There are tons of different ways to make a carrot cake, but this Carrot Cake Bread isn’t too sweet in itself (some carrot cakes are just too sweet for me!), but comes with a crumb topping that hits all the right notes.
It’s super easy to put together, and perfect for when you want a classic carrot cake flavor without all the extra sweetness.
Carrot Cake Bread Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe:
Carrots: Make sure to peel and grate your own carrots here. The pre-shredded kind just don’t soften as well when baked
King Arthur AP Flour: For the bread
Olive oil: To help keep the bread moist
Brown sugar and honey: For subtle sweetness
Vanilla extract: For a subtle vanilla flavor
Eggs: For richness
Spices: We’ll be using cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg
Baking soda: To help the cake rise
For the crumb topping: Butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and flour
For the drizzle: Powdered sugar, vanilla extract, milk, and cinnamon
How to Make Carrot Cake Bread
Here’s what to do:
Step 1: Prep your ingredients.
Measure everything out, shred your carrots, and preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Also pop the butter for the crumb in the freezer.
You can also add some parchment paper to your bread pan at this point.
Step 2: Mix the wet ingredients (plus sugar & carrots!).
Now add the olive oil, honey, brown sugar, vanilla and eggs together. Stir to combine, then add the shredded carrots and mix together.
Step 3: Add the dry ingredients.
Now add the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. Use a rubber spatula to mix until just combined. Pour into the prepared bread pan and set aside.
Step 4: Make the crumb topping.
Now make the crumb topping by cutting the cold butter into cubes and combining it with the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Cut the butter into the mixture, making sure it resembles crumbs. Sprinkle on top of the batter.
Step 5: Bake the bread (& make the drizzle).
Bake the carrot bread in the oven for 50–55 minutes, or until a toothpick can be inserted and come out clean.
Meanwhile, prepare the drizzle by combining the ¾ cup powdered sugar with 1 tbs milk, a pinch of cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Whisk until smooth (adding more milk to thin it out, or sugar if you want it thicker). Drizzle on top of bread once it comes out of the oven.
Carrot Cake Bread (with Crumb Topping)
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Bread
- 1.5 cups King Arthur AP flour
- 1.5 cups shredded carrots shredded yourself
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1.5 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Crumb Topping
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup flour
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Cinnamon Drizzle
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tbs milk
- 1 splash vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a bread pan with parchment paper.
- Combine the eggs, olive oil, honey, brown sugar and vanilla. Add the shredded carrots and stir to incorporate. Add the flour, spices, salt, and baking soda and use a rubber spatula to mix until just combined. Pour into the prepared bread pan.
- Make the crumb topping but combining ingredients and cutting the butter into the mixture to resemble crumbs. Sprinkle over the batter and bake until a toothpick can be inserted and removed cleanly, about 50 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the ingredients for the cinnamon drizzle and drizzle over the bread once it comes out of the oven.
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