There’s a fun way to eat veggies, and at Fatty Sundays, obviously it is as a dessert. You’re probably wondering: veggies for dessert, really? We were skeptical about it at first too, but we gave it a try and were delighted by the result.
Easter is just around the corner, and as we were thinking of fun ideas for our Easter photoshoot, we started picturing cute little Easter bunnies nibbling on carrots. That thought inspired us to make a yummy vanilla carrot cake for the holiday.
As everyone knows, Easter always falls on a Sunday - which also happens to be the best day of the week to brunch. Are you in charge of hosting an Easter brunch this year? Our adorable Easter bunny vanilla carrot cake is the sweetest addition to your dessert table. Your guests will love the decorative eggs and chocolate bunny on top that not only look so cute but also taste delicious. We made the carrot cake from scratch but saved some time and used a boxed cake mix for the vanilla cake. We know not everyone loves carrot cake, so our vanilla cake addition will please all guests, no matter their taste buds. Because who doesn’t love a classic vanilla cake? Now go get started!
Recipe ingredients and directions from Bon Appétit and altered slightly
Easter Bunny Vanilla Carrot Cake Recipe Ingredients
CAKE:
-Nonstick vegetable oil spray
-1 pound carrots, peeled, coarsely grated
-1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
-2½ cups all-purpose flour
-2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
-2 teaspoons ground ginger
-½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
-2 teaspoons baking powder
-1½ teaspoons kosher salt
-¾ teaspoon baking soda
-4 large eggs, room temperature
-1 cup granulated sugar
-¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-¾ cup vegetable oil
-1 vanilla cake box mix - and necessary ingredients outlined on box
FROSTING:
-2 packages cream cheese
-6 cups powdered sugar
-1 tablespoon vanilla extract
-½ stick butter, softened
-pinch of salt
Easter Bunny Vanilla Carrot Cake Recipe Directions
CAKE:
-Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly coat 3 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray.
-Combine carrots and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Whisk flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until thick, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low and gradually add the oil. Add the dry ingredients and carrot mixture; mix until smooth. Scrape batter into 2 prepared pans.
-Prepare vanilla cake according to box instructions.
-Bake cakes, rotating pans halfway through, 35–45 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack and let cakes cool 10 minutes. Run a knife around sides of cakes and invert onto wire rack. Let cool completely.
FROSTING:
-Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl until smooth, about 1 minute. Beat in vanilla extract and salt. Reduce speed to low and gradually mix in powdered sugar. Increase speed to high and beat frosting until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
-Place 1 carrot cake on a platter. Spread ¾ cup frosting evenly over top. Place vanilla cake on top, and spread more frosting over the top of the vanilla cake. Place remaining carrot cake on very top. Spread top and sides with frosting and chill 30 minutes to let frosting set. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides, swirling decoratively. Decorate top with candy Easter eggs and chocolate bunny.
We also decorated the outer edges of the cake with custom made Fatty Sundays “carrot orange” sprinkle pretzels. As an alternative, you can instead line the cake with our standard, pretty, pastel Easter sprinkles, which are available for purchase online now.
There’s no sweeter way to impress your guests this spring than with a festive, decorated Easter cake. Paired with a glass of milk, our vanilla carrot cake is surprisingly decadent and satisfying. We’re drooling just thinking about it.