Carrot Cake Roll

5 from 1 vote

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Spring is a whole lot brighter with this simple, sweet, and moist carrot cake roll to enjoy with a little tea at breakfast or as a festive dessert!

I love the cream cheese filling and the warming notes from the spice blend, and there are some secret healthy hacks you might not expect. This carrot cake roll is sure to lift everyone’s spirits, and just in time for Easter!

overhead shot of carrot cake roll slices on cutting board with utensils and round dessert plates
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Easy Carrot Cake Roll Recipe

I wanted to make a dessert that felt a little fun, a little fancy, wasn’t too hard to make, and was still a bit nourishing. For this recipe I’ve used whole grains and maple syrup instead of traditional sugar. It tastes great, just like a traditional, moist carrot cake with warm spices, bright carrots, and smooth cream cheese.

This recipe was really fun to make, and my kids thought it was so fun to eat. No one guessed that it wasn’t made with traditional ingredients. However, that being said, I tested this recipe in a variety of ways to help ensure that you could make it at home with what you do or do not have available. See the recipe notes below for ideas for subbing flours, sweeteners, and more. I hope this pantry basics recipe is one that you can make again and again with your family and love it each time

I am so happy to partner once again with Bob’s Red Mill, one of my family’s favorites, to bring you this recipe! Bob’s Red Mill has consistently been my go-to for all my baking needs, and I love their assortment of options (especially when baking for those with food allergies or intolerances). Their flours come in stone-ground, whole grain, organic, gluten free, paleo, and vegan options. How cool is that? I know I can always count on Bob’s Red Mill for any holiday baking recipe, and any rendition of the classics (like this carrot cake roll!). Thank you for supporting my family by supporting the brands we choose to partner with and truly do love!

how to make carrot cake batter image

Carrot cake roll ingredients:

In the cake, there are eggs, maple syrup as the sweetener, vanilla extract for warmth, salt, baking powder, warming spices (ground cinnamon, ground ginger, teaspoon cloves), Bob’s Red Mill Organic Whole Wheat Flour, shredded carrots for the signature carrot cake texture and taste, and extra flour or powdered sugar for dusting on the finished cake as you prepare it. In the filling, there’s room temperature cream cheese, maple syrup as the sweetener, and vanilla and ground cinnamon to warm up the flavor. See the recipe notes for subbing ideas!

How to make a carrot cake roll:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Line a jelly roll pan with a piece of foil long enough to over hang the two short edges.
  3. Spray the foil well with cooking spray.
  4. Mix the eggs and the maple syrup until light and puffy.
  5. Add the vanilla to the bowl. Sprinkle the salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and flour over the top of the whipped eggs and then fold the ingredients into the eggs.
  6. Add the shredded carrots and fold into the batter.
  7. Spread the batter into an even, thin layer in the pan.
  8. Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.
  9. Spread a large clean kitchen towel out and dust it with 1/4 cup flour or powdered sugar.
  10. Flip cooked cake, top down onto the prepared kitchen towel. Remove the pan.
  11. Gently remove the foil from the back of the cake.
  12. Starting at the short end of the cake, roll it up inside the towel.
  13. Roll the cake completely inside the towel and let it rest there until it cools, at least 1 hour.
  14. Make the icing by beating the cream cheese, maple syrup, vanilla, and ground cinnamon on high for 5 minutes.
  15. Carefully unroll the cake inside of the towel.
  16. Spread the filling evenly over the inside of the cake.
  17. Starting at the same short edge that you started rolling the cake up in the towel, roll the cake into a roll.
  18. Transfer your carrot cake roll to a large piece of plastic wrap and store refrigerate until you are ready to serve.
  19. When you are ready to serve, unroll your cake and dust with powdered sugar if you have it, or simply slice the roll and lay the pieces on a platter.

How to serve carrot cake roll:

Serve carrot cake roll with powdered sugar dusted on top before slicing with a sharp knife and serving the pieces laid flat on a platter.

How to store carrot cake roll:

Store carrot cake roll wrapped tightly in plastic wrap in the refrigerator up to 5 days, or add the plastic wrapped roll to a freezer-safe zipper-topped bag to freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge to serve when ready.

closeup of carrot cake roll on wooden cutting board with butter knife

Here’s what it should look like for the only kind of “tricky parts” to this:

Remove the foil, roll it, up in a dusted towel, let it rest!

slab of carrot cake covered with foil and resting on towel

Then when it’s cool you unroll it from the towel (a little cracking and breaking is normal), add the cream cheese filling, and then roll it back up again! You’ll want to wrap it in plastic wrap and chill it before serving.

collage image of step by step how to spread icing and roll carrot cake roll

Isn’t that fun!? It has a little bit of a “wow” factor that makes it really fun to eat.

