This Keto carrot cake recipe is so quick and easy to make! It's soft, delightfully moist and will fill your kitchen with the gorgeous aroma of warm spices. Top this carrot mug cake with cream cheese frosting and enjoy a delicious low carb dessert that's ready in only 10 minutes!
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I've gotta say, I love carrot cake. And I love my microwave. I still don't stand in front of it while it's on, just in case. But it has made my life SO MUCH EASIER. Heating stuff? Check. Defrosting stuff? Check. Mug cakes? Check, check, check!!
I've made a bunch of yummy gluten free mug cakes in my microwave which you MUST try (links are at the end of the post), and even this emergency Keto microwave bread which is awesome for cheese toasties.
I did consider making a full size sugar free carrot cake. But let's face it. Most of the time it's just a couple of people in the house, right? And what happens when you have a whole cake and only two people in the house?
Well, you eat the whole cake!
It might take a few days, but eventually it'll be gone. And then you might wish you had only made a carrot mug cake for 2.
Why you'll love it
The great thing about this keto carrot cake is that you can tuck in literally ten minutes after thinking "Hey, I fancy a carrot cake!"
Whether you're following a low carb diet or not, it's just amazing as an afternoon treat or dessert. I can disclose it also makes a very satisfying breakfast 😉
You'll also love to hear that it is just 6.4g net carbs per portion!
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need for a super healthy microwave carrot cake:
- Carrot - finely grated
- Egg
- Butter
- Heavy cream
- Almond flour - either super fine almond flour or ground almonds
- Walnuts
- Powdered Sweetener - I used powdered erythritol, but any powdered sweetener works, from monk fruit sweetener to xylitol, allulose or Splenda
- Spices - cinnamon and pumpkin spice mix
- Baking powder
- Cream cheese (for the frosting)
Instructions
This section contains step by step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
1.) Mix your dry ingredients - almond flour (or almond meal), cinnamon, pumpkin spice, baking powder, powdered erythritol and crushed walnut pieces.
The walnut pieces are optional, but work perfectly taste-wise. You could sub with hazelnuts. If you have time, try dry-roasting them in a pan until gently browned to up the flavour.
2.) Add the wet ingredients - grated carrot, melted butter and heavy cream.
Your batter should be sticky but soft just like in the image above.
3.) Now you have 2 options. Either fill the carrot cake batter into two well-greased ramekins or microwaveable containers (you could even use cups - this is a mug cake, after all). Or use a larger pyrex bowl and make one larger carrot cake for sharing. I microwaved at 800W for 5 minutes.
4.) Wait until the cake is slightly cooled, then turn upside down onto a plate and top with delicious cream cheese icing. Alternatively, enjoy straight out of the ramekin or mug!
Cooking Methods
Microwave method: I recommend that you microwave the cake at 700-800W. This gives the carrot plenty of time to go nice and soft.
I have also found that if you microwave on high, the cake rises very quickly and might spill over the top of your ramekin. Trust me, you don't want to clean up that mess.
Oven method: If you do not have a microwave, bake your cake at 180 Celsius / 350 Fahrenheit for around 15 minutes or until lightly browned on top. Check with a skewer for doneness.
Top tips
Measure with digital scales. It's always best if you can weigh your ingredients using a digital scale. You don't have to spend $$$ on one. Mine was cheap and cheerful and still works perfectly several years on.
If you use measuring cups, make sure you slightly pack the grated carrots.
Use a cup or ramekin that is large enough. The narrower the vessel, the more the cake will rise. Don't fill the batter right to the top or it will overflow while cooking and create a mighty mess.
As mentioned above, follow the recommendation of cooking at a lower power level!
Variations
Egg free carrot mug cake
You CAN make this carrot cake WITHOUT EGG. I discovered this by accident as I FORGOT to add the egg to one of my trial runs. If you choose to omit the egg, add an additional tablespoon of double / heavy cream to achieve a soft consistency.
The cake won't rise as much without egg, and I don't recommend to turn it out onto a plate (this would only work if the cake is fully cooled, but no guarantees there). But if you're happy to enjoy it straight from the ramekin, give it a go - I thought it tasted great.
In the image below you can see the "egg" version on the left and the cake without egg on the right. In case you're wondering about the colour of the left cake, the egg I used had a VERY orange yolk. I might also have had a heavy hand on the cinnamon for the right cake.
FAQs
Which sweetener is best?
