These carrot cake bars are so damn good! They are like delicious classic carrot cake in bar form with the cream cheese filling in the inside of the bar. It looks beautiful and tastes like a tasty carrot cake.
The inspiration...
I love carrot cake! I use to think when I was a kid that carrot cake was gross because it was filled with carrots so it had to be healthy. But, a great carrot cake recipe is filled with sugar and tastes so good!
This recipe takes a classic carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and changes it up. These carrot cake bars is like making a cake but in bar form. The best part is the cream cheese frosting is not on top but a sandwich between two beautiful layers of carrot cake.
I had a picnic to go to and I was looking for something to bake that was bite size and easy to grab. You know when you grab a cake filled with tons of frosting at a party and the icing gets everywhere. This is an easy fix by adding the cream cheese frosting in between two layers of carrot cake. I hate when frosting gets everywhere and these bars so I made these bars to avoid those sticky frosting hands. They are so fun to make and they were a huge hit at the party.
The baking process...
The first step in the process is to make the crumble topping which is a typical crumble with sugar, butter, and flour. The key to making the crumble it to make sure the butter is cold and cut up before adding it to the dry ingredients. If the butter is too soft it will melt too quickly on top of the bars and form a soupy mess. I love to work with my hands when I am baking. I don't believe you need a ton of equipment to make a tasty dessert. You can form this crumble with your hands making sure to crush up the butter into pea size pieces. I stored the crumble in the fridge as I did the other steps to keep the crumble cold before baking.
The carrot cake batter is a classic batter recipe with melted butter, eggs, vanilla, sugar, and flour. I mixed it up and only used brown sugar to bring out a richer flavor. There are classic spices of cinnamon and nutmeg in the carrot cake batter. Then mix in shredded carrots and chopped walnuts. I used the larger option on my shredder to form thicker strips of the carrot. I like the texture of the carrots when they are a little bigger. This batter will be split in half so that you can form the inner cream cheese layer.
The cream cheese filling is a classic cream cheese frosting that is lightly sweeten. Whisk together the soften cream cheese filling and powdered sugar to form that beautiful icing. It is important to use room temperature cream cheese filling because it will make it easier to create the frosting.
The final assembly process is to create the layers by first adding half of the cake batter, then cream cheese filling, then cake batter, and finally the crumble on top.
A few tips:
Storage - the cake bars will last 3 days in the fridge cut into pieces and stored in an airtight container.
Mix-ins - you can leave out the walnuts if you have allergies. The walnuts add an extra crunch and more texture to these bars. I like to make sure they are crushed pretty small so they balance with the thicker shredding of the carrots.
Find how to make these bars in the video below:
Carrot Cake Bars
Serving size: 8
Total Time: 1 hour
Source: Adapted from I am Baker
Crumble topping:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Cake:
½ cup unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 cups carrots, shredded (about 3 carrots)
1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped
Cream cheese filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8x8-inch baking pan or use parchment paper to line the baking pan.
Step 2: Prepare the crumble topping, add to a mixing bowl, flour, powdered sugar, and cinnamon. Add in cubed cold butter and break up the butter with your hands or with a pastry cutter until crumbles form. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Step 3: Prepare the carrot cake batter. Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl for about 30-45 seconds.
Step 4: Once the butter is melted, mix the butter and sugar until combine. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla extract.
Step 5: Fold in the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix until batter forms. Fold in shredded carrots and chopped walnuts.
Step 6: Make the cream cheese filling by whisking the cream cheese and powdered sugar until frosting forms. Taste and adjust sugar to your preference.
Step 7: Assemble the carrot cake bars. Take your greased baking pan and add half the carrot cake batter to the pan. Spread evenly to form the base layer. You can use an offset spatula to smooth out the batter evenly.
Step 8: Add the cream cheese filling as the second layer. Spread until even on top.
Step 9: Add the rest of the carrot cake batter and even it out on top. Top with the crumble topping. Bake for 30-45 minutes until the top turns golden brown. It is ok to take it out when it is slightly underdone as it will cook as it cools. Let it cool for about 15 minutes before cutting and serving. You can store the remaining bars in the refrigerator for a few days.
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