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and bicarbonate soda then set aside.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the vegetable oil, vegetable spread, brown sugar and caster sugar. Cream them together until well combined then mix in the eggs, vanilla extract and yoghurt.
- Pour in the dry ingredients set aside earlier then add in the grated carrots. Once all the ingredients are well combined, pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 40 minutes or until cooked throughout. Once baked, place the baking tin on a wire rack to completely cool.
- Make the frosting by adding the butter to a mixing bowl and beat for 40 seconds using a paddle attachment on a medium setting. Add in the cream cheese and continue to mix for around 1 minute until creamy and fluffy. Gradually add in the icing sugar and mix until you can no longer see any icing sugar. Spread the cream cheese icing onto the cooled cake then sprinkle on the chopped walnuts. Place in the fridge for around 30 minutes to help the frosting set then cut and serve.
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