The ultimate gluten free carrot cake is loaded with fresh carrots and topped with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Plus, you can even bake it into cupcakes. Make it days ahead unfrosted, wrap tightly and freeze it, and defrost early Easter morning!
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
We'll send the recipe to your inbox, so you can come back to it later!
Why this is the best gluten free carrot cake recipe
This batter makes cake or cupcakes that are light and fluffy, moist and tender, and never ever oily. Cakes made with oil instead of butter can be very moist but can also become oily if the ingredients are in just the proper balance, as they are here.
Carrots are perfect for cake because, when shredded and folded into a cinnamon-sugar cake batter, they bake up sweet and tender. They give off just enough moisture to help tenderize the cake, but they don't make the cake soggy.
This recipe uses a ton of shredded carrots (3 whole cups, in fact), unlike some recipes that are carrot cake in name only. They soften during baking, but mostly hold their color and don't bleed into the rest of the cake.
How to make gluten free carrot cake
The batter for this carrot cake is made simply and easily in one bowl. It's thick, but not at all stiff and doesn't require you to sift any dry ingredients or even melt anything at all. Here are the steps to make 2 8-inch round cakes that together we'll use to make a carrot layer cake:
- In a large mixing bowl, place one of my recommended all purpose gluten free flour blends (including xanthan gum), baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and granulated sugar. Whisk it to combine well, then whisk in brown sugar, which will inevitably will have some clumps. Break up the clumps by pressing them into the side of the mixing bowl using the back of your mixing spoon.
- Use your mixing spoon to make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Mix in a neutral oil (like canola, sunflower, or grapeseed), 4 lightly beaten eggs, apple cider vinegar, and a half cup of room temperature milk. Avoid using any cold ingredients or the oil will clump and resist combining.
- Add 1 cup of chopped pecans and white chocolate chips (or whatever combination of dry mix-in ingredients you like best in carrot cake), and then 3 cups of peeled and grated carrots. We treat the grated carrots like mix-ins here, and mix them in at the end.
- Divide the soft, thick batter evenly among 2 greased 8-inch round cake pans, and smooth it into an even layer in each pan using a knife, spatula, or offset spatula. You can also shake the pans back and forth a bit to help the batter settle evenly.
- Bake the cakes at 350°F for about 40 minutes, rotating the pans back to front/side to side in the oven once after about 25 minutes. The cakes are done when they’re light brown all the way across the top of the cake, and starting to pull away from the sides of the pans.
- Remove the cakes from the oven, let cool in the pans for about 10 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto wire racks to let them cool completely.
Gluten free carrot cake or cupcakes?
Although it's often assumed that a recipe for a cake can be used to make cupcakes, and vice versa, it isn't always the case. Since each cupcake is its own portion, there's a much larger surface area that is exposed to the heat of the oven.
When I baked the original cupcake recipe as a cake, it was just too fragile. It tasted great, but the cake cracked when I frosted and layered it. Adding 1/4 cup more flour to the recipe before baking it as a layer cake was the perfect fix.
Given the choice, I generally prefer to make cupcakes rather than a full cake. Cupcakes are easier to store, easier to force just a few on friends and neighbors (and my husband's coworkers), and easier to have on hand at a moment's notice (birthday in school tomorrow!).
I had always assumed that my kids would also prefer cupcakes, but I finally asked all 3 of them, and it turns out that I was dead wrong! They said that they prefer cake for a very unoriginal, uninspiring reason…
When you are served a piece of cake, it's almost always more generous than when you're served a cupcake. That's their whole reason. I thought about poking some holes in that logic but decided to just nod and smile. :)
The best cream cheese frosting
It wouldn't be a classic carrot cake without the tangy sweetness of smooth and creamy cream cheese frosting. The cream cheese frosting here isn't super stiff, since to make it very stiff would require adding way too much confectioners' sugar.
When you frost the cake as a layer cake, keep in mind that the frosting is a bit softer than a classic buttercream. That means that the cake itself is more likely to peek out from the layers of frosting.
