This carrot and cardamom pudding with cream cheese frosting is a perfect spring dessert that’s as easy as anything to whip up.
Whether you serve it for St. Patrick’s Day or Easter, this carrot and cardamom pudding will please all your guests!
I’ve been obsessed with that Irish Carrot Pudding Recipe I shared recently, and I’ve been making it nonstop. When I originally made it, I knew I wanted to try a version with cream cheese frosting because what’s a carrot cake-adjacent dessert without cream cheese?
What is carrot pudding? And why does it look like a cake?
If you’re from the United States and you read the word “pudding,” you most likely envision a smooth, thick, creamy dessert. In Ireland (and England, too), however, pudding can be a broad term that simply refers to a dessert or a little sweet treat after dinner. I’ve found and tried many pudding recipes in various Irish cookbooks, and they tend to be very simple, light cakes that aren’t too decadent or rich. Texture-wise, they’re most similar to zucchini bread or banana bread. They’re a little dense but moist. They don’t use nearly as much sugar or butter as a typical cake, but they still make for a perfect little sweet treat.
I love this carrot and cardamom pudding, especially for a holiday dessert. For St. Patrick’s Day or Easter, you may be eating your fill of corned beef or ham and all sorts of sweet treats. This dessert offers a not-too-rich sweetness that counterbalances all the other yummy things you enjoy for the holiday.
How to make carrot and cardamom pudding
This recipe starts with my Irish Carrot Pudding as a base with a few small deviations, so many of the steps are the same!
What you need
- Carrots: This is the star of the show! You’ll need about 1½ cups of freshly grated carrots from about 6 to 7 small carrots.
- Butter: You’ll sauté the carrots in three tablespoons of butter.
- Batter: The batter is made with flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom allspice, baking powder, and baking soda. You’ll add an egg, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
- Fruits and nuts: I used dates and hazelnuts, but you could use walnuts or pecans. You could swap the dates with raisins or even dried cranberries.
- Frosting: The cream cheese frosting is made with cream cheese, butter, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar. You may need to add a little heavy cream.
How to make it
- Step 1: Sauté the carrots in butter for about 7 to 8 minutes until they soften.
- Step 2: Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and allspice in a bowl. Add the egg, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and beat with an electric mixer until combined.
- Step 3: Fold the dates, hazelnuts, and cooked carrots into the batter.
- Step 4: Pour the batter into a greased cake pan or pie dish and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the pudding cool for 1 hour before frosting.
- Step 5: Combine the butter, cream cheese, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Mix until combined. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until smooth; add heavy cream if needed to reach a smooth and creamy consistency.
- Step 6: Frost the carrot pudding. You can transfer the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a star tip if you like. Alternatively, you can pile the frosting on the carrot pudding and smooth it out with a spoon or butter knife. I used a piping bag and started from the outer edge of the pudding, forming concentric circles until I reached the center of the pudding.
From there, you’re ready to slice up this simple treat and enjoy!
Carrot and Cardamom Pudding with Cream Cheese Frosting
Equipment
- 10-inch pie dish or 9-inch cake pan
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1½ cups freshly grated carrots (from 6 to 7 small carrots)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 egg
- 1 cup buttermilk or whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup chopped dates
- ½ cup hazelnuts (lightly crushed, plus more for serving)
- Butter or shortening for greasing
Cream cheese frosting:
- 4 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)
- ¼ cup butter (½ stick at room temperature)
- 2 teaspoons orange zest
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
- 2 cups powdered sugar (sifted)
- 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream (if needed)
Instructions
Grease your baking dish:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9-inch cake pan or a 10-inch pie dish with butter or shortening and set aside.
- Sauté the carrots:
- Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the carrots and cook for 7 to 8 minutes until softened. Set aside.
Make the batter:
- Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and allspice in a large bowl.
- Add the egg, buttermilk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to the dry ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth, but don’t overwork the mixture.
Finish the batter:
- Fold the dates, hazelnuts, and cooked carrots into the batter.
Bake the carrot pudding:
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan or pie dish. Transfer to the oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool the carrot pudding:
- Remove the carrot pudding from the oven and let it stand for 1 hour until cooled completely.
Make the cream cheese frosting:
- Add the cream cheese, butter, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla extract to a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and completely combined.
- Add the powdered sugar and beat for 3 to 4 minutes until completely incorporated; add heavy cream as needed to reach a smooth, creamy consistency.
Frost the carrot pudding:
- Transfer the cream cheese frosting to a piping bag with a star tip. Starting from the edge, pipe the frosting in concentric circles until you reach the center. Decorate the center and outer edges with smaller star shapes to use the remaining frosting. Finish the carrot pudding with more crushed hazelnuts on top.
To serve:
- Slice the carrot and cardamom pudding and serve. Enjoy!
