Blue Ribbon Carrot Sheet Cake

Blue Ribbon Carrot Sheet Cake is a moist carrot sheet cake recipe. The cake is topped with both a buttermilk glaze and rich cream cheese frosting for maximum flavor!


Ingredients

Carrot Sheet Cake

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 8 ounces crushed pineapple (drained*)
• 2 cups finely grated carrot
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Buttermilk Glaze

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
• 1/4 cup butter (softened)
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

To make the carrot cake

• Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan. I use a nonstick baking spray with flour in it.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat together buttermilk, oil, and sugar until well-combined.
• Mix in eggs, one at a time, until combined.
• Stir in vanilla.
• Add pineapple and carrots; stir until just incorporated.
• Stir in flour mixture until just combined.
• Add coconut and nuts, if using. Stir until just combined. Batter will be wet.
• Pour batter into prepared baking pan, smoothing as necessary.
• Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

To make the buttermilk glaze

• While the cake is baking, prepare the buttermilk glaze.
• In a saucepan, combine, sugar, buttermilk, butter, and baking soda. Use a large enough saucepan to allow mixture to bubble up as it cooks.
• Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly.
• Boil for 4 minutes.
• Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla. You should have 1/2 cup of buttermilk glaze.
• When the cake is finished baking, remove from oven.
• Immediately brush buttermilk glaze over hot cake.
• Let cake cool in the pan on a wire rack to room temperature.**

To make the cream cheese frosting

• Beat cream cheese and butter together until light and fluffy.
• Add powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth.
• Turn mixer up to high and beat for an additional 2-3 minutes.
• Drop spoonfuls of frosting over the cake.
• Carefully spread the spoonfuls together to cover the cake. Spreading in one direction will help to prevent the cake from coming up into the frosting.
• Store any leftover cake covered in the refrigerator.

Notes
*I pour the juice off, but I don't squeeze the pineapple dry. **There may still be a layer of glaze on the cake when you frost it. I've found that it soaks into the cake completely if I chill the cake. If you're worried about frosting the cake with that layer of glaze still there, just cover the cake, and let it chill for a bit. Then, frost as you normally would. ***Nutrition facts are estimates.

Nutrition Information
Serving: 1servingCalories: 362kcal (18%)Carbohydrates: 42g (14%)Protein: 4g (8%)Fat: 20g (31%)Saturated Fat: 11g (55%)Cholesterol: 49mg (16%)Sodium: 301mg (13%)Potassium: 148mg (4%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 31g (34%)Vitamin A: 2480IU (50%)Vitamin C: 2mg (2%)Calcium: 45mg (5%)Iron: 1mg (6%)