Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake
There are some bakes that just feel like a hug in a slice, and then there are those that transport you somewhere else entirely. This Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake does both. It takes the familiar, spiced warmth of a classic carrot cake and whisks it away to a sunny, tropical place with the addition of sweet, juicy pineapple. Friends always ask me for this recipe after trying it at dinner parties; there’s something about the combination of earthy carrots, tangy pineapple, and that rich cream cheese icing that gets everyone talking.
What makes this particular recipe so special is its incredible texture. We’re not just aiming for a moist cake; we’re creating a crumb that is tender, substantial, and packed with flavour in every single bite. The crushed pineapple doesn’t just add sweetness; its juice seeps into the batter as it bakes, ensuring the cake stays wonderfully damp for days. The carrots, grated finely, melt away, leaving behind a lovely sweetness and a beautiful flecked-orange colour against the golden sponge.
This is the sort of cake that works beautifully for a weekend gathering, a special birthday, or simply when you fancy a truly satisfying sweet treat with a cup of tea. It feels elevated without being complicated, and the results are consistently brilliant. If you love a good carrot cake but are looking for something with a little extra sparkle, I think you’re going to adore this tropical dessert.
Recipe Overview
This Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake recipe builds on a classic carrot cake base, enhancing it with the moisture and tangy sweetness of crushed pineapple. The sponge is spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, creating a warm foundation for the tropical notes. It’s all brought together with a luxurious, tangy cream cheese icing. I’ve found that using tinned crushed pineapple in its own juice gives the most reliable moisture level, preventing the cake from becoming too dense.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 40-45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes (plus cooling)
- Servings: 12 slices
- Difficulty: Medium
Why You’ll Love This Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake
- Incredibly Moist & Flavourful: The crushed pineapple ensures a tender, moist crumb that stays fresh for days. The combination of sweet carrot, tangy pineapple, and warm spices like cinnamon creates a really balanced and satisfying flavour.
- Straightforward to Prepare: The batter comes together in about 25 minutes using the simple creaming method. There are no complicated steps, just a logical process that delivers a fantastic result.
- A Versatile Bake: You can easily add your own touches. Throw in a handful of toasted pecans for crunch, some desiccated coconut for more tropical flavour, or even a tablespoon of dark rum for a grown-up twist.
- Great for Special Occasions: This cake is a showstopper for afternoon tea, family birthdays, or as a dessert for a Sunday lunch. It looks impressive but doesn’t require professional-level decorating skills.
- Family Tested: My family absolutely loves this cake. My youngest, who claims not to like carrots, will happily devour two slices of this, none the wiser! It always gets compliments.
Ingredients You’ll Need
For this cake, using ingredients at room temperature, especially the eggs and dairy for the icing, is key to getting a smooth, well-emulsified batter and frosting. For the pineapple, I always reach for a good quality tinned crushed pineapple in juice, not syrup, as the syrup can make the cake overly sweet. Tate & Lyle is my go-to for both the light soft brown and icing sugars.
- For the Cake:
- 250g plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
- 250g light soft brown sugar
- 3 large free-range eggs, at room temperature
- 240ml vegetable or sunflower oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 250g carrots, peeled and finely grated
- 227g tin crushed pineapple, drained well
- For the Cream Cheese Icing:
- 150g unsalted butter, softened
- 300g full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 400g icing sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Zest of 1 orange (optional, but recommended)
Marcus’s Tip: Don’t be tempted to use low-fat cream cheese for the icing. It has a higher water content and will result in a runny, disappointing frosting. Stick to the full-fat block-style cream cheese for that perfect thick, spreadable consistency.
How to Make Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake
The process for making this cake is straightforward. We’ll start by preparing our dry and wet ingredients separately before combining them, which helps prevent overmixing the batter. The key is to fold everything together gently at the end to keep the crumb tender.
- Preheat and Prepare: First, preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Grease and line the base of two 20cm (8-inch) round cake tins with baking parchment.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisking helps to distribute the raising agents and spices evenly. Set this aside.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a separate large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the light soft brown sugar and eggs together for about 2-3 minutes until pale and slightly thickened. Slowly pour in the oil while mixing on a low speed until just combined. Stir in the vanilla extract. If you’re looking for more details on the importance of this stage, BBC Good Food has a great guide on basic baking techniques.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Add the dry flour mixture to the wet mixture in three additions, folding gently with a spatula after each one. What works best for me is to stop mixing as soon as the last streaks of flour disappear. This is crucial for a tender cake.
- Fold in the Stars: Gently fold in the finely grated carrots and the well-drained crushed pineapple until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Bake the Cakes: Divide the batter evenly between your two prepared cake tins and smooth the tops. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cakes comes out clean.
- Cool Completely: Let the cakes cool in their tins for about 15 minutes before carefully turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. It’s essential they are fully cooled before you attempt to ice them.
- Make the Icing: While the cakes cool, make the icing. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with an electric mixer until pale and creamy. Add the softened cream cheese and beat again until just combined – don’t overbeat. Gradually add the sifted icing sugar, mixing on low speed until incorporated, then increase the speed and beat for 2-3 minutes until smooth and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla and optional orange zest.
