Get the veggies you need while satisfying your sweet tooth. 

By Michelle Darrisaw
Carrot Sheet Cake
Credit: Photo: Charles Walton

Carrot cake is one of America's most classic desserts, and for good reason—when properly prepared, it's a deliberately sweet and spicy confection. So it's only fitting a cake this dreamy would get its own national holiday, which just happens to be today. Yes, we have the whole day to celebrate the best way to eat carrots. Not to mention, it gives us the perfect excuse to break our New Year's resolution.

In honor of National Carrot Cake Day, here are five reasons why you should make our homemade Carrot Sheet Cake recipe your go-to springtime dessert, instead of relying on the bakery or boxed mixes. What are you waiting for? Don't just treat yourself to a celebratory piece (or two) today. No, this ridiculously easy, made-from-scratch Carrot Sheet Cake is meant to be enjoyed every day. Chock-full of carrots, smothered in velvety smooth cream cheese icing, and baked using just one sheet pan, we promise you'll always come back for another scrumptious slice.

This Carrot Sheet Cake is...

1. Deceptively simple.

Ah, if only all cakes were baked into one huge rectangle, things would be much more simple. Sure, this carrot sheet cake doesn't boast towering layers, fancy edible decorations, or an intricate frosting technique. But where our delicious one-layered carrot cake lacks in construction and sophistication, it more than makes up for it in ease of preparation. For those avid bakers who don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen this spring and summer, allow this no-frills carrot sheet cake to come to the rescue. It's super easy to mix, frost, and cut for warm-weather gatherings.

2. Southern-approved.

When it comes to carrot cake, there's a standard formula: use oil instead of butter, don't beat the batter as you would regular cake batter, and make sure grated carrots and classic cream cheese icing are included. And because we Southerners are bound to tradition, we've incorporated two specific ingredients akin to our region: pecans and buttermilk. Buttermilk is a staple in Southern kitchens, and we use it here to create a soft texture and lovely tang that puts the bold taste of the glaze front and center. Of course, pecans are a long-held Southern favorite and there's no shortage of nuts in this recipe.

3. (Sort of) healthy.

Carrots and pineapples are involved, so that has to count towards our daily fruit and vegetable quota, right?

4. A crowd-pleaser.

Because this recipe is made using one large sheet pan, it cooks a lot faster and feeds up to 12 people, which makes it the perfect dessert for Easter dinner or large crowds. When you need a delicious cake, but don't have a lot of time (or energy) to make something fancy, this portable sheet cake just makes sense. There will be more than enough for everyone to have seconds, but we won't judge if you decide to keep the whole thing to yourself.

5. Endorsed by supermodel and home cook Chrissy Teigen.

Admittedly, this isn't the same exact carrot cake recipe the foodie and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model gave the thumbs up to, but it has the same ingredients, fluffiness, and flavor—minus the complicated layers. And we're sure the busy mom would appreciate this less complicated version with even less dishes to wash!