Category: Sweet

Sweet

Carrot Cake

by AprilLeave a Comment on Carrot Cake
Carrot Cake

Carrots are a staple in my kitchen, but never enough for me to make cupcakes and a sheet cake in 24 hours. It’s definitely become one of my top five favorite cakes, but come to think of it, I don’t think I even have five favorite flavors. We’ll dig into that another time.

I used to think carrots in cake was gross. Vegetable in cake didn’t sound appealing and it had raisins. Of course, as I got older and my tastes evolved, I learned to appreciate the complexity that carrot cake brings. It’s sweet and rich, but light and moist. My husband doesn’t like raisins though, so I’ve learned to swap raisins out for cranberries and maybe that’s what makes this recipe that much more delicious. He also doesn’t like nuts in his baked goods, except for these… Hmmm.

Anyway, try it and let me know what you think!

CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

INGREDIENTS (makes 9×12 cake pan or ~18 cupcakes; cook time ~40 minutes)

  • 4 cups grated carrots
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup vegetable or canola oil
  • 1tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • pinch of nutmeg
  • 3/4 cup chopped dried cranberries
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • Cream Cheese Frosting
    • 8 oz cream cheese
    • 1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream (depending on how thick your frosting is)
    • 1 stick unsalted butter
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract
    • 1/2 – 1 cup powdered sugar

PREPARATION

  1. Preheat oven to 350o F.
  2. Grease your pan or line your cupcake tray.
  3. In a large bowl, add all wet ingredients together(sugars, eggs, oil, & vanilla) and mix with a hand mixer or whisk until it’s all combined.
  4. Add grated carrots and use spatula to fold it in.
  5. Add all the dry ingredients – flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg – and slowly fold it in until there aren’t any traces of flour visible.
  6. Add cranberries and walnuts and mix into batter.
  7. Transfer batter into pan and bake until inserted toothpick comes out clean. It should be about 40 minutes, but make sure you check around the 30 minute mark. Cupcakes will bake faster, so check for done-ness around 15-20 minutes.
  8. While your cake cools, make the cream cheese frosting.
  9. Combine all ingredients into a bowl and mix until it’s nice and smooth. I prefer to use the least amount of sugar in my frostings, so I might even do less that 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. I like to make sure it’s softer and smooth, so if yours feel a bit stiff, add more heavy cream.