We've turned the ever-popular classic carrot cake into a loaf cake version for ease, and it's so simple you don't even need an electric whisk, just stir everything together with a balloon whisk (even a spatula will do, in a pinch, just make sure everything's evenly combined and try not to overwork the batter).
Step 1Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4 and lightly grease and line a 900g loaf tin with baking parchment.
Step 2For the cake, in a large bowl whisk oil, eggs and sugar until combined. Whisk in flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices. Fold through carrots and walnuts. Scrape into prepared tin, level and bake for 1hr, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely in the tin.
Step 3For the icing, using a handheld electric whisk beat all the ingredients in a large bowl until smooth and fluffy. Pipe or spread over top of cooled cake. Serve in slices.
TO STORE:
Keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
GH Tips
Swap the walnuts for pecans, if you prefer.
We used a wide petal nozzle to create piped ruffles on top of our cake, but you could pipe with a star or round nozzle, or simply spread the icing on top if you prefer.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
Alice Shields is Senior Cookery Writer for Good Housekeeping. A trained pastry chef, you’ll find her food styling on photo shoots, developing delicious recipes and writing about all things food. She loves to bake and her favourite pudding will always be a chocolate fondant. Originally hailing from Lancashire, she finally achieved her goal of getting a butter pie recipe into the magazine.
