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Carrot Banana Cake

Carrot banana cake with a moist, spiced crumb baked until a toothpick comes out clean, then frosted with thick, fluffy cream cheese frosting. This easy banana carrot cake is a banana spice cake-style layer cake topped with shredded carrot details.
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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
  

Carrot banana cake
  • 2 bananas Ripe bananas, mashed.
  • 1 cup shredded carrots About 2 medium carrots.
  • 0.5 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 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

  • 1 sheet pan
  • 2 sheet pan

Method
 

Bake the carrot banana cake
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease two 8-inch round pans or a 9x13 dish so the batter releases easily.
  2. Whisk vegetable oil, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract together until smooth and glossy.
  3. Stir in mashed bananas and shredded carrots until evenly distributed.
  4. Fold in all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt until just combined; stop mixing as soon as no dry streaks remain.
  5. Fold in walnuts if using, then scrape the batter into the prepared pans.
  6. Divide batter between pans and bake for 30–35 minutes at 350°F until a toothpick comes out clean with no wet batter.
Make the cream cheese frosting and finish
  1. Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth, then beat in powdered sugar and vanilla extract until fluffy.
  2. Cool cakes completely before frosting generously, so the frosting stays thick and swirls on top without melting.

Notes

Pro tip: cool the cakes fully before frosting—warm cake will melt cream cheese frosting and cause slipping. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 4 days; freeze frosted slices up to 2 months (wrap well). For a dietary swap, use a plant-based butter/cream cheese substitute to keep it dairy-free while maintaining the thick frosting texture.