This best pineapple carrot bread or carrot cake bread loaded with lots of carrots, dried pineapple, caramelized cashews, and warm spices are folded into a healthy carrot bread. It is your next baking dream destination: you will be impressed with its deep flavor and moistness!

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A long time ago, I made a Carrot Cake which was a hit on the table. So this time, I have an idea of making a carrot loaf cake or carrot bread.
Moreover, the upcoming Easter holiday is another motivation to share this recipe with you.
I adapted a carrot cake recipe (le carrot cake in French) created by chef Philippe Conticini.
This recipe has all of the components for a classic carrot cake. It is filled with healthy carrots, warm spices, and nuts.
Instead of the most popular raw or toasted walnuts, this loaf cake is made with caramelized cashews.
It also is brown sugar-based bread, but it is not over-sweetened. Added dried pineapple beautifully balances the sweetness of the cake.

Why you should try this recipe
- It is a flavorful carrot cake with pineapples made as a loaf. Surprisingly, dried pineapple is used instead of crushed pineapple.
- This carrot loaf cake recipe is easy to make, and even a novice baker can make it.
- Made with raw carrots, it makes a healthy version of sweet carrot bread. Plus, it has a super moist texture: read how to make a cake moist.
- Pineapple carrot loaf is one of the best breakfast bread ideas.
- Finally, the recipe is easily transformed into making pineapple carrot muffins to enjoy in the morning or late afternoon.
Ingredients
For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.
- Cashews: use raw or toasted nuts to caramelize. You can replace them with other nuts of your choice.
- Icing sugar: make it yourself using a coffee grinder or use store-bought powdered sugar.
- Butter: melted and cooled to room temperature, butter is used to make the cake batter. Softened butter piped as a line on top of the cake helps obtain a well-puffed loaf.
Another technique to get a well-developed cake is to cut a notch along the loaf's entire length with a slightly buttered blade of a knife before baking or after baking for 10 minutes.
- Pomegranate molasses: use it or replace it with date molasses or black treacle syrup.
- Eggs: use chilled eggs and an egg separator to separate egg whites from the yolks. Then bring them both to room temperature.
- Brown sugar: the recipe calls for golden brown sugar. Replace it with white sugar if desired.
- Spices: ground cinnamon and ground allspice are spices used to make this loaf cake.
- Salt enhances the cake's flavors.
- Leavening agents: soda bicarbonate and baking powder are used in the recipe.
- Vegetable oil: use it or replace it with canola oil. If you prefer flavorless, the most neutral oil, please, use grapeseed oil.
- Flour: the recipe calls for all-purpose flour. Sift the flour with other dry ingredients for good distribution.
- Potato starch: use it or replace it with corn starch.
- Heavy cream: use heavy cream with at least 36% fat content or replace it with whipping cream (30% fat content).
- Grated carrots: grate carrots finely, using the small shred of a grater or the shredding attachment on a food processor.
- Orange zest: use organic, untreated oranges to make fresh zest with a zester grater.
- Dried pineapple: the recipe calls for dried pineapple chunks cut into small cubes.
Recipe variations
- Healthy carrot bread: To make this bread even healthier, replace 30-50% of all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour.
- Apple carrot bread: Swap half the grated carrots with the grated apple and enjoy the moist apple carrot bread.
- Pumpkin carrot bread: Substitute half of the grated carrot with the grated pumpkin to make another variation of sweet bread.
- Pumpkin pineapple bread: You can make another delicious version of carrot bread by replacing grated carrots with grated pumpkins.
- Apple zucchini carrot bread is a great idea for preparing another breakfast bread. Just replace â…” of the grated carrots with the grated apple and zucchini.
- Gluten-free carrot bread is made easier than you think. Replace all-purpose flour with a gluten-free blend.

How to make pineapple carrot bread
#1 Caramelize cashews
To caramelize cashews, heat nuts, and icing sugar in a frying pan (photo 1), frequently stirring with a wooden spatula.
When the sugar is melted, and the nuts are coated with the caramel, transfer the nuts to parchment paper and cool down (photo 2).

#2 Make cake butter
To make the cake batter, in a large bowl, whisk together sifted flour, ground cinnamon, allspice, salt, soda bicarbonate, baking powder, and potato starch, and set aside.
Place egg whites and yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat at high speed.
Add brown sugar divided into three parts, beating the eggs/sugar mixture well between each addition of sugar (photo 3).
Pour cooled melted butter, pomegranate molasses, vegetable oil, and heavy cream and continue to mix (photo 4).

Add the dry ingredients and mix (photo 5). Lower the stand mixer's speed, add orange zest, dried pineapple cubes, grated carrots, and chopped caramelized cashews, and gently mix (photo 6).

Butter and flour a loaf pan 8 x 4 inches/21 x 9 cm and pour the carrot mixture into the prepared pan. If you choose a silicone pan, read about how to bake with silicone molds.
Place softened butter in a pastry bag with a tip cut or fitted with a plain tip and push butter as a line on top of the batter (photo7).
#3 Bake carrot and pineapple bread
Preheat the oven to 320°F/160°C and bake the bread for 50 to 60 minutes (photo 8).

Check the bread's readiness with a thin-bladed knife: if it comes out with crumbs and moisture clung to the knife, it is ready.
Take the loaf from the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes. Remove it from the pan and allow it to cool on a wire rack.