You can frost a “naked” cake by just filling in between the layers and frosting right on top. For cupcakes, try frosting them right before serving.
You can also help firm up the frosting a bit by chilling it in the refrigerator before using it to decorate your cake. I wouldn't let it chill for more than an hour, though, so it doesn't become too firm to spread.
Choosing the right gluten free flour for carrot cake
I've made this cake so many times that I've made it with Better Batter classic gluten free flour blend, Cup4Cup gluten free flour blend, and my Better Than Cup4Cup blend. They all work beautifully.
It's a relatively forgiving recipe, unlike for example our perfect gluten free vanilla cake, which is so simple that it must be made with just the right gluten free flour blend, sifted. Steer clear entirely of gf flour blends with very gritty rice flour, like Bob's Red Mill, but you might even be able to make this cake successfully with King Arthur Flour Measure for Measure.
As always, please consult our comprehensive guide to all purpose gluten free flour blends, which is linked in every recipe, like this one, that calls for an all purpose gluten free flour blend.
Can I use almond flour for this gluten free carrot cake recipe? Coconut flour? Oat flour?
I'm afraid this cake can't be made without a rice flour-based all purpose gluten free flour, no. You'd need a completely different recipe. Our superfood muffins come close!
My favorite pans for gluten free carrot cake and cupcakes
This recipe is designed to be made either in 2 8-inch round cake pans, or the standard wells of a 12-cup muffin tin. I always recommend baking in cast aluminum, which conducts heat well but not too well, and is light in color so it doesn't burn the outside by attracting too much heat in the oven.
Since the recipe calls for 4 eggs, you can easily cut the ingredients in half, right down the middle, and make either 1 cake or just 12 cupcakes. The cupcakes do freeze really well, though, if you make the whole recipe but don't have a need for all 24.
If your pan is 9-inches in diameter, rather than 8-inches, it will make shorter cakes that bake faster. Begin checking at 25 minutes.
Keep in mind that there's no truly standard size well in a “standard” 12-cup muffin tin. So you may get more or fewer cupcakes than the recipe states.
Recipe tips & tricks
Measuring just the right amount of gluten free flour
Always measure your dry ingredients, especially your gluten free flour blend, by weight, not volume. It's impossible to avoid human error when measuring by volume, no matter your level of baking experience.
Use a food processor to quickly grate your carrots
You should always grate your carrots fresh, rather than used a prepared bag of grated carrots, for carrot cake. The prepared grated carrots are almost always quite thick, and they're too dry.
That doesn't mean you necessarily have to grate your carrots by hand, though, on a box grater. Try making quick work of the job by grating them in your food processor with the grater plate or blade.
If you'd like to try some mix-ins
There are so many options for mix-ins in your carrot cake. In this recipe, there's a total of about 5 or 6 ounces of mix-ins.
You can use any combination of dry mix-ins that hold their shape in your cake. Here are some suggestions:
- Soft nuts, like pecans or walnuts, roughly chopped
- Raisins (I like white raisins here, but Thompson seedless raisins are also an excellent choice)
- White, dark, or milk chocolate chips
If you'd like to mix pineapple into your carrot cake, you'll get nothing but encouragement from me—but you'll need our Entenmann's style gluten free carrot pineapple cake recipe. Don't try adding pineapple to this recipe, as it adds a ton of moisture and needs its own recipe.
Use parchment paper to keep your cake from sticking
Whether you're using nonstick round cake pans or muffin tins or not, it's a good idea to line your pan with a round of parchment paper, or to line your muffin tins with greaseproof liners.
Lining your pans helps the cake and cupcakes release from the pan, and also helps them bake more evenly, too.
How to test the cake for doneness
Since this is a really moist cake, you may find that using a toothpick or other cake tester to determine if there is still any wet batter in your cake isn't that reliable. I prefer to wait until the cake is uniformly light brown on top, and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan.
