Carrot Cake vs Spice Cake: Which is Better?
When the weather gets a little bit colder, warm, spice-filled sweets are so comforting. And whether you’re making a pie, a pastry, or a showstopping cake, you have so many options for what kinds of flavors you use to complement warming spices. For cakes (our favorite dessert at ECBG, of course), warm, spicy treats often come down to carrot cake vs spice cake, two of our favorite cakes for this time of the year. And while they both have so many perks, one or the other might not be the perfect fit for every single occasion. Here, we’re breaking down some of the major similarities and differences between carrot cake and spice cake so that you know how to tell them apart and have a little guidance on how to pick the right one for your next event.
Carrot Cake vs Spice Cake: What’s the Difference?
Sure, carrot cake and spice cake have a lot of similar characteristics, but they’re not identical. Beyond the obvious (carrot cake has carrots!), here’s what generally sets these two delicious cakes apart:
Carrot Cake
Moist, dense, and often loaded with grated carrots (duh).
Comes with bonus mix-ins like walnuts, chopped pecans, golden raisins, coconut, pineapple … there are a lot of options!
Almost always frosted with a luscious cream cheese frosting because they’re just so good together.
Spice Cake
Spicier and lighter than carrot cake, this one is usually packed with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and other warm, cozy flavors.
The spices themselves take center stage here, no extra fancy add-ins.
Often topped with buttercream or even just a light dusting of powdered sugar, depending on the recipe.
Texture of the Cake
Carrot Cake: Because carrot cake is packed with carrots, nuts, raisins, and sometimes more (coconut, candied ginger, even shredded pineapple), the texture of this beauty is often moist with some chew. Some people don't like all the add-ins, but the more texture the better, if you ask us! If you're making your cake at home, use a box grater or food processor to grate your sweet carrots.
Spice Cake: Because the main character in spice cake is the perfect spice blend itself, this cake tends to be lighter, airier, and fluffier than its carrot-based cousin.
Flavor of the Cake
Carrot Cake: Earthy, sweet, and complex thanks to both the shredded carrots and the mix-ins you’ve chosen, a perfect carrot cake is so delicious. When you top it with a sweet, tangy, velvety cream cheese frosting, it’s the absolute perfect pairing.
Spice Cake: Spice cake’s warm spices are the main flavor here, making the cake bold and spiced (not spicy, just spiced!). It’s ideal on a cool fall or winter day, and goes so well topped with buttercream, cinnamon buttercream for extra cinnamon and spicy flavor, caramel frosting, brown sugar frosting, or even just a dusting of powdered sugar that’ll let the cake itself steal the show.
When to Serve Carrot Cake vs Spice Cake
Though you really can’t go wrong with cake, as far as we’re concerned, here are some suggestions for when to serve carrot cake vs when to serve a spice cake:
Carrot Cake: Easter brunch, garden parties, or any time you want to feel vaguely healthy while eating dessert. (Hey, it has veggies!)
Spice Cake: Cozy autumn nights, Thanksgiving spreads, or whenever you want to channel your inner Ina Garten. (Or any other special occasions!)
So, Which One Should You Make?
It really depends on what you want. A lighter, fluffier cake? Go for spice. A richly moist, flavor-packed cake? It might be the perfect time for carrot. Whichever you choose, you truly can’t go wrong!
If you really want to go for it, you could even try combining the two into a carrot spice cake. Add a little bit of grated carrot to your spice cake or use a lightly spiced buttercream instead of cream cheese frosting on your next carrot cake. The best of both worlds.
ECBG’s Carrot cake recipe
Ingredients
240g Oil
397g Granulated Sugar
15g Vanilla Extract
8g Salt
223g Eggs
7g Ground Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves
6g Baking Powder
2g Baking Soda
240g All-Purpose Flour
326g Carrots, grated
170g Pecans, chopped & toasted
Instructions
Preheat the oven and prep the cake pans: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F and grease and flour (or grease and line with parchment paper) 2-3 round cake pans (2 inches deep).
Start the batter: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the oil, sugar, vanilla, salt, eggs, spices, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk until combined.