Expert Tips
- Make sure all the loaf ingredients are at room temperature.
- Don't overmix the ready batter: gently mix just to combine.
- Don't over-bake the bread. The moist loaf is ready when the tip of the thin-bladed knife comes out with crumbs and moisture clings to the blade.
- Slice the bread with a serrated knife once completely cooled.
- If you want to decorate the top of the bread, a honey-flavored cream cheese frosting used to make layered carrot cake and chopped caramelized cashews would be awesome. Half of the frosting recipe will be enough in this case.
Storage instructions
Cover a whole or sliced unfrosted bread with plastic wrap and store it at room temperature for up to 5 days. Or keep your bread in an airtight container. If it is frosted, keep it in the refrigerator.
Can you freeze pineapple carrot bread? Yes, absolutely. Cover the cooled bread with plastic, then aluminum foil, and freeze for up to 1 month.
Bring it to the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for a few hours to thaw.
Recipe FAQ
This loaf cracks due to the density of the batter. The outside of the loaf bakes first, and it causes the batter to rise and break in the center. It is normal, and no need to worry about it.
Fill the buttered and floured cavities of the muffin mold with this cake batter up to â…” full and bake. You might need to adjust the baking time, which has to be less than the loaf cake's recommended time.
Love loaf cakes? Try these next!
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PrintRecipe card
Pineapple Carrot Bread
This best carrot cake loaf loaded with lots of carrots, dried pineapple, caramelized cashews, and warm spices are folded into a carrot pineapple bread. It is your next dream carrot cake: you will be impressed with its deep flavor and moistness!
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 min (plus cooling time)
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
For caramelized cashews:
- 2.5 oz. (70 g) cashews
- 3 ½ tablespoons (25 g) icing (powdered) sugar
For the cake batter:
- 1.4 oz. (40 g) butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons (15 g) pomegranate molasses
- â…“ cup (80 g) egg whites (see note #1)
- 3 â…“ tablespoons (50 g) egg yolks (see note #2)
- â…” cup (130 g) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 pinch of salt
- 2.3 oz. (65 g) caramelized cashews
- ¾ teaspoon soda bicarbonate
- ½ cup + 4 teaspoons (130 g) vegetable oil
- 1 cup + 4 tablespoons (155 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (40 g) potato starch
- 1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 ½ tablespoons (35 g) heavy cream
- 8.3 oz. (235 g) grated carrots
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 1 oz. (30 g) dried pineapple
- 1 ½ tablespoons (20 g) butter, softened
*Don't you have the correct baking pan on hand right now? Try this simple Cake Pan Converter!
** If needed, please refer to Baking Conversion Charts.
Instructions
- To caramelize cashews, heat nuts and icing sugar in a frying pan, frequently stirring with a wooden spatula. When the sugar is melted and nuts are coated with the caramel, transfer nuts on parchment paper and cool down.
- To make the cake batter, in a large bowl, whisk sifted flour, ground cinnamon, allspice, salt, soda bicarbonate, baking powder, potato starch, and set aside. Place egg whites and yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat at high speed. Add brown sugar divided into three parts, beating the eggs/sugar mixture well between each addition of sugar. Pour cooled melted butter, pomegranate molasses, vegetable oil, and heavy cream and continue to mix. Add the dry ingredients, and mix. Lower the stand mixer's speed, add orange zest, dried pineapple cubes, grated carrots, and chopped caramelized cashews, and mix just to combine. Butter and flour a loaf pan 21 x 9 cm and pour the cake batter into the pan. Place softened butter in a pastry bag with a tip cut or fitted with a plain tip and push butter as a line on top of the batter.
-
Preheat the oven to 320 F/160 C and bake the loaf for 50 to 60 minutes. Check the cake's readiness with a thin-bladed knife: if it comes out with crumbs and moisture clung to the knife, it is ready. Leave the bread cool on a rack.
Notes
- 80 g egg whites approximately equal to 2 ½ raw fresh egg whites from large-sized chicken eggs.
- 50 g egg yolks approximately equal to 3 raw fresh egg yolks from large-sized chicken eggs.
- Make sure all the loaf ingredients are at room temperature.
- Don't overmix the ready batter: gently mix just to combine.
- Don't over-bake the bread. The moist loaf is ready when the tip of the thin-bladed knife comes out with crumbs and moisture clings to the blade.
- Slice the bread with a serrated knife once completely cooled.
- If you want to decorate the top of the bread, a honey-flavored cream cheese frosting used to make layered carrot cake and chopped caramelized cashews would be awesome. Half of the frosting recipe will be enough in this case.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 315
- Sugar: 14.8 g
- Sodium: 59 mg
- Fat: 19.9 g
- Saturated Fat: 6.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 31.4 g
- Fiber: 1.2 g
- Protein: 3.9 g
- Cholesterol: 66 mg
The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.
The recipe was adapted from the Facebook page of Philippe Conticini. It was originally published on March 11, 2019. The recipe has been revised to include improved content and photos. All posted pictures are mine.
Jeannette says
What a great flavor twist to the traditional carrot loaf cake! I must say, being patient and letting the bread cool down is worth every minute when the knife slices through successfully.
Irina says
You are right, Jeannette! Please, enjoy the recipe. 🙂
Michelle says
This carrot loaf was so delicious, especially with the addition of the pineapple! Yum!
Irina says
Michelle, I am happy to hear that the recipe worked for you! Thanks!
Anjali says
Omggg, this cake was not too sweet, moist, and delicious!! It was also quite easy to make - even my kids were able to help with the recipe! Made for a fun weekday activity for our family!
Irina says
What a great baking project you had! Thanks for letting me know, Anjali!
Rika says
The cake looks so moist! My kids love carrot cake. I am going to make this on Easter day.
Irina says
Happy baking, Rika, and enjoy it! Please, let me know how your baking went.
Jacqueline Debono says
This carrot loaf cake looks beautiful. We love carrot cake, but I have never made it with pineapple or cashews. I can imagine how good it tastes! Definitely on my to-make list. Pinning for later!
Irina says
Perfect, Jacqueline! I hope you will love it once you make it. 🙂