Popular ingredient substitution suggestions
Dairy free cake
Making carrot cake with oil instead of butter makes these carrot cake cupcakes quite easy to convert to dairy free as well as gluten free. Just use a nondairy milk, like almond milk.
You can either replace the white chocolate chips with more nuts, make your own vegan white chocolate and chop it up, or use nondairy semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Dairy free frosting
I've successfully made cream cheese-style frosting dairy free by using 4 ounces Daiya nondairy cream cheese, 8 tablespoons (96 g) nonhydrogenated shortening, and 6 tablespoons (84 g) Earth Balance nondairy butter in place of the butter and cream cheese.
I find that nondairy cream cheese has a strong taste that can become unpleasant if used in large amounts, so I don't use a whole 8 ounces of it in place of 8 ounces of conventional cream cheese.
An easy gluten free dairy free alternative to making your own frosting is to buy a can of Pillsbury brand cream cheese frosting. It's gluten free, and contains no dairy ingredients (but does contain soy).
Egg free?
I don't believe that this recipe can be made egg-free, I'm afraid. It just calls for too many eggs. Sorry!
Nut free
Just use double the white chocolate chips in place of the chopped pecans, and eliminate the pecans as decoration. Easy!
Storage instructions
If you don't plan to serve this gf carrot cake right away, I recommend wrapping the unfrosted cake layers tightly in freezer-safe wrap and freezing them. Defrost them at room temperature before frosting and serving.
If you have already frosted the cake and have any slices leftover, it will still freeze really well. Just wrap each slice tightly in freezer safe wrap, then freeze. Defrost at room temperature.
FAQs
No! Unless you're using a gluten free carrot cake recipe like this one, you should never assume that carrot cake is gluten free.
As described above, you can make the carrot cake layers even weeks ahead of time by wrapping them tightly and freezing them. Defrost in the refrigerator before frosting and serving.
The cake is moist enough, in fact, that you can even store it at room temperature, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, up to 1 whole day in advance. Don't refrigerate it, though, as the refrigerator tends to dry out baked goods.
The frosting can also be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator for a few days. It will be solid, though, once fully chilled, so you'll need to let it warm up for about an hour, and then mix it again with your mixer until you reach the proper consistency for spreading or piping it.
You can definitely assemble the dry ingredients, up to and including the brown sugar, whisk them together, and store them in a sealed container. I would store them at room temperature, though, in a dark pantry, since the refrigerator will cause the brown sugar to clump.
You can absolutely leave out the nuts entirely. I recommend replacing them with more chocolate chips, but you can probably replace them with any other sort of ingredient that fills space and doesn't blend into the batter, like raisins or other dried fruit.
If your cake is crumbly, you may have overmeasured your gluten free flour blend, or used a blend with a gritty rice flour. Pay careful attention to your flour blend, and to measuring everything possible by weight, not volume, as volume measurements for dry ingredients are unreliable because human error in measurement is unavoidable. Plus, dry ingredient measures like cups and half-cups have no universal standard, so your cup may not be quite the same as mine. Weight is consistent, and always reliable.
Gluten Free Carrot Cake Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For the cake
- 2 ¼ cups (315 g) all purpose gluten free flour blend (I like Cup4Cup here best; Better Batter also works well; click thru for appropriate blends) (See Recipe Notes re: cupcakes)
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum omit if your blend already contains it
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (109 g) packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (112 g) neutral oil (like sunflower or grapeseed oil)
- 4 (200 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature, beaten
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup (4 fluid ounces) milk at room temperature
- ½ cup (55 g) chopped pecans plus more for decorating (optional)
- ½ cup (3 ounces) white chocolate chips (See Recipe Notes if omitting pecans)
- 3 cups (270 g) peeled and grated carrots (from about 3 large carrots)
For the cream cheese frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 8 tablespoons (112 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 cups (460 g) confectioners’ sugar plus more as necessary
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease two 8-inch round baking pans and set them aside. If making cupcakes, grease or line two standard 12-cup muffin tins, and set them aside.
