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This Carrot Cake Roll is everything you love about carrot cake — warm spices, shredded carrots, and creamy tangy frosting — all rolled into a beautiful swirl. It’s moist, fluffy, and incredibly satisfying. Best of all, it looks impressive but is easier to make than you’d think!
⏱️ Prep Time
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 12–14 minutes
- Cooling & Assembling: 1 hour
- Total Time: About 1.5 hours
🍳 Equipment
- 10×15-inch jelly roll pan
- Parchment paper
- Clean kitchen towel (thin cotton, not terry cloth)
- Mixer (hand or stand)
- Mixing bowls
- Spatula
- Sifter (optional)
🧾 Ingredients
🥕 For the Carrot Cake Roll:
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups finely grated carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
- Optional: ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans
🍥 For the Cream Cheese Filling:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
🧄 Ingredient Notes
- Grated carrots: Use the fine side of a grater for a soft texture in the roll.
- Cream cheese: Full-fat works best for structure and flavor.
- Spices: Adjust to taste—add cloves or ginger if you like more warmth.
- Nuts (optional): Add crunch and classic carrot cake flavor.
👨🍳 Instructions
1. Prep & Preheat
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Line a 10×15-inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper and lightly grease it.
2. Make the Cake Batter
- In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- In a separate large bowl, beat eggs, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until thick and pale (~2 minutes).
- Stir in vanilla and carrots.
- Gently fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Add nuts if using.
3. Bake the Cake
- Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.
- Bake for 12–14 minutes, or until the top springs back when touched and a toothpick comes out clean.
4. Roll the Cake
- While the cake bakes, lay a clean kitchen towel on the counter and dust it generously with powdered sugar.
- Once cake is done, immediately loosen edges and invert it onto the towel.
- Gently peel off parchment paper.
- Starting from the short end, roll the cake up in the towel (not too tight). Let cool completely (about 1 hour).
5. Make the Cream Cheese Filling
- Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.
- Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix until light and fluffy.
6. Fill and Roll
- Unroll the cooled cake gently.
- Spread filling evenly over the cake, leaving a ½-inch border.
- Re-roll (without the towel) and place seam side down.
- Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes for clean slicing.
7. Serve
- Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
- Slice and enjoy cold or at room temperature.
🍽️ Nutrition Facts (Per slice – yields ~10 slices)
- Calories: ~300
- Fat: 18g
- Carbs: 32g
- Sugar: 22g
- Protein: 4g
💡 Tips & Variations
🔪 Tips
- Roll while warm: Rolling the cake while warm prevents cracks later.
- Use parchment + sugar towel: Ensures no sticking during inverting and rolling.
- Chill before slicing: For clean, beautiful swirls.
🧁 Variations
- Add pineapple: Fold in 2 tbsp crushed pineapple (drained well) to the batter.
- Maple cream cheese: Swap vanilla for maple syrup in the filling.
- Mini rolls: Cut into halves before rolling for individual portions.
- Frosted top: Spread extra cream cheese frosting on top before dusting with powdered sugar.
