Sourdough Carrot Snack Cake
This Sourdough Carrot Cake is a soft and cozy 8×8 snack cake made with warm spices, fresh carrots, and sourdough discard for incredible flavor. Finished with creamy homemade cream cheese frosting, it’s the perfect easy spring dessert for Easter, brunch, or afternoon coffee.
Equipment
- 8×8 baking pan
- Box grater or food processor
- Large mixing bowl
- Medium mixing bowl
- Small mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Rubber spatula
- Kitchen Scale
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Parchment Paper
- Baking sheet
- Hand mixer or stand mixer
Ingredients
Sourdough Carrot Cake
- 150 g all-purpose flour 1 ¼ cups
- 4 g baking powder 1 tsp
- 3 g baking soda ½ tsp
- 5 g cinnamon 2 tsp
- 1 g ginger ½ tsp
- 1 g nutmeg ¼ tsp
- 1 g salt ¼ tsp
- 100 g sourdough discard ⅓ cup
- 100 g brown sugar ½ cup packed
- 50 g granulated sugar ¼ cup
- 113 g neutral oil ½ cup
- 60 g full-fat greek yogurt ¼ cup
- 2 eggs
- 5 g vanilla extract 1 tsp
- 200 g finely grated carrots about 2 cups lightly packed
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 113 g cream cheese softened (4 oz)
- 56 g unsalted butter softened (4 tbsp)
- 120 g powdered sugar 1 cup
- 5 g vanilla extract 1 tsp
- Pinch salt
Walnut Streusel (optional)
- 50 g sugar ¼ cup
- 30 g flour ¼ cup
- 40 g chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
Instructions
Make the cake
- Prep the pan: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line an 8×8 pan with parchment or lightly grease.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
- Mix wet ingredients: In another bowl whisk brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, egg, egg yolk, vanilla, yogurt, and sourdough discard until smooth.
- Combine: Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.
- Add carrots: Using a food processor (recommended!) or grater, finely grate the carrots into tiny pieces. Gently fold into the batter.
- Bake: Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 30–35 minutes, until the center springs back and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool: Let cake cool completely in the pan before frosting.
Make the cream cheese frosting
- Beat frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth and fluffy.
- Add sugar: Mix in powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt until creamy and spreadable.
- Frost: Spread over the cooled cake.
Make the walnut streusel (optional)
- Make the streusel: In a small bowl, stir together sugar, flour, and chopped walnuts until evenly combined.
- Add butter: Pour in the melted butter and stir with a fork until the mixture forms small, crumbly clusters.
- Spread: Scatter the streusel in an even layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake: Bake at 350°F for 10–15 minutes, stirring once halfway through, until the streusel is lightly golden and fragrant.
- Cool: Let the streusel cool completely on the pan—it will crisp up as it cools. Break into smaller clusters if needed before topping the cake.
Notes
Audrey’s Tip: For the best carrot cake texture, grate the carrots on the small holes of a box grater. Finely grated carrots melt into the batter as it bakes, making the cake incredibly moist instead of chunky.
Storage:
- Room temperature: If the cake is unfrosted, cover it tightly and store at room temperature for up to 2 days.
- Refrigerator: Once frosted with cream cheese frosting, store the cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: The unfrosted cake can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature before frosting and serving.
- Make ahead: This cake actually tastes even better the next day as the spices and carrot flavor continue to develop.
Nutrition
Calories: 513kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 6gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 69mgSodium: 212mgPotassium: 93mgFiber: 2gSugar: 36gVitamin A: 457IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 43mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!