slices of carrot cake roll on wooden cutting board with forks and round white dessert plates

Hooray for using simple nourishing ingredients like maple syrup, eggs, carrots, and whole wheat flour. I love desserts like this. I ate some for breakfast after I made it and was completely happy with my decision.

carrots, eggs, maple syrup, and bob's red mill whole wheat flour
three slices of carrot cake roll on round white plate stack and green striped towel with forks and knife
whole wheat flour carrot cake rolls with icing inside cut open on a cutting board
5 from 1 vote

Carrot Cake Roll

Spring is a whole lot brighter with this simple, sweet, and moist carrot cake roll to enjoy with a little tea at breakfast or as a festive dessert!
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 12 servings

Ingredients 

For the Cake:

  • 4 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon cloves
  • 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Organic Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1 to 2 cups shredded carrots, (about 1 to 3 large carrots)
  • 1/4 cup extra flour or powdered sugar

For the Filling:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., and line a jelly roll pan with a piece of foil long enough to over hang the two short edges just a bit. Spray the foil well with cooking spray, and set the pan aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, add the eggs and the maple syrup. Beat with an electric mixer or with the whisk attachment of your stand mixer for 5 minutes. The mixture will be very light and puffy.
  • Add the vanilla to the bowl. Sprinkle the salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and flour over the top of the whipped eggs and then fold the ingredients into the eggs.
  • Add the shredded carrots and fold into the batter.
  • Spread the batter into an even, thin layer in the pan, being sure to spread it to the edges and corners of the pan.
  • Bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.
  • While the cake is baking, spread a large clean kitchen towel out and dust it with 1/4 cup flour or powdered sugar (if you are squeamish about raw flour, you can microwave it first).
  • When the cake comes out of the oven, holding it carefully on the foil ends, flip it, top down onto the prepared kitchen towel. Remove the pan.
  • Gently remove the foil from the back of the cake.
  • Starting at the short end of the cake, roll it up inside the towel (pictures in post to help explain).
  • Roll the cake completely inside the towel and let it rest there until it cools, at least 1 hour.
  • When you are ready to assemble your carrot cake roll, make the icing by adding the cream cheese, maple syrup, vanilla, and ground cinnamon to a medium mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Beat on high speed with the whisk attachment or with an electric mixer for 5 minutes or until very light and fluffy.
  • Carefully unroll the cake inside of the towel.
  • Spread the filling evenly over the inside of the cake.
  • Starting at the same short edge that you started rolling the cake up in the towel, roll the cake (without the towel) into a roll.
  • Transfer your carrot cake roll to a large piece of plastic wrap and store in the fridge until you are ready to serve it. This can be made up to 24 hours in advance.
  • When you are ready to serve, unroll your cake and dust with powdered sugar if you have it, or simply slice the roll and lay the pieces on a platter.

Notes

  • Note that this dessert is not very sweet. It’s a healthier, less sweet version of the original and you should expect that. If you’d like it sweeter, the additional notes have information on using traditional sugar and powdered sugar.
  • I tested this recipe a few different ways to help accommodate what you may or may not have at home right now. If you don’t have powdered sugar, you can use the flour to dust the towel instead, no issue there.
  • If you’d like to use all-purpose flour instead of the whole wheat flour, feel free. I did not test this recipe with gluten-free 1:1 baking flour, but I really think it would work. If anyone tries it, will you let the rest of us know in a comment?
  • You can replace the maple syrup with granulated sugar if you’d like in the cake batter.
  • You can replace the maple syrup with 1 to 1.5 cups of powdered sugar in the filling if you’d like.
  • No cream cheese? Try making a buttercream icing for the filling instead. You’ll need about 2 cups.
  • I didn’t want any carrot waste so I tried this with a few different amounts, any amount between 1 and 2 cups will work great; just use 2 carrots or whatever you have and use the whole carrots! That being said, try to shred them very finely if you can or chop up your grated carrots a bit with a knife. Because the cooking time is much shorter than traditional carrot cake, larger pieces of carrot didn’t soften well when baked, finely grated work much better.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 of 12 slices, Calories: 152kcal, Carbohydrates: 16g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.01g, Cholesterol: 81mg, Sodium: 225mg, Potassium: 132mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 13g, Vitamin A: 2127IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 77mg, Iron: 0.5mg
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Disclosure: I was compensated by Bob’s Red Mill for the work I did on this post. Thank you for supporting the brands that I thoughtfully choose to support. 

This carrot cake roll is the perfect fancy (yet easy!) sweet treat to make this spring using one of my favorite baking brands, Bob’s Red Mill.  You’ll be surprised at how simple a dessert so pretty can be!

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