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    Home » Recipes » Easter

    Carrot Cake Bread

    Published: Sep 7, 2021 by Tiffany Dahle · This post may contain affiliate links.

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    Looking for a new bread machine recipe to try in your bread maker? This delicious Carrot Cake Bread, from The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook, tastes just like carrot cake but has a lighter, fluffier texture like bread you would slice and toast. You can serve it with the cream cheese drizzle over the top or on the side for spreading over each slice of bread.

    An iced loaf of carrot cake bread sits in a white bread basket with a blue napkin.

    While quick breads and muffins make a great addition to your breakfast menu, this light and fluffy carrot cake bread with cream cheese glaze is a surprising way to use your bread maker.

    For special festive occasions, a pretty drizzle of glaze over the top makes a gorgeous presentation.

    For a cozy weekend with my family, we prefer to serve the glaze on the side for spreading over the surface of sliced pieces of carrot cake bread toast.

    Whichever way you serve it, your family will love the sweet spiced flavor of this easy bread machine recipe from The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook.

    Jump to:
    • Why This is the Best Recipe
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Equipment
    • Storage
    • Serving Tips
    • More Bread Machine Recipes
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    Why This is the Best Recipe

    I love each and every one of these delicious bread machine recipes but I think this is the best bread machine carrot bread because:

    1. Quick and Easy Prep: With just a few pantry ingredients and a fresh carrot, you can have warm, homemade carrot bread with just minutes of hands on effort.
    2. Sweet but Sliceable: Unlike a cake-like quick bread, this carrot bread can be sliced and toasted!
    3. Glaze or No Glaze: Making this for a special event? Make the cream cheese drizzle for the top. Or you can leave it off if you plan to make more practical things with the recipe.

    Ingredients

    This simple bread maker recipe has just a few easy ingredients:

    The ingredients for the carrot cake bread for bread machines sits on a counter.
    • Bread flour
    • Sugar
    • Butter
    • Egg
    • Canned crushed pineapple: Don't drain the juices!
    • Shredded carrot: Freshly shredded from one large whole carrot. Skip the pre-shredded carrots bag at the store, their texture is too tough for this recipe.
    • Cinnamon
    • Vanilla
    • Yeast: Instant or Bread Machine Yeast

    For the glaze:

    • Cream cheese
    • Powdered sugar
    • Milk
    • Vanilla

    See recipe card for quantities.

    Instructions

    The carrot cake bread starts just like all other bread machine recipes:

    First, decide which size bread loaf you want to make based on the size of your bread machine. I've included both a 1 ½-pound and a 2-pound version of this recipe.

    Follow the ingredient quantities in the recipe card according to the loaf size you chose.

    Then, add the liquid ingredients to your bread pan fitted with the paddle attachment.

    The wet ingredients for the carrot cake bread are in the bread machine bread pan.

    Pour in the entire can of crushed pineapple, including all the juices. Then add the freshly shredded carrot, egg, vanilla, and the softened butter.

    HINT: Always cut your butter into smaller pieces so that small bread machine paddle can more easily work it into the bread dough.

    Next, add the dry ingredients to your bread pan:

    The dry ingredients for the carrot cake bread are in the bread machine bread pan.

    Add the bread flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and yeast right on top of the wet ingredients.

    It is a best practice to sprinkle the salt around the perimeter of the bread pan so you can keep it away from the yeast until just the right time.

    Use a spoon to make a well in the center of the flour, place the yeast in the well.

    Place the bread pan back inside the bread machine and then:

    1. Select the WHITE or BASIC program (depending on your machine's settings.)
    2. Select the coordinating loaf size (1 ½-pound or 2-pound)
    3. Press START

    Note: Some machines also have a Crust Color setting, I usually use Light or Medium. You'll want to select this before hitting START.

    The machine will knead together the ingredients to form a firm ball of dough.

    Let the machine progress through:

    • the kneading phase
    • the first rise
    • the brief second kneading

    At this point, if you want you could remove the paddle from the bread pan so it doesn't bake into your loaf.

    Simply nudge the dough ball back into place. It will be a fairly sticky dough so don't attempt to take it fully out of the bread pan to get the paddle.

    Most of the bread makers we tested will take about 3 ½ hours or so from start to finish to bake the bread.

    The baked carrot cake bread has been sliced so you can see the inside and is covered with a cream cheese drizzle.

    Once the bread is done baking, place it on a wire rack over parchment paper to cool while you prepare the glaze.

    Beat together the softened cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add 1 teaspoon of milk.

    Decide how you want to serve your carrot cake bread:

    • With a Fancy Drizzle Pattern: Leave the cream cheese glaze thick, add it to a ziptop baggie. Snip the corner of the bag and pipe a pattern on the completely cooled bread.
    • With a Solid Glaze: Add more milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until a thinner texture is achieve. Spoon the glaze slowly over the top of a still warm loaf so the glaze will melt and spread evenly.
    • With Cream Cheese on the Side: Leave the glaze extra-thick and serve it in a small bowl next to slices of bread for guests to spread over the top like butter.

    Equipment

    This is a bread machine recipe and will require a bread maker to make it. If you don't have one, read our thoughts on whether a bread maker is worth it here.

