Carrot cake on keto? Yep, it’s a thing, and it’s just as tasty as you’d hope. This keto carrot cake keeps all the cozy vibes of the classic but skips out on the carbs.
❤️ Why you'll love it
This keto carrot cake brings everything you love about the classic. You get warm cinnamon, crunchy pecans, and that rich creamy frosting in every bite. Almond and coconut flours make it perfectly fluffy and moist while keto-friendly ingredients add just the right sweetness without any sugar overload.
It’s one of those desserts that surprises you with how good it is.
🧾 Ingredients Used
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- Flours: I use coconut flour and almond flour to form the foundation of this keto-friendly cake, providing the ideal texture and flavor.
- Sweeteners: I use three different keto-friendly sweeteners for this recipe: monkfruit granulated sweetener, keto brown sugar, and powdered swerve.
- Other dry ingredients: Baking powder, cinnamon, salt, shredded carrots, and chopped pecans.
- Other wet ingredients: Butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and cream cheese.
🔪 How To Make Keto Carrot Cake
Make the cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, then grease and line two 9” baking pans with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients - almond flour, granulated sweetener, brown sugar, coconut flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the wet ingredients, including the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla, and stir until combined.
- Fold the shredded carrots and the chopped pecans into the cake batter. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan and putting it on a cooling rack to cool completely.
Make the frosting
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered swerve, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy.
- Spread ⅓ of the sugar-free cream cheese frosting between the two cake layers, then spread the remaining on the top and sides of the cake. Decorate the second layer with additional chopped pecans if desired.
- For best results, allow the cake to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
🥫 Storing and Reheating
Store any leftovers of this almond flour carrot cake in the refrigerator in an airtight container, or cover it in plastic wrap. To reheat, bring the cake to room temperature or warm in the microwave for a few seconds if desired. I like this keto recipe best when it is served warm!
You can store any remaining frosting in the fridge for up to a week. Feel free to use it on a different dessert, like cookies or cupcakes.
💭 Tips and Variations
- Finely shredding the carrots can make the cake more tender. You can use a food processor for easy grating or shredding.
- A layer of toasted coconut on top of the frosting adds a tropical twist and extra crunch.
- Use a dairy-free cream cheese alternative in the frosting if you're avoiding dairy.
- A pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg can elevate the frosting into a spiced cream cheese delight.
- Consider turning this cake into keto carrot cupcakes for convenient and portion-controlled servings.
- This recipe can be baked in a standard 13x9 pan for a simpler, single-layer cake.
🍽️ What can I eat this recipe with?
Pair a slice of this sugar-free cake with a cup of freshly brewed keto-friendly coffee or tea. Milk also tastes great with this cake - you can drink almond, coconut, or dairy milk.
Enjoy the cake on its own, or get creative with sugar-free whipped cream or a drizzle of keto caramel sauce for an extra touch of decadence.
👩🍳 Frequently asked questions
Carrots have a moderate amount of carbs, so if you are on a keto diet, you’ll need to practice moderation with this vegetable. However, this recipe is low carb compared to a traditional carrot cake recipe.
Usually, the answer to this question is yes – however, this keto carrot cake is much lower in net carbs than standard carrot cake. As a result, you won't get as much of a blood sugar spike.
Keto cake is typically made from low-carb flour and sugar-free sweetener, so the carb count is much lower than traditional cake.
📚 Related Recipes
Check out these other keto desserts!
📖 Recipe
Keto Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups almond flour
- ½ cup monkfruit granulated sweetener
- ¼ cup keto brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 large eggs
- ¼ cup butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups shredded carrots about 2 medium carrots
- ½ cup chopped pecans plus more for decorating if desired
Frosting:
- 16 oz. cream cheese 2 bricks, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups powdered swerve
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, grease and line two 9” baking pans with parchment paper
- In a large bowl,stir together the almond flour, granulated sweetener, keto brown sugar, coconut flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.2 cups almond flour, ½ cup monkfruit granulated sweetener, ¼ cup keto brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 tablespoons coconut flour
- Add the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract and stir until combined.5 large eggs, ¼ cup butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Fold in the shredded carrots and the chopped pecans. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans.1 ½ cups shredded carrots, ½ cup chopped pecans
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Frosting:
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered swerve, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy.16 oz. cream cheese, 2 cups powdered swerve, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spread ⅓ of the frosting between the two layers of cake, then spread the remaining on the top and sides of the cake.
- Decorate with additional chopped pecans if desired.
- Allow to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving
Notes
- Finely shredding the carrots can make the cake more tender. You can use a food processor for easy grating or shredding.
- A layer of toasted coconut on top of the frosting adds a tropical twist and extra crunch.
- Use a dairy-free cream cheese alternative in the frosting if you're avoiding dairy.
- A pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg can elevate the frosting into a spiced cream cheese delight.
- Consider turning this cake into keto carrot cupcakes for convenient and portion-controlled servings.
- This recipe can be baked in a standard 13x9 pan for a simpler, single-layer cake.
I have a friend that is allergic to coconut. Can you add additional almond flour and omit the coconut flour?
Hi Audrey, you can swap with almond flour but it's not a direct swap. Since coconut flour is more absorbent, you’ll need about 3-4 times the amount of almond flour to replace it. Just keep an eye on the batter consistency and adjust as needed.