A one-bowl recipe, this olive oil carrot cake is soft, light, and has just enough spice. It's all the best things about carrot cake, plus flavourful olive oil.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease a 10-inch (25.5 cm) cake pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
Start by mixing the vinegar into the milk and setting aside to sour slightly.
⅓ cup whole milk, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Add the sugar and olive oil to a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a standing mixer) and beat on medium speed until well combined. It won't cream like butter and sugar does but will lighten.
1 cup brown sugar, ½ cup olive oil
Add the eggs one at a time, beating between each addition. Mix in the vanilla, then mix the milk mixture in on low speed.
3 large eggs, 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt, and mix on low speed until just combined. A few streaks of flour are fine.
2 cups plain white flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Gently fold in the shredded carrots until evenly incorporated into the batter.
2 cups shredded carrots
Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan. Bake on the middle rack for 30-35 minutes, or until evenly golden and a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Cool for 30 minutes in the pan before carefully removing and cooling fully on a wire rack. Once fully cooled, top with cream cheese frosting and serve.
Notes
A slightly longer prep time is noted here as it takes a bit of time to grate the carrots. If you have a food processor, you can make quick work of it with the grating attachment.