For a woman who has spent 26 years and 6 months of her 26 years and 7 months of life really disliking carrot cake, I feel qualified to assure you that this cake is the best carrot cake you’ll ever taste. Because I SCARFED it. It reminded me a lot of the Caramel Carrot Cake & Cheesecake Trifle I made for Chris’s birthday last year, which was also incredibly delicious (that link has suggestions for a lightened up version, if you’re watching the cals!).
This is pretty much your run-of-the-mill BTS cake, but, you know… with carrot cake. Which obviously makes it seasonally appropriate for spring and Easter 
. The topping is a little special: it’s a sweet whipped combo of cream cheese, cool whip, and cool whip frosting. And it’s topped with caramel sauce and chopped pecans, like any decent carrot cake should be!
I think you’ll love this as much as I did! Be warned– make it when you’re expecting a crowd. This stuff goes down the hatch waaaaaaay too easily to make it when you’re home alone!
Ingredients
- The 9x13 Carrot Cake recipe of your choice, baked and cooled (I used a box mix)
- 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
- 8 oz Cool Whip
- 10.6 oz Cool Whip Vanilla Frosting (Cream Cheese flavor if your store carries it, mine doesn't)
- 6 oz (half a tub) of whipped cream cheese (must be whipped)
- Approx. 1/2 cup caramel sundae sauce (just pour on as much or as little as you'd like)
- Approx. 1 cup chopped pecans (sprinkle on as much or as little as you'd like)
Instructions
- Leave the cake in the dish it was baked in-- this is not a free standing cake.
- Poke approximately 20-25 holes, spread evenly, over the top of the cake with the bottom of a wooden spoon. Pour the sweetened condensed milk over top, trying to fill the holes as much as possible.
- In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the cool whip, the cool whip frosting, and the whipped cream cheese until smooth. Spread over top of the cake.
- Pour the caramel sauce over top of the cake, and sprinkle with chopped pecans.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, really overnight is best.
- Cut into 12 squares to serve (you can cut more, 1/12 is a pretty large piece!).
Notes about this recipe:
- Cool Whip Frosting is not the same as cool whip. But you can find it right beside the cool whip in the freezer section of your grocery store.
- You will not be able to stop eating this. Just a fact.
Carrot Cake from Friends:
- Carrot Cake Brownies from Crazy For Crust
- Carrot Cake Donuts from Inside Brucrew Life
- Carrot Cake Cheesecake Cake from Beantown Baker
Oh, this would be dangerous for me. Probably because Mel wouldn’t touch it “too sweet” or “too creamy” and then I’d eat it all!
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust recently posted..Carrot Cake Brownies
I adore carrot cake too much already…and now it has caramel and cool whip frosting all slathered over it! I am dying over here!!! Thank you for sharing the carrot cake link love
Jocelyn @BruCrew Life recently posted..Apple Snickers Cake
Wow! I am completly WOWED!!!
I must make this super soon….have to practice for Easter
This sounds great Ashton! Adding all those extras to a plain ol’ carrot cake puts it WAY over the top! Love it
Liz recently posted..Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Pie
genious, love the poke cakes, this sounds fab
Capturing Joy with Kristen Duke recently posted..Decorating with Pictures at Clean and Scentsible
I love Carrot Cake, this is perfect. YUM.
Aimee @ ShugarySweets recently posted..Caramel Apple Cinnamon Roll Coffee Cake
yum, yum & yum! Love ‘poke’ cakes
Sarah @ Miss CandiQuik recently posted..Homemade *Shamrock* Marshmallows
I haven’t had a better than cake in a while and a carrot cake twist on it is amazing!
Elizabeth @ Confessions of a Baking Queen recently posted..Creamy Lemon Cake Bars
Oh my GOODNESS, this cake looks delicious, and I already love carrot cake!
Sue {munchkin munchies} recently posted..{Bunny} Cookies and Milk
Oh my word… I would love to dig right in!
Emily ~SoDomesticated~ recently posted..Cannellini and Sun Dried Tomato Bean Dip…
I want to make this but what is whipped cream cheese? I have never heard of it. Also do you pour this over the cake while it is warm?
Nope, you do it after it’s cooled. The cooling step is actually listed in the first ingredient instead of in the directions. And you should be able to find whipped cream cheese at any grocery store– it’s super common. It’ll be in a tub, alongside the other cream cheeses
I would be all over this like white on rice!
Nicole @ youngbrokeandhungry recently posted..Chocolate Banana Breakfast Cookie
Oh my goodness! This sounds fabulous. I love poke cakes and cannot wait to make this one.
I LOVE CARROT CAKE!!!!!!!!!! That is all. I love you too Ashton!!
sally @ sallys baking addiction recently posted..Salted Caramel Dark Chocolate Cookies.
I’m not a big carrot cake fan either but this sounds wonderful! And I love the name!
Erin @ Making Memories recently posted..Steam Machine Giveaway Event
Got your email. Thanks for the response…I do want borders on my blog…having the most problems withe size of my header though. I wasn’t as specific as I thought…anyways…I made this today. Great recipe. Love that cool whips frosting and my store had cream cheese flavor!