    Want to get a bread machine? Here are the reviews we did of the bread machines we tested while writing the best bread machine cookbook:

    • 3 bread makers sit on a kitchen counter.
      The Best Bread Machine for Beginners
    • The Breville bread machine sits on a kitchen counter.
      Breville Bread Maker Review
    • A Zojirushi Bread Maker sits on a kitchen counter.
      Zojirushi Bread Machine Review
    • A Cuisinart compact bread maker sits on a kitchen counter next to a jar of flour.
      Cuisinart Bread Maker Review
    • A copy of The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook sits on a wooden tray with a napkin and a plate of buttered toast.
      The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook

    Storage

    This bread is best served the day it has been baked.

    However if you skip the glaze or leave the glaze on the side, it will keep for 2 - 3 days in a bread box or plastic bag at room temperature.

    You can also freeze the unglazed bread, just be sure to cool it completely before freezing and thaw it with the bag open to let moisture escape and prevent soggy bread. Make the glaze fresh the day you plan to serve it.

    Serving Tips

    This bread machine recipe is perfect served for any weekend brunch but is an especially fun recipe to serve during a holiday gathering.

    For breakfast: Add this carrot cake bread to a buffet table with a fresh fruit tray, big tubs of vanilla yogurt, and homemade granola.

    For dinner: For a special treat, add the carrot cake bread to the dinner table bread basket. It would pair well with any ham, fish, or light lemony chicken dish you plan to serve. Here are a few of my easy but elegant favorites:

    • Slices of pineapple glazed ham sits on a platter next to the roasted pineapple slices. A tray of colorful Easter eggs sits in the background.
      Mustard Glazed Ham with Pineapple
    • A slice of ham slab pot pie sits on a plate with a serving spatula. Big chunks of fresh veggies peek out from under a flaky pie crust.
      Buttery Crusted Ham Pot Pie
    • A platter of oven baked salmon next to roasted asparagus has a fork showing the flaky pink fish.
      Oven Baked Salmon
    • A filet of macadamia encrusted halibut is covered with a drizzle of lemon butter cream sauce. Fresh green asparagus and a serving of wild rice sit next to it on the plate.
      Prep-Ahead Macadamia Crusted Halibut

    More Bread Machine Recipes

    Looking for more delicious bread machine recipes? You can find all my favorites here:

    • A photo collage shows the variety of recipes that can be made in a bread maker.
      50 Best Bread Machine Recipes

    📖 Recipe

    An iced loaf of carrot cake bread sits in a white bread basket with a blue napkin.

    Sweet Carrot Cake Bread

    5 from 1 vote
    Don't wait for Easter morning to enjoy this easy carrot cake bread, your family will enjoy this sweet treat all year long. Filled with sweet fresh carrots and crushed pineapple, don't skip the cream cheese glaze for the top!
    TOTAL TIME 3 hours hours 5 minutes minutes
    PREP TIME 5 minutes minutes
    COOK TIME 3 hours hours
    YIELD 1 1.5-pound or 2 pound loaf
    PIN RECIPE FOR LATER PRINT RECIPE NOW

    Ingredients
      

    For the 1.5-Pound Loaf

    • 1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple, undrained
    • ⅓ cup freshly shredded carrot
    • 1 large egg
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 2 tablespoon butter softened and cut into pieces
    • 3 cups (411 g) bread flour
    • 2 tablespoon sugar
    • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
    • 1 teaspoon instant yeast

    For the 2-pound Loaf

    • 1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple, undrained
    • ½ cup freshly shredded carrot
    • 1 large egg
    • 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
    • 3 tablespoon butter softened and cut into pieces
    • 4 cups (548 g) bread flour
    • 3 tablespoon sugar
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
    • 1 ¼ teaspoon instant yeast

    Cream Cheese Glaze

    • ¼ cup (2 oz) cream cheese, softened
    • 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 4 - 5 teaspoon milk

    Instructions

    • Add the ingredients to your bread machine's baking pan in the order they are listed, starting with the pineapple and ending with the yeast.
    • Select the BASIC/WHITE program based on your machine's options. Then select the coordinating setting for your loaf size and press Start.
    • When the bread is finished baking, remove it from the bread pan and transfer it to a wire rack over a piece of parchment paper. Let the bread cool slightly while you prepare the glaze.

    To Prepare the Glaze:

    • Add the cream cheese and powdered sugar to a mixing bowl. Beat them together with a mixer until they are combined. Add the vanilla and 2 teaspoon of milk and beat them together until smooth and slightly runny. Add additional milk 1 teaspoon at a time until you achieve your desired consistency.
    • A thicker glaze will let you pipe on a decorative drizzle and a thinner glaze will spread more evenly.
    • Spread the glaze over the slightly warm bread if you want it to melt into an even coating. If you prefer to pipe a decorative pattern, you'll want to wait for the bread to cool completely first.
    • Alternatively: You could leave the glaze very thick and serve it in a small bowl for spreading over cut slices of bread if you prefer.

    Recipe Notes

    Shredded Carrots:
    A peeled and freshly grated whole carrot has a much more tender texture than the pre-shredded carrots sold in bags at the grocery store. It is worth the extra effort to shred your own for this recipe.
    COURSEBread Machine
    CUISINEAmerican
    AUTHORTiffany Dahle

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Debbie

      November 29, 2022 at 11:04 am

      Can we replace egg with something else? And if so, should I worry about impact to the machine or texture etc.?

      Reply

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    Hi, I'm Tiffany!
    I believe a great family recipe is one that makes everyone at the table happy, not just the kids. I'm the author of two bestselling cookbooks for kids that are chock full of recipes everyone in your family will love. I'm also the hostess of the best online book club for women.

    More about me →

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