guest post by ashley schuering - https://confessionsofagroceryaddict.com
Give your Easter menu a modern update with our deliciously rich Chocolate Carrot Cake recipe! This decadent twist on the classic features a doctored box of chocolate cake mix, freshly shredded carrots, warm spices, luscious chocolate cream cheese frosting, and adorable almond cream–filled chocolate carrots to garnish.
Here at Chuao Chocolatier, we think everything is better with chocolate, including old favorites. Chocolate and carrot cake make for a marvelous pair in this simple recipe, adding a layer of depth and complexity that’s unexpectedly crave-worthy.
Why You’ll Love This Carrot Chocolate Cake Recipe
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Quick & Easy: Using a box of cake mix means less work for you. It takes just 30 minutes of active prep work to make—the rest is just cooling time!
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Fresh & Fun: Don’t get us wrong, regular carrot cake is a classic we’ll always hold dear. But adding a whopping four kinds of chocolate to the mix? That’s next-level yum!
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Simple Ingredients: Nothing fancy here, just regular pantry staples and a few bars of Chuao Chocolate are all you need to make a stellar chocolate carrot cake.
Ingredients & Substitutions
As promised, you don’t need a ton of ingredients to make this fun, spring-inspired dessert recipe. Here’s what to grab:
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1 Box Chocolate Cake Mix (or Yellow Cake Mix + ¼ Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder)
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½ Cup Strong Coffee (or water + 1 Tbsp Instant Coffee)
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3 Large Eggs
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½ Cup Neutral Oil
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1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
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⅛ tsp Ground Cloves
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⅛ tsp Ground Nutmeg
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2 Cups Grated Carrots (about 4 carrots)
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2 Chuao Honeycomb Bars, chopped
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1 Recipe Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below)
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1 Recipe Almond Cream–Filled Chocolate Carrots (optional; recipe below)
How to Make Chocolate Carrot Cake
As promised, making this chocolatey spin on classic carrot cake is simple. Note that instructions for making the frosting and DIY filled chocolate garnishes are below.
Step 1: Whisk together cake mix, cocoa powder (if using), and spices in a large mixing bowl. Add the oil and eggs, and whisk until combined.
Step 2: Fold in the carrots and chocolate pieces until well distributed.
Step 3: Bake. Divvy the batter between two 8” cake pans that have been greased and floured. Bake at 350ºF for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for about 10 minutes in the pans, then invert onto a wire rack to continue cooling to room temperature.
Step 4: Frost the cooled cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting (recipe below). Place a dollop of frosting on the middle of a cake board. Then, place your first cake layer with the pan side down. Spread a thick layer of frosting across the top of the cake all the way to the edges, then place the second cake layer on top with the pan side facing up. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.
Step 5: Decorate with the almond cream–filled chocolates. Slice and serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
How to Make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
While the cake bakes, gather the following ingredients:
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½ Cup Unsalted Butter, softened to room temperature
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8 oz. Block Cream Cheese, softened to room temperature
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2 Chuao Sweet & Salty Chocolate Bars, melted and cooled
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½ Cup Cocoa Powder
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2 ½ cups confectioners' Sugar
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1 tsp Vanilla Extract
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1 Tbsp Milk of Choice
Step 1: Beat the butter and cream cheese together in a large mixing bowl until fluffy and uniform.
Step 2: Add the melted chocolate, and mix to incorporate.
Step 3: Sift the cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar into the butter mixture in 3 stages, fully mixing in the dry ingredients after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Step 4: Add the vanilla extract and milk to the cream cheese frosting. Add extra milk as needed to thin the frosting. Set aside until you’re ready to frost the cake. Alternatively, you can make the frosting and store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let frosting come to room temperature and stir well before frosting the cooled cake.
How to Make Filled Chocolate Carrots
To make these yummy homemade chocolates, you’ll need:
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1 Cup Chocolate Melts (or temper 2 Chuao chocolate bars of choice)
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2 Cups Granulated Sugar
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1 Cup Heavy Cream
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1 Tbsp Corn Syrup
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1 tsp Almond Extract (or swap in the flavoring extract of your choice)
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Carrot-shaped chocolate molds (we used silicone)
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Orange & Green Luster Dust (optional)
Step 1: Melt the chocolate melts, and brush the inside of the carrot molds with the chocolate, making sure to get in all crevices. Place in the fridge to harden.
Step 2: Mix the sugar, cream, corn syrup, and almond extract in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, and cook until it reaches the soft ball stage (235ºF). Remove from heat and set aside to cool, stirring occasionally.
Step 3: Fill the molds. When the cream fondant has cooled to room temperature, scoop a small amount into each chocolate mold. Top with more chocolate and refrigerate until solid (about 30 minutes).
Step 4: Decorate. Gently remove chocolates from the silicone mold. Brush with luster dust if desired, then set aside until you’re ready to decorate the cake. These can be made and refrigerated up to a month in advance.
Expert Tips
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Work in Stages. If you’re hosting the family for a springtime get-together, give yourself ample time so you can actually enjoy yourself. Feel free to make each element of this cake ahead of time—the cooled cake rounds, frosting, and filled chocolate carrots can be frozen for up to 2 months. Make sure to wrap the cake rounds in several layers of plastic wrap to ward off freezer burn.
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Chill Out. Make sure the chocolate carrot cake layers are fully cooled before frosting the cake. If you try to do it while the cake is still warm, the frosting will slide right off! Similarly, make sure to let the chocolate carrots chill until they’re nice and firm after each stage to get clean results.
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K.I.S.S. Keep it simple, sunshine! There’s no need to get super fancy with your piping when you have cute filled chocolates as your cake garnish. Use the back of a spoon to add a simple swirl pattern, or keep it flat with an offset spatula.
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Preportioned Alternative. Don’t want the stress of slicing a cake? Make our chocolate carrot cupcakes instead!
FAQs
Can you put chocolate chips in carrot cake?
Absolutely! But why not add chunks of dark Chuao chocolate laced with crispy bits of honeycomb, instead?
Does chocolate go well with carrot cake?
Taste is subjective, but we sure think so! If you’ve ever had a chocolate spice cake like our churro ding dongs or chocolate pumpkin cake, the flavor here will be pretty familiar.
What chocolate goes well with carrot cake?
We might be biased, but we think any type of chocolate goes well with carrot cake. White chocolate might be the most familiar, but you shouldn’t feel limited. Here, we use multiple varieties of chocolate in our carrot cake—cocoa powder in the cake mix, honeycomb dark chocolate as our “chocolate chips,” sweet & salty milk chocolate in the frosting, and semisweet chocolate melts to make our filled chocolate carrots.