Add the flour: Add the flour and mix on low until just combined. Don’t overmix.
Add the mix-ins: Scrape down the bowl and the whisk attachment. Fold in the carrots and nuts.
Transfer to the pans: Transfer equal amounts of batter to each prepared pan. Smooth with an offset spatula.
Bake: Place the pans in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Rotate the pans halfway through the baking process.
Cool: Let cool in the pan for a few minutes, then invert onto a wire rack and let cool completely before frosting.
ECBG’s Cream Cheese Frosting REcipe
Ingredients
For the Italian Buttercream:
620g granulated sugar
158g water
300g egg whites
908g unsalted butter, at room temperature
20g pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
2g salt
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
720g Italian buttercream
600g full-fat cream cheese
Instructions
Make the Italian Buttercream: In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites, vanilla, and salt on low speed. In a small saucepan, combine the water and sugar and heat it over medium-low heat until it reaches 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer (soft-ball stage). When the syrup is heated, turn the mixer to speed 3 and stream in the hot syrup. Keep whipping the mixture on speed 3 for about 10 minutes.
Add the Butter: With the mixer running, add the room temperature butter in small pieces, one piece at a time, letting the butter fully incorporate before adding the next piece.
Whip the Buttercream: Once you’ve added all of the butter, mix on speed 3 until silky smooth, then go down to speed 2 for about 1 more minute.
Store the Buttercream: Transfer the buttercream to an airtight container and either store in the fridge or move on to the next step.
Make the Cream Cheese Frosting: If you’re moving right into making the cream cheese frosting, there’s no need to wash out the bowl of the stand mixer. Switch out the whisk attachment for the paddle attachment. Add the cream cheese and beat it until smooth. There’s no need to soften the cream cheese before using it! Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure all of the cream cheese is in the bottom of the bowl.
Add the Buttercream: Slowly add the Italian buttercream, a little at a time, while the mixer is running. Keep mixing until the frosting is smooth and fully combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again, then mix for 1 more minute. Use right away, or transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge or the freezer.
FAQs
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Generally speaking, yes! Fall spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves work well in both cake recipes. You can put your own twist on it by switching spices in or out, but remember that spice cake puts the focus on the spice blend itself, while carrot cake spices are more for added depth of flavor because carrot cake typically is an oil-based cake vs. butter-based cake.
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Though it does have a vegetable in it, let’s be clear: it’s still cake. It’s a dessert, not a health food.
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Definitely! A rich, smooth cream cheese frosting would give your spice cake an extra little bit of indulgent decadence.
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The addition of carrots in carrot cake adds moisture to the cake, plus the vegetable oil that's traditionally in carrot cake batter helps ensure moist crumbs. In spice cakes, you can add some applesauce or even Greek yogurt or sour cream as a secret ingredient to protect against drying and ensure a moist cake. Once they’ve been baked to perfection, make sure to wrap them up well (wrap tightly in plastic wrap if you’ve got un-iced layers) before storing them overnight.
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Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend in exchange for the all-purpose flour for the easiest way to make them gluten-free (though it may not be exactly perfect, depending on the recipe). Here are the gluten-free flour blends we love:
To make them vegan, use either flax eggs or chia eggs, dairy-free milk, and either oil or plant-based butter (depending on what the original recipe calls for). If you’re going to make a cream cheese frosting, use a plant-based cream cheese and non-dairy milk!
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Both cakes can work really well for layer cake, but if you’re packing your carrot cake full of tons of heavy mix-ins, it can be a bit more difficult to build something towering with cake layers. If you’re using a carrot cake with lots of extra ingredients, consider making a cake with fewer, thicker layers instead of many thin ones to keep the cake from collapsing. Both carrot cake and spice cake work so well as a sheet cake.
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Totally! Both carrot cake cupcakes and spice cake cupcakes are delicious and work beautifully. Though the oven temperature will likely stay the same, make sure to adjust your baking time (start checking for doneness around 15 minutes for best results) and pull them from the oven when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
So, ultimately, when it comes to carrot cake vs spice cake, there’s really no wrong choice. It just depends on what you’re looking for and what your vision for a finished product looks like.