- In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and granulated sugar. Whisk to combine well. Add the brown sugar, and whisk again to combine, working to break up any lumps in the brown sugar.
- Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and add the oil, eggs, vinegar, and milk, and mix to combine. Add the (optional) pecans and white chocolate chips, and mix until evenly distributed throughout.
- Add the grated carrots to the mixture, and stir until evenly distributed throughout the batter. The batter will be thick, but relatively soft.
To make a cake.
- Divide the batter evenly among the two prepared baking pans, and spread into an even layer in each.
- Place in the center of the preheated oven and bake until the cake is uniformly light brown on top, and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan rotating the pans once during baking (35 to 40 minutes).
- Remove the pans from the oven from the oven and allow the cakes to cool for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make cupcakes.
- Fill the wells of the prepared muffin tins about 3/4 of the way full with batter, and shake the pan back and forth to distribute the batter evenly in each well.
- One at a time, place the muffin tins in the center of the preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out with no more than a few moist crumbs attached (about 20 minutes).
- Remove the tin from the oven from the oven and allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for at least 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining muffin tin.
Make the frosting.
- While the cakes or cupcakes are cooling, in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl with a handheld mixer), place the cream cheese and butter.
- Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
- Add the salt, and 3 1/2 cups of confectioners’ sugar. Mix on low speed until the sugar is absorbed. Turn the mixer to high speed and beat until the frosting is thickened and fluffy.
- Add more confectioners’ sugar as necessary to thicken the frosting enough to hold its shape when scooped with a spoon.
To frost a layer cake.
- Turn one of the cooled cakes, top down, onto a serving platter. Spoon about half of the frosting onto the top of the cake and spread into an even layer.
- Top with the second cake, top-down and press to adhere. Spread the remaining frosting on top of the cake and top with more chopped pecans, if desired. To make the cake easier to slice, chill for about an hour in the refrigerator before slicing and serving.
To frost cupcakes.
- Spoon or pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes.
Notes
- Reduce the flour blend by 1/4 cup (35 g) to 2 cups (280 g). The rest of the recipe remains the same.
- You may want to halve the frosting recipe, as you need less frosting. Unless you really want to pile it on (which I heartily recommend).
If you're not using pecans in the cake, use double the amount of white chocolate chips, raising the amount to 6 ounces. Nutritional information is an estimate per slice of layer cake with frosting, assuming the cake is sliced into 8 equal slices. It is created using an online nutritional calculator as a courtesy and should not be relied upon.
Nutrition
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
We'll send the recipe to your inbox, so you can come back to it later!
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Kathy Harrison says
First time making this and everyone loved it. Didn’t even have time to frost it before it was gone!
Haley says
Hi! I can’t wait to try this recipe! Am I able to sub the neutral oil for unsalted butter?
Nicole Hunn says
Have a look through the comments section, Haley. I think another reader has said they’ve been successful with that, but I don’t generally recommend swapping oil for butter or vice versa as oil is 100% fat and butter has moisture.
Kathy Martinez says
This may be the best carrot cake I’ve ever had. My teen daughter made it for Easter dessert. She grated the carrots finely with our food processor. She used King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour which contains xanthum gum. She did not weigh the ingredients, and she also increased the recipe by 50% in order to have three layers. It was a professional-looking delicious dessert.
Allison says
After reaching out to my mother-in-law (who has a recipe for everything) and being told that she’s never had success with gluten free cakes, I was not optimistic. I chose this recipe because of the reviews and the fact that I already had 90% of the ingredients in my pantry. I followed this recipe to a T, weighing every ingredient. I had to use a one to one flour that was not recommended, but it was the only option available on short notice. I did sift all 315 grams of flour in hopes of reducing the grittiness, if there was any!
When I say this cake was amazing, it was STELLAR. My Easter guests chose it over the chocolate cake prepared by a local bakery. It was soft and several people said they would have never guessed it was gluten free.