- Assemble the Cake: Place one cake layer on your serving plate. Spread a generous layer of the cream cheese icing over the top. Place the second cake layer on top and use the remaining icing to cover the top and sides of the cake, creating smooth or decorative swirls with a palette knife.
Tips From My Kitchen
- Room Temperature is Key: For the smoothest cream cheese icing, your butter and cream cheese must be at room temperature. If they’re too cold, you’ll get lumps. Take them out of the fridge at least an hour before you start.
- The Secret to Moisture: I learned that squeezing the pineapple is a delicate balance. Drain it well in a sieve, but don’t press every last drop of juice out. You want to remove the excess liquid so the cake isn’t soggy, but leave enough to keep it wonderfully moist.
- Make-Ahead Method: You can bake the cake layers a day in advance. Once completely cool, wrap them tightly in cling film and store them at room temperature. The icing can also be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days; just let it soften slightly and give it a quick beat before using. This is great for a dessert that feels special, like these Maple Pecan Sticky Buns.
- Storage: Because of the cream cheese icing, this cake should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep well for up to 4-5 days. I recommend letting a slice sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before serving to take the chill off.
Equipment You’ll Need
- Stand mixer or a large bowl with a hand mixer
- Two 20cm (8-inch) round cake tins
- Baking parchment
- Wire cooling rack
- Spatula and palette knife for icing
- Grater for the carrots
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Overmixing the Batter: Once you combine the wet and dry ingredients, you activate the gluten in the flour. Mixing for too long will develop that gluten and result in a tough, dense cake. Fold gently until just combined for a light and tender crumb.
- Icing a Warm Cake: This is the most common mistake! If the cake layers are even slightly warm, the butter and cream cheese in the icing will melt, creating a soupy, sliding mess. Be patient and wait until they are completely cool to the touch.
- Not Draining the Pineapple Enough: While the pineapple adds moisture, too much liquid will make the batter heavy and wet, affecting the final texture. Let it sit in a fine-mesh sieve for a few minutes to allow the excess juice to drain away naturally.
Delicious Variations to Try
While this recipe is wonderful as it is, it’s also a fantastic base for a few simple customisations. Here are some ideas we’ve tried and loved at home:
- Add Toasted Nuts or Coconut: For extra texture and flavour, fold in 100g of chopped toasted pecans or walnuts, or 75g of desiccated coconut into the batter along with the carrots and pineapple.
- A Zesty Twist: Enhance the tropical flavour by adding the finely grated zest of one lime or orange to the cake batter along with the vanilla extract. It brightens everything up beautifully.
- Make it a Traybake: If you’re not looking for a layer cake, this recipe works wonderfully in a 23cm x 33cm (9×13 inch) rectangular baking tin. Simply adjust the baking time to 35-40 minutes and ice the top once cool. A traybake is great for feeding more people, just like our Easy Sheet Pan Pancakes.
What to Serve With Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake
This cake is a complete treat on its own, but here are a few simple ways to serve it:
- A Dollop of Cream: A spoonful of lightly whipped double cream or even a bit of crème fraîche can cut through the sweetness of the icing.
- Fresh Fruit: Serve slices alongside some fresh pineapple chunks or a simple mango coulis to lean into the tropical dessert theme.
- A Good Cuppa: For me, the ultimate pairing is a strong cup of English breakfast tea or a freshly brewed coffee. The bitterness is the perfect counterpoint to the sweet, spiced cake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat and Prepare: First, preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Grease and line the base of two 20cm (8-inch) round cake tins with baking parchment.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisking helps to distribute the raising agents and spices evenly. Set this aside.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a separate large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the light soft brown sugar and eggs together for about 2-3 minutes until pale and slightly thickened. Slowly pour in the oil while mixing on a low speed until just combined. Stir in the vanilla extract. If you're looking for more details on the importance of this stage, BBC Good Food has a great guide on basic baking techniques.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Add the dry flour mixture to the wet mixture in three additions, folding gently with a spatula after each one. What works best for me is to stop mixing as soon as the last streaks of flour disappear. This is crucial for a tender cake.
- Fold in the Stars: Gently fold in the finely grated carrots and the well-drained crushed pineapple until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Bake the Cakes: Divide the batter evenly between your two prepared cake tins and smooth the tops. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cakes comes out clean.
- Cool Completely: Let the cakes cool in their tins for about 15 minutes before carefully turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. It's essential they are fully cooled before you attempt to ice them.
- Make the Icing: While the cakes cool, make the icing. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with an electric mixer until pale and creamy. Add the softened cream cheese and beat again until just combined – don't overbeat. Gradually add the sifted icing sugar, mixing on low speed until incorporated, then increase the speed and beat for 2-3 minutes until smooth and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla and optional orange zest.
- Assemble the Cake: Place one cake layer on your serving plate. Spread a generous layer of the cream cheese icing over the top. Place the second cake layer on top and use the remaining icing to cover the top and sides of the cake, creating smooth or decorative swirls with a palette knife.
Notes
I really hope you give this Hawaiian Carrot Pineapple Cake a go. It’s a true favourite in my kitchen and a wonderful twist on the well-loved history of carrot cake itself. The bright, tangy notes of pineapple make it such a memorable and delicious bake. If you try it, please do leave a comment below and let me know how it turned out for you! Happy baking.
