Carrot bread is a sweet and delicious quick bread filled with carrots, spice, and everything nice!
Use up all that fall bounty of garden carrots and bake them into this moist carrot bread. Quick breads are easy to make and freeze beautifully!
We love this recipe for carrot bread! Extra moist, a bit sweet and full of flavor. It’s a great twist on a banana bread recipe or carrot cake!
Ingredients
DRY INGREDIENTS Typical of a basic quick bread, this uses all-purpose flour with baking soda to give it some rise. I add cinnamon and a dash of pumpkin pie spice. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, use extra cinnamon or even apple pie spice.
CARROTS Carrots should be shredded using the coarse side of a cheese grater. They can be peeled or if you scrub them, you can skip peeling them.
VARIATIONS We like to add mix-ins like toasted walnuts. Toss in some coconut, raisins, or even diced apples if you’d like.
How to Make Carrot Bread (overview)
- Combine dry ingredients (per recipe below) and set aside.
- Mix wet ingredients with the shredded carrot.
- Fold dry ingredients to the wet, being careful not to overmix. Fold in any mix-ins and pour into prepared pan.
- Bake in preheated oven until a wooden pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
PRO TIP: For the walnuts, gently toast them in a sauté pan before using. Toasted nuts stay crunchier and have a more pronounced flavor!
Freezing and Storage
- Like most quick breads, carrot bread will last up to a week as long as it’s at room temperature in a zippered bag or container with a tight-fitting lid.
- Try keeping a slice of regular bread in the container with the carrot bread to absorb extra moisture.
- Freeze carrot bread by wrapping tightly in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil with the date written on the outside. Frozen carrot bread will last about a month in the freezer.
Kitchen Tips
- Do not overmix the batter, stir just until combined.
- Use parchment paper to line the bottom of the loaf pan to make it easy to remove.
- Ovens can vary slightly, check the bread at least 10 minutes before you think it will be done.
- This bread is easier to slice when completely cooled.
More Quick Breads We Love
- Chocolate Chip Banana Bread – moist & decadent
- Zucchini Bread – the perfect snack
- Homemade Cornbread Recipe
- Pumpkin Bread – easy to make
- Homemade Gingerbread – soft & moist
- Classic Banana Bread – 5 star recipe
Did your family love this Carrot Bread? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 2 ½ cups shredded carrot
- 3 eggs
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a 9x5 loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Whisk together dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Mix carrots, eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Fold in walnuts and mix just until combined.
- Pour into prepared pan and bake for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Bread, Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
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Hello, trying this for the first time. I was short a half a cup of shredded carrot. I sure hope it turns out
I think it’ll be okay with a little bit less carrot. Let us know how it goes!
what a great recipe. Will be making it over and over again. It’s better then carrot cake ❣️
Hi there! Trying this recipe for the first time! Just want to make sure is this for one loaf?
Yes! This recipe is for one loaf of carrot bread. Enjoy!
Absolutely perfect recipe. Moist, flavorful, and delicious. Winner all the way around. Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe.
Could I make the batter ahead of time and store in the fridge until the following morning?
Hi Katie, since the leavening agent starts reacting immediately it is best to bake as soon as the batter is combined. If you would like, you could mix the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients separately and then combine them when ready to bake. I hope that helps!
Absolutely delicious. Was motivated when I saw this recipe. No changes were necessary, the recipe is perfect as is. Well done and thank you for sharing such a treasure.
can you turn this into muffins and not a bread loaf?
Bernice, I have not made these into muffins. However, other readers have with success. You may want to reduce the cooking time to 20-25 minutes. Check with a toothpick to ensure they are cooked through.
I personally didn’t think there was much flavor to this loaf. It was moist, but definitely lacking in something. I think maybe using all or some brown sugar might help, or perhaps more spices. I’m sure I would make this again, even with the changes, it was quite a bit of work grating that many carrots.
Thanks for trying our recipe, Pam. I would love to hear the alterations that you make.
i have made this 2x now! its so easy. i do suggest adding more spices though, even grated ginger or grated apple and sprinkle sugar on top for a “crispy” crust. best with fresh butter while its warm. i served with goats cheese and sliced green apple for a picnic lunch.
I always have good results with quick breads when I replace half the sugar with Splenda and half the oil with applesauce. You need some sugar for structure, So you can reduce sugar and fat and still have a moist, tender product. I also replaced 1/4 of the flour with whole wheat flour.
I use smaller loaf pans – about 6″ x 3″ Pyrex. I doubled the recipe and it made 5 of these loaves.
I usually bake these for about 35 – 40 min.
I shredded the carrots with a food processor. Very good results for a tasty breakfast bread.
Thanks for sharing, Connie!
I decided to bake this in a bundt cake pan and because of my stove had to adjust temp and time but it came out amazing!!
Super moist and so scrumptious!!
I made it for others to enjoy also and because of in everyone’s dislikes I let out my likes so I can’t wait to make again with walnuts and maybe raisens.
l love you’re recipes
l like your recipes ❤️
This looks delicious.
Do you think I could substitute the vegetable oil with applesauce? I used to do that years ago when cooking low fat. It worked in most, but not all recipes. I’m not worried about the fat content so much as about having bought a large jar of applesauce for another recipe and need to use it up.
I have never tried but others readers have subbed in applesauce with great results. I would love to hear how it turns out for you, Grace.
Instead of a 9×5 pan, if I were to use a 3×7 (approximately), how many loaves would it yield? I’m guessing two? Thank you!
Hi Donna, I would guess two as well. I would love to hear how it turns out for you!
I don’t have any nuts, but could I just add some white raisins? Or would this make it too moist?
Raisins would be great in this!
Thank you I will try the raisins tonight.
Very delicious my favorite loaf yet! I did add an 8 oz can of crushed pineapple to this. Thank you
This carrot bread paid off my mortgage and healed relationships with my enemies. It’s THAT good. Thank you!
My +1 is working in a serious calorie deficit right now so one of the loaves we made with applesauce & splenda instead of oil & sugar. I didn’t love the texture as much, but even with the replacements, the flavor’s great.
Oh my gosh, I love that Shelley! I am glad it turned out so good for you.
Normally I’m not a fan of crust on quick breads, but this crispy crust on this carrot bread was the best part! I missed the note on grating the carrots coarse, we used a finer grater and this came out nice. Served with a little cream cheese, it was lovely!
This recipe is SO GOOD, it has all the comforting and warm spices you would want in a carrot bread and the toasted walnuts add a nice crunch and warm flavor. Definitely recommend