I will definitely be saving this recipe for use in the future! Thank you!
Nicole Hunn says
That’s really great, Allison! I’m glad you were able to make do with what you had, and that you and your guests were so pleased. That’s all that matters.
Lisa says
Oh my goodness. This is the most gorgeous cake, my family could not believe it is GF. I made a few modifications, which worked out so wanted to pass them along. First, I mostly followed the cake recipe to a T, but I did not weigh, and that was okay. I used Oatly oakmilk (straight milk bothers me whereas cream cheese/butter does not). Thrilled to report that was just fine, and used grape seed oil which is my preference in baking. All great. For the frosting, I doubled the butter and cream cheese but only did 2.5 c of powdered sugar and for whatever reason that was enough! The salt was key though, the frosting came to life after that was added in. I always do it to taste…my whole fam agreed it was plenty sweet at 2.5 cups of sugar. I’m so proud of this beautiful Easter cake! I might play with alternative sugars just to lower the inflammatory ingredients even more. Thank you for this recipe, it will be a favorite!
DebS says
Love this cake, it’s the only carrot cake I make! I usually use your better than Cup4Cup blend that I make in large batches. I’m making this cake for Easter. Can I make it the day before, ice it and then keep in the fridge?
Nicole Hunn says
Please see the make ahead directions in the post, Deb!
Audrey Hall says
Can this cake be made in a 9 by 13 pan ?
Nicole Hunn says
I’ve never tried that, Audrey, but not all layer cake recipes can be made in a 9×13 inch cake pan. I don’t believe that this cake, which is made using the “reverse cream” method, instead of the creaming the butter and sugar together method, would work well in a rectangular cake pan, no. Feel free to experiment, but I don’t think you’ll get particularly good results.
Kay says
Would this work at high altitude (5280 feet)?
Nicole Hunn says
You should assume that you’ll have to make the same adjustments you would ever have to make for a recipe made at altitude, Kay. It’s the one condition I cannot replicate in any way, so I’m afraid I can’t offer any concrete advice!
Mary G says
Do you think this recipe would work in a bundt pan?
Nicole Hunn says
I’m always reluctant to say for sure that a regular cake recipe will hold up to being made in a bundt pan, Mary, but I suspect this would work well, yes. Unfortunately I can’t promise, though! I do have some suggestions on bundt pan success in my recipe for a gluten free marble bundt cake, if you’d like to have a look.
Diane says
Can this cake (unfrosted) be made ahead and frozen?
Nicole Hunn says
Yes, most definitely, Diane. That works really well, actually. Please see the discussion in the post about making the cake in advance.
tish says
thanks for sharing, we love many of your recipes! do you know what will happen if I use butter instead of oil in the cake mix? do you strongly recommend against or is it ok to try? appreciate your advice
Nicole Hunn says
Hi, Tish, butter has a pretty different composition from oil, and they really aren’t very neatly interchangeable in baking, believe it or not. Butter is 80% fat with a pretty substantial amount of liquid, and oil is 100% fat. Oil adds more sponginess to baked goods, but less flavor, so it’s really great in recipes like this that have bold competing flavors. To replace oil with butter, you’d need to reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe and also increase the amount of fat, to equal the chemical composition of oil in this recipe. I really don’t recommend tinkering with it to that degree, but if you do, I’m afraid it will take trial and error!
Thaedra says
Tish I did replace oil with butter and it was glorious. Fluffy and rich.
Annabelle Burton says
Hey I don’t like white chocolate chips and I read your whole page and I didn’t see anything saying what to do if you don’t like white chocolate chips. Will it change anything if I take them off and double the pecans or are they a must?
Nicole Hunn says
Please see the ingredients and substitutions section under “gluten free dairy free carrot cake,” Annabelle. Generally, yes, do what you like!
Davida says
This was SO moist and yummy! I didn’t have white chocolate chips so used butterscotch and it was delish. I made 12 muffins and a single layer cake. Will most definitely make again!
