Carrot Cake

xxxkarenxxx

Hi

Im looking for a good recipe for a nice moist carrot cake with a cream cheese frosting. I have so many recipes in different cookbooks but im looking for a tried and tested one that i know will turn out well and tase good!

Thanks!

nesbitt

xxxkarenxxx wrote: »

Hi

Im looking for a good recipe for a nice moist carrot cake with a cream cheese frosting. I have so many recipes in different cookbooks but im looking for a tried and tested one that i know will turn out well and tase good!

Thanks!

+1

I love carrot cake, my local Mannings bakery do a fab one but need to get baking as way too expensive bought by the slice.....:o

I have 7 recipes for carrot cake all with differing ratios of carrot, flour etc. I like a nice light fluffy texture cake, with sweetness and hint of spice and the odd sultana in there for good measure. The icing not too sweet but little bit lemony...:D yes as I said this is my favourite cake.

Any bakers recommend their fave tried and tested recipe? Thanks.

Eviledna

Of all of the cakes that I've ever baked for friends and family, this cake is by far the most popular. Just baked some as alternative christmas cake a few weeks ago. It's light, it's moist, and it has gorgeous cream cheese frosting. It's the best carrot cake I've ever found. Taken from my original post yonks ago...

Eviledna wrote:

Carrot Cake with Walnuts and White Chocolate
Well here it is then!

Carrot Cake recipe (with optional Walnuts!)
From: Martha Day, Complete Baking

For the Cake (half all measures for a smaller loaf cake)
2 Cups Granulated Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Oil (I use rapeseed)
4 eggs
2 Cups finely grated Carrots (usually ~3-4 Large carrots)
2 Cups Flour (I use Odlums Cream Flour)
1.5 teaspoons of Baking Soda
1.5 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Mixed Spice
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Cup Chopped Walnuts (optional)

Directions for the cake

First, if making the whole recipe which makes a large sandwich cake, prepare two 9 inch sandwich tins. If making half the recipe, prepare a 2lb loaf tin.
Preheat the oven to 190 Celcius.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar,eggs,oil, carrots and chopped nuts.

Sift all the other dry ingredients into a separate bowl. Add by 0.5cup measure into the liquid mix, mixing well after each addition.
You will now have quite a liquid batter, fear not, that is the way it is meant to be.

Divide the batter evenly between the two tins, or the single loaf tin, depending on the size of the cake you are making.

Bake until a skewer poked into the center of the cake emerges clean (maybe one or two crummies will stick, but no liquid batter should be stuck to it). This will take ~30-40 mins for the large cake and ~30mins for the smaller loaf cake.
Check this cake regularly. It burns easily due to all the sugar, so if you don't know how your oven behaves, check every ten mins!
Leave to cool while you make the icing....

For the Icing (Again, half exactly if making smaller cake)
2 Cups Icing Sugar
1 pack Philadelphia (225g/8oz, I use Philedelphia light)
4 Tablespoons butter, very soft
2 Teaspoons of Vanilla Extract (not essence)
more walnuts for decoration if desired

Combine everything (except optional walnuts) for the icing into a bowl and beat until smooth.

Smaller loaf cake: Smooth over top and add some walnuts. Drizzle in some melted white chocolate if you want to be particularly bold.

Larger Sandwich Cake:
Take 1/4 of the icing and sandwich the two cakes with it. Spread the remaining icing over the top and sides. Decorate with walnuts if desired.
If making this as a gift, (which I often do, fab birthday cake) I drizzle quite alot of melted white chocolate over the iced cake when cool. The flavour combination of the philly icing and the spicy nutty cake and the chocolate is a big hit with my folks

The texture of the cake itself is light and airy (thanks to all that raising agent) and the icing is quite heavy, so it ends up being a rich cake. If making the loaf cake, it is lovely to have with tea and lasts ages, not needing to be kept in the fridge thanks to all that preserving sugar.

