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Carrot Banana Cake

Carrot banana cake is a moist, spiced layer cake made by folding mashed bananas and shredded carrots into a tender batter, then baking until just set. Finish with thick, smooth cream cheese frosting and a generous top coating with shredded carrot and banana slices.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings: 12 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 430
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cake
  • 2 bananas Ripe, mashed.
  • 1 cup carrots Shredded (about 2 medium).
  • 0.5 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs Large.
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp nutmeg
  • 0.25 tsp ginger
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 0.5 cup walnuts Chopped (optional).
Cream cheese frosting
  • 8 oz cream cheese Softened.
  • 0.5 cup butter Softened.
  • 2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Equipment

  • 2 sheet pan

Method
 

Bake the cake layers
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease two 8-inch round pans (or a 9x13 dish) so the cake releases cleanly after baking.
  2. Whisk vegetable oil, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract together until smooth, then stir in mashed bananas and shredded carrots.
  3. Fold in all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt until just combined—stop mixing as soon as no dry flour remains.
  4. Fold in walnuts and divide the batter evenly between the pans.
  5. Bake at 350°F for 30–35 minutes until the center springs back and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Make frosting and finish
  1. Beat cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth and fluffy, scraping the bowl as needed for an even texture.
  2. Cool the cakes completely before frosting generously, so the frosting stays thick and doesn’t melt or slide off the layers.

Notes

For the cleanest slices, cool the baked cake fully before frosting; if you’re frosting later, wrap and store unfrosted layers in the refrigerator up to 2 days (frosted cake holds 3 days refrigerated). This cake freezes well: freeze unfrosted layers up to 2 months, thaw overnight in the fridge, then frost. For a lighter option, you can use part-whole wheat flour (swap up to half) while keeping the same bake time range.