I used powdered erythritol to sweeten my keto carrot cake. There are also many blends out there, and erythritol / stevia or erythritol / monk fruit blends are especially popular.
Xylitol or allulose will also work, just make sure you powder it first for a smoother result, especially for the cream cheese frosting.
Can I use coconut flour instead?
Yes. Since coconut flour absorbs more liquid than almond flour, you'll need only ⅓ the amount: Use around 30 grams / ¼ cup of coconut flour.
Storage
Should you have any leftovers, store your carrot mug cake in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
More mug cake recipes
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Keto Carrot Mug Cake
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- ½ cup / 100g shredded/grated carrot
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon double cream / heavy cream
- ¾ cup / 75g almond flour or ground almonds
- 10 g / small handful walnuts, crushed
- 2 tablespoon powdered erythritol
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice / mixed spice
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 tablespoon full fat cream cheese
- 1 tsp powdered erythritol optional
Instructions
- Mix your dry ingredients - almond flour, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, baking powder, powdered erythritol and crushed walnut pieces.
- Add the wet ingredients- grated carrot, egg, melted butter, double / heavy cream.
- Fill the carrot cake batter into 2 well-greased ramekins (I used melted butter) or 1 pyrex glass bowl and microwave 5 minutes at 800W (or 6 minutes at 700W).
- Turn upside down onto a plate and serve with cream cheese frosting (cream cheese mixed with optional powdered erythritol). Decorate with more crushed walnuts and grated carrot. Or eat straight from the ramekin!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Hildé
This might be helpful: I doubled the recipe and baked it in a normal oven in a greased brownie time (20 x 20) at 160 (fan) for 20 min. In my oven this was perfect! I then iced with a cream cheese frosting, I added a little lemon zest and juice and about a 1 tbsp soft butter. They were more thinner squares, which were really yummy!
Thanks for your wonderful recipes Katrin
Helen
Hi you say cook for 5 minutes, is it the same length of time whether you’re cooking in one big bowl or 2 small ones? And if you were cooking in individual ramekins are you supposed to cook them one at a time for 5 minutes or together for 5 minutes. I love carrot cake and don’t want to risk spoiling one as I experiment to find the correct cooking time. Thank you
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Helen, I cooked them in 2 ramekins together for 5 minutes at the same time. The cooking length will depend on the wattage of the microwave, that's the most important thing.
Hina
Hi is it possible for you to state teaspoon & tablespoon in grams? Do you use American cups/spoons.
Thanks
Gus Wrethman
I wish cups would just go away. How big is the cup (240ml, 250ml, or something else, and does it mean, firmly packed, loosely packed, or rammed in?) My half a cup full and overflowing and stacked on high was 90g. I went with that, and it worked. I'll stick to grams next time. Always a safer bet. A gram is a gram is a gram. Half a cup can mean almost anything.
This minor issue aside, another fantastic recipe. Delish!
Allison Bisset
Baked in air fryer @ 160 for 25 mins. Lovely 🙂
Colin Gummer
I made this tonight and I was really pleased with it, one of the best keto cake recipes I've tried! I didn't have any cream, so I substituted an extra tbsp butter, and it turned out well. I'd use quite a bit more frosting next time, though - maybe 1.5x or even 2x.
Tonia
Hi Katrin,
I'm not a fun of microwaves so is there a way you can bake this in a classic oven?
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, I have oven instructions in the recipe card. I would go for 180C/350F and test after 15-20 minutes with a skewer to see whether it's enough. It may take up to 25 minutes.
Susan Virnala
Can I use cooked left over carrots for this cake?
Katrin Nürnberger
I wonder if that would make the batter softer and therefore using less carrot (or less wet ingredients) would be better. You'd have to give it a try!
Susan Virnala
I wil give it a try. Thanks for getting back to me.
Abigail
I'm going to make this for my mom
Sulaylah Karam
Simply the best. I added pecans and it was so good. I made one cake and divided it into 6 portions. Small but it hit that spot head on. Added the recipe to my collection of great recipes. Next time I will add walnuts. Didn’t have any at the time. Thank you for this recipe.
Sarah in CA
What size on ramekins do you recommend?
Katrin Nürnberger
My ramekins have a capacity of 6 floz. 5 oz ramekins should work as well.
Marion Harmening
There is a small difference between US- and UK floz. Does it matter which kind of ramekins you use or is the difference insignificant?
Katrin Nürnberger
I don't this makes much of a difference. The biggest thing to look out for is the power of the microwave and tailor the cooking length according to it.