Shiloh Barkley recently posted..Eastern NC BBQ
Just found your blog through Deborah over at Taste and Tell, and I love it! My oh my, does this cake look fantastic! Great for the Easter holiday right around the corner
Colleen @ What’s Baking in the Barbershop?! recently posted..Breakfast Pizza (Recipe Re-do)
I love the twist you did with the name, so cute! I’ve never noticed Cool Whip frosting, I’m going to have to make sure to look for it. Carrot cake is also one of my favorites, I think I’ll have to make this to take to my Easter lunch and dinner!
Renee @ Tortillas and Honey recently posted..“Take 5″ Brownies
Would it be possible to leave out the whipped cream and just use the Cool Whip and Cool Whip frosting if I’m in a pinch?
Yes! There is no whipped cream, just cool whip and cool whip frosting
What is cool whip frosting?
Where can you buy it?
I’ve never heard of Cool Whip frosting. Is this something new? Is it found in the refrigerated section?
It’s right by the cool whip
It’s AWESOME!
i can’t wait to make this!! but i am curious as to what leaving the regular cool whip out would do. it seems like a lot of similar things for the icing.
You just have to trust me on this… or don’t I guess
But it just works. The frosting needs more volume than what you get in the frosting tub of cool whip frosting, but using two would be WAY too overwhelmingly sweet. The regular cool whip evens out the taste, fluffs up the texture.
I’m so making this for Easter! Quick question: I already have a tub of the cool whip cream cheese frosting in my freezer….do i still need to get the regular cool whip to mix with that one, or do i for-go that whole step and just use the tub of the cream cheese cool whip?
I like to mix the two– I think it makes for a better texture and flavor
Plus… there’s MORE of it!
I want to make this for Easter dessert. I can’t find cool whip frosting anywhere. Can I use regular frosting?
No, but you can use 2 containers of regular cool whip with the full container of whipped cream cheese. Just make sure the whipped cream cheese is at room temp
MY grocery store – a terrible store, trust me, has never heard of Cool Whip Frosting. Can I make it with two things of Cool Whip and the Whipped Cream Cheese? I pretty much think I have to at this point.
I’m pretty sure it would be just fine
Making this right now only I’m going to boil 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk, 1 for the carmel topping, and the 2nd will go in the holes instead of the milk called for.
This sounds great!! If my store does have the cream cheese flavored frosting do I need to get the whipped cream cheese as well??
Yes! Whipped Cream Cheese + Cool Whip Frosting
And you could use the vanilla cool whip frosting– I just like the cream cheese one for this cake. But it’s not a requirement
So my store doesn’t have cool chip frosting, is it still good to make with out it? Im hoping to make this tomorrow for Easter but wont have the time to hunt down the cool whip frosting.
That’s ok! It’ll be ok without at– but I’d maybe add a little extra cool whip (like, maybe half of another tub)
I made this cake today for Easter Sunday. I couldnt wait to try it so I went ahead just now and a piece. It was AWESOME!!!!! I love it! Its a keeper for sure. Cant wait til the family try it tomorrow.
I bought the cream cheese flavor cool whip frosting. Do I still need the whipped cream cheese? Also, the size of the cool whip frosting is 10.6 ounces. Is the size listed in the recipe a mistake? Thanks! Can’t wait to make this!
Yes! Use both the whipped cream cheese and the cool whip frosting
And yes, the size of the cool whip frosting is a typo– thanks for catching that! Will change ASAP 
How would this cake taste without the sweetened condensed milk, I am making this right now and am having reservations, I just don’t want it to be TOO sweet. Any suggestions?
It would be ok without the sweetened condensed milk– it just wouldn’t taste like a BTS cake, which is what it’s supposed to mimic. Or, maybe just use half a can if you don’t think you’d like the entire can in there!
Hi! Making this for Easter sunday! Does the cool whip and cool whip frosting have to be completely thawed, or should I keep it in the freezer until ready? Excited to try it!
Sorry I missed this! I was out of town for Easter myself! But for future reference, everything needs to be thawed.
Could you please take a picture of all the ingredients in this cake so we know what to be buying, I think we’re all getting mixed up with the cool whip frosting I was thinking it was frosting by the cake mixes but now I’m reading the comments and it sounds like its in the freezer section…a picture would be great for all the ingredients:) thank you!!! Can’t wait to try this!
Yep– it’s the cool whip frosting in the freezer section
It’s just a new product, that’s why it’s confusing. And this recipe does call for 2 different Cool Whip products. Cool Whip (normal) AND Cool Whip Frosting.
Another thing in your instructions it says 8 oz cool whip…do we use cool whip?? Or is it just whipped cream cheese and the cool whip frosting?? Your instructions are a bit confusing
I think it’s just confusing because there are two different Cool Whip brand ingredients– but yes, you use the 8 oz Cool Whip too
I made this yesterday for us to eat today at our Easter meal. I’d suggest a few things: 1) don’t add the caramel till just before serving 2) don’t use the entire can of sweetened condensed milk. The cake was way too “wet” for my taste. I’m familiar with the BTS cake (chocolate version), but cutting back on the milk to maybe half of what is called for would help. Don’t get me wrong, everyone loved the cake. It could just be fine tuned a bit more.
Best carrot cake ever!
This something my daughter Hope would love because Carrot Cake is her favorite cake. I would love it too. Am going to have to adapt it for two to four people.
This was the best cake ever!!! My husband doesn’t even care for carrot cake, but he ate half of this cake!!! It was so rich and delicious and really not all that hard to make.