Enjoy, it's worth making. Once you make this cake once, it's really easy again! Great for beginner bakers.

xxxkarenxxx

Wow thanks sounds delicious! I particularly like the addition of the white chocolate I will definitley be doing that Thanks for taking the time to type that up I am looking forward to try it out!!

Eviledna

You're very welcome.:) Let us know how you get on with it!

nesbitt

Eviledna wrote: »

You're very welcome.:) Let us know how you get on with it!

I am going to make this tomorrow. Just need to get the carrots as I used them all up yesterday making lamb hotpot...:)

I think your recipe ratio is spot on for my taste. So will let you know how the cake bakes & eats. Thanks for taking time for sharing your know how.

nesbitt

I baked the cake yesterday afternoon. It turned out absolutely perfect just the way I like carrot cake. Texture light but very rich, and lovely hint of spice.

I used exactly half the recipe and baked cake in a 2lb heavy loaf tin, at gas 5 (lower/middle shelf) for 30mins and then 4 for 30 mins. Iced with a simple fresh lemon juice and icing sugar drizzle. My Sunday visitors and kids loved it.

Thanks so much. I know you can go through loads of recipes to find the right one but that is both costly and time consuming.

ps. you must line your tin baking parchment, otherwise you will have difficulty getting it out of the tin...

Eviledna

Hurrah, the recipe wins another person over

Yes I agree, tbh I never use anything except baking parchment for lining, it's so essential, especially in a soft moist cake like this.

Nice Idea with the lemon icing, must try that, love lemon anything!

nesbitt

+1 for lemon!

I grated the carrots for the cake, on a very find grater, it was more like juicy carrot smush than anything 'grated'.... This was difficult and I must say have very sore hand to prove it:o I am going to use electric chopper next time and just keep chopping till the carrots are pulped. I think it is important as the sweetness is totally released and added to the sugar and oil justs melts into the mixture. So no trace of any carroty bits in the final cake just lovely sweet flavour...

So pleased with this cake, easy to make and oh so easy to eat.:)

anothernight

Ooh that recipe sounds very good. I might try it tomorrow

I just thought I'd post this. It's the Brazilian way to make a carrot cake. It's very easy as it all goes into a blender! I've made that specific recipe before and it turns out very fluffy and tasty Though I must say that when I make Brazilian carrot cakes I normally use a more chocolatey glaze for them.


As for traditional European carrot cakes, I agree with using a lemon glaze. It tastes lovely and complements the spices of the cake very well.

nesbitt

That Brazilian carrot cake looks so light. I love the idea of simply whizzing all the ingredients (liquid in jug first) in a blender, pour and bake!:) Nice!

I use the lemon or orange drizzle icing cos its quick, tasty, inexpensive and also I do not like the kind of cloying taste of Philly in an icing, but thats just me.

feefs

Great recipe for the carrot cake Eviledna. Lip smackingly good. If i had a tail i'd wag it. Nom

Eviledna

Thanks feefs dya know I made cupcakes out of the recipe a couple of weeks ago, white choc buttercream on top, worked out really well!

I found maple extract in mortons in Galway recently...gonna try making the maple kind this weekend :-P

chickenbutt

I just made this one and it is so tasty and moist! I didn't do the cupcakes, just made a double layer cake. It's gone down well with everyone

phasers

I make the Brazilian carrot cake posted above but I don't blend it, I just mix as normal and I make it with a cream cheese icing that's 200g cream cheese, 500g icing sugar (adjust for your preferred level of sweetness) and a dash of vanilla extract. It's so good and SO easy to do

feefs

Eviledna wrote: »

Thanks feefs dya know I made cupcakes out of the recipe a couple of weeks ago, white choc buttercream on top, worked out really well!

I found maple extract in mortons in Galway recently...gonna try making the maple kind this weekend :-P

Oooh drool, I love the maple kind. All this talk of cake is making me very hungry. Time for a refill.