Carrot Cake Roll
Carrot Cake Roll is a delicious cake made from scratch with a sweet and tart cream cheese filling. It’s a perfect balance of sweet, spice, and tart for Spring!
This post is sponsored in conjunction with #SpringSweetsWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to help in the creation of the #SpringSweetsWeek recipes. All opinions are mine alone. Thank you for supporting the brands that support A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures.
I have a love hate relationship with cake rolls. I’ve tried them a few times and they’re just not picture perfect. They taste delicious, but it’s a technique I just have to keep trying so they look perfect. Don’t do what I did. But do follow the instructions as these are adjusted to hopefully give you a picture perfect cake roll.
The first one was actually a crepe cake roll. Yes, I know this is completely different than a cake roll. But still has the challenges of filling and rolling that a regular cake roll has. The second I tried a box cake cake roll. There’s too much batter in one box cake for a cake roll. Cut that in half and make two. Or make cupcakes with the rest of the batter. Just sayin.
There are a series of steps in making a cake roll that are important. Besides the standard steps of baking a cake there’s a few extra steps involved that some might not know or think about. So how do you bake a cake roll?
First – Bake the cake
First, make and bake the cake. That’s a no brainer, right? Except, that part I didn’t know about on the first go around was whipping the eggs. Several recipes I read said to beat the eggs to within an inch of their lives or to a pulp. Whatever cliché phrase you want to use. I beat mine until they were pale yellow and fluffy.
Now, the first time I made this cake it had way too many carrots and was too moist. The second time, it had few carrots and I cooked it a little too long. The in between time is the time listed in the instructions. Make sure that the cake springs back when lightly touched. That means it is cooked enough to go on to the next step.
Second – Roll the cake in a towel
This is the step that some might not think about or know is a crucial step in making a cake roll. Take the cake out of the oven and let it cools slightly. I mean, you don’t want to handle a piping hot cake, but it still needs to be warm when you roll it up.
Turn the cake out onto a clean tea towel dusted with stuff. If it’s a chocolate cake use cocoa powder. If it’s a lighter cake use powdered sugar. This will help keep the cake from sticking to the towel.
Now, starting with the short end, roll the cake up into the towel. Why? Well, this part will train the flat cake into thinking it’s a cake roll. It makes the cake easier to handle when filling and rolling for the final presentation.
Third – Fill and Frost the Cake
Some people make the filling while the cake is cooling. I’ve done this before and it hasn’t worked out too tell for me. So, I make the filling before the making the cake. Or I make it while the cake is baking. I don’t make it while the cake it cooling. And that’s because me and frosting have a love hate relationship. I always have #frostingfail.
For a Swiss cake roll, the typical filling is whipped cream. For me and carrot cake, it has to be a cream cheese frosting. The first batch I made was more like cream cheese glaze. It did not hold it’s shape even though I was using someone else’s recipe. Like wt… It just adds to my #frostingfailfrustration.
I’ve made these a couple of times and every time they crack. It’s that delicate balance of just cooked enough to be flexible and warm enough to roll without burning your fingers. Either way, if your cake cracks, oh well! It’ll taste amazing. And you have plenty of frosting to cover those cracks like I did.
Four – Roll the cake up again
Using the towel, carefully roll the cake up again. I man handled mine a little bit. I wanted to make sure it was a tight roll and no holes. Well, there was one hole at one end in the middle. But who’s keeping track!
I’ve made these a couple of times and every time they crack. It’s that delicate balance of just cooked enough to be flexible and warm enough to roll without burning your fingers. Either way, if your cake cracks, oh well! It’ll taste amazing. And you have plenty of frosting to cover those cracks like I did.
What does a carrot cake roll taste like?
Heaven! There’s plenty of spice in the cake with the finely shredded carrots. I used a secret spice mix that I hope to recreate and share with y’all cause it’s the bomb! Then there’s the sweet tart cream cheese frosting that has a hint of almond in there. I swear that’s what makes this cake super delicious. It’s that, “What is that flavor?” thing that keeps your guests guessing!
Even though I’ve made this cake twice already, I’m totally making it again. It is super delicious and not as intimidating to make as some might think. With some simple steps and patience you can make this carrot cake roll for your spring gatherings.

Carrot Cake Roll
Carrot Cake Roll is a delicious cake made from scratch with a sweet and tart cream cheese filling. It's a perfect balance of sweet, spice, and tart for Spring!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon cloves
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 2 cups shredded carrots
For the frosting:
- 16 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup butter
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon almond paste
- 1 1/2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
To make the frosting:
- Beat the cream cheese and the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until creamy.
- Add the vanilla extract and almond paste and stir until combined.
- Add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time until the desired consistency is reached. I used about 3 1/2 cups of powdered sugar but depending on the humidity you may use more or less.
- Store the frosting, covered, in the fridge until the cake is ready to fill and frost.
To make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Combine the flour with the next six ingredients (flour through cloves) in a mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or large mixing bowl) combine the eggs with the sugar. Beat on high speed for 5 minutes or until the eggs are pale yellow and frothy.
- Add the oil and the dry ingredients stirring until just combined.
- Stir in the shredded carrots.
- Pour the batter into a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
- Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly pressed.
- Allow to cool in pan until cool enough to handle.
- Sprinkle a clean linen towel with powdered sugar.
- Carefully flip the cake over onto the linen towel and remove the parchment paper.
- Sprinkle the bottom of the cake with powdered sugar and carefully roll it up into the towel.
- Allow the cake to cool completely.
- Remove the frosting from the fridge while the cake cools.
- Carefully unroll the cake and spread it with 2/3 of the frosting.
- Roll the cake up, carefully, and then use the rest of the frosting to cover the cake roll.
- Sprinkle with pink and silver sparkling sugar before slicing and serving.
Nutrition Information
Yield
16Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 355Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 10gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 7gCholesterol 79mgSodium 256mgCarbohydrates 45gFiber 1gSugar 37gProtein 4g
Tuesday #SpringSweetsWeek Recipes
- Almond Buttercream Frosting from Devour Dinner
- Blood Orange Spiced Cake from Cookaholic Wife
- Carrot Cake Roll with Cream Cheese Filling from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- Cookie Truffles from Eat Move Make
- Eggless Blood Orange Mini Bundts with Pink Glaze from Magical Ingredients
- Lime Curd from Art of Natural Living
- Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Meyer Lemon Pudding from Jen Around the World
- Meyer Limoncello from The Spiffy Cookie
- Strawberry White Chocolate Bark from Blogghetti
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What a great idea for a cake roll! And thanks for the detailed instructions–I’ve never made one and need to!
Thank you! I need to keep trying them to crack the code.
Cake rolls are fun to make and serve. Looks good
Thank you!
This carrot cake roll looks perfect and sounds amazing. I never got the cake roll gene lol
Thank you! It just takes practice. I’m convinced. Which is why I need to keep trying them. LOL
You just cannot go wrong with carrot cake. I have never been able to make a successful roll yet, but yours gives me hope!
Thank you! It’s a work in progress. I made this one twice. And I could have cooked it a little less to keep it moist. Maybe I will try one for Christmas this year.
Carrot cake is my favorite and this would be perfect for Easter!
Right? It was fun to make. Even if it wasn’t perfect.