Nicole Hunn says
Oooh butterscotch chips sound like a great choice here, Davida. So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Tiffany says
How many cupcakes does this full recipe make?
Nicole Hunn says
Please see the answer in the post, under the heading: My favorite pans for gluten free carrot cake and cupcakes
Joséphine says
Excellent recipe..very moist..taste like a regular carrot cake. I omitted the pecans and doubled the white chocolate chips.
Rita says
I made a half batch of carrot cupcakes and they were delicious. I made a few changes as I’m not a fan of white chocolate, so I omitted the chips. Next time I will also cut the sweetener a bit as I still found them slightly sweet for my liking but great nevertheless. I used Bobs Red Mill gf 1to 1 flour blend for the first time and was impressed by the texture, normal not gritty. So this recipe is a keeper!
Nicole Hunn says
I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. For others’ benefit, and yours if you’re willing, Bob’s Red Mill flour blend is of inconsistent quality, at best. If you got a good batch, you got lucky! I highly recommend against it. And if you cut down on the sugar, the cake will be tough. Sugar isn’t just a sweetener, it’s a tenderizer. Just trying to manage expectations, as it’s common for readers to make significant changes, and then say the recipe isn’t a good one!
Rita says
I cut the sugar in half and still found it to be fine. We don’t have King Arthur’s blend here in Ontario and many other gf brands are millet or various bean blends so not sure how they would work. So far Bobs is ok but I will keep experimenting with other blends.
Nicole Hunn says
Rita, you can’t use King Arthur’s blend or Bob’s Red Mill blends in my recipes. I specifically recommend against them, in fact. Please see the all purpose gluten free flour blends page for full info. It’s linked in every recipe that calls for an all purpose gf blend, and teaches you how to build mock versions of my favorite packaged blends.
Rosemary says
Hi Rita,
I’m in Canada, and Better Batter flour is extraordinarily expensive here. I follow Nicole’s recipe for the flour and make at least 10 cups at a time. That way, I’ve always got amazing flour on hand. It may seem like a lot of work at first, but the results are more than worth it!
R
Nicole Hunn says
Thank you for sharing that, Rosemary. I think Better Batter used to ship readily to Canada, and now it’s gotten prohibitively expensive. It’s such a shame, and I dream of the day when the best blends are readily available everywhere!
Dana says
I’m wondering what could be used instead of the white chocolate chips. We don’t like the flavour of white chocolate at all. Is this an ingredient that could be easily omitted without making other changes?
Nicole Hunn says
As explained in the post and in other responses, Dana, you can use any sort of non-wet pieces you like, but you must use something! I give some suggestions in the post, but think: raisins, semi-sweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, chopped nuts.
Emily says
Hi Nicole, the recipe says to replace the nuts with more white chocolate chips if omitting but then also says “you can probably leave out all the mix-ins since there aren’t that many. The cake may be a bit denser”. This may be why people think it is okay to skip both the nuts AND the chips (what you refer to as “mix ins”). If you’re saying here that these items must be replaced with another “dry” ingredient that’s a bit confusing since the recipe says it’s probably okay to leave out?
Nicole Hunn says
Yup, you’re right, Emily. I apologize for the confusion. I edited the post text.
Emily says
Thanks Nicole! I am wondering if I use raisins for my mix ins could I run them in food processor to make them smaller and less “obvious” throughout the cake?
Nicole Hunn says
That’s an interesting question, Emily! Honestly, one I hadn’t ever considered. I don’t see why not, as long as you only pulse them a tiny bit and avoid making a paste out of them? You can also try slicing them in half manually to ensure they don’t turn into a paste, replace them with currants, which are smaller and sweeter, or leave them out in favor of chopped soft nuts or chips.
Nicola says
I don’t have apple vinegar. Can I leave out or replace with other vinegars?
Nicole Hunn says
You should never just leave out an ingredient, Nicola, but you can try using another vinegar. White balsamic has the most similar flavor profile.