Monday, July 23, 2012

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing



I found this recipe on the Canadian Living website.  It's the tastiest, moistest recipe I've come across. It can make a 9x13 rectangular cake or 2 9" or 8" rounds as I used here. I cut each cake in half horizontally so I had 4 layers. I didn't make enough icing so I ran out before I got to the sides.  Here is the recipe:

Preheat oven to 350º put rack in center of oven.

Grate 2 cups carrots
Drain 1 cup canned pineapple (fresh pineapple won't work)
toast 1/2 cup crushed walnuts or pecans

In a bowl beat:

3 eggs
3/4 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla

beat in:

3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar

add and mix slowly:

2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg

mix in the carrots, nuts and pineapple, pour into cake pan(s) and put in the oven.  40 minutes for rectangular and about 30 minutes for round.  Use a toothpick to test for doneness. Let cool completely before icing.

The icing is very simple cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla.  For a rectangular cake:

1 pkg cream cheese
1/4 cup butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup icing sugar

For layer cakes double it.  Cream the cheese and butter together.  This means put it in a mixer and let it beat till it has a soft even texture. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat again. Apply to cake or for layer cakes:

Decide which cake will be the bottom and use the pan as a guide to slice the top off that cake so the second cake will sit level on it. To slice the cakes in half horizontally carefully slice into the cake then rotate the cake into the knife all the way round and it should come off in one even slice.

Obviously I'm not an expert cake decorator but this was my first layer cake and it wasn't for show so I'm not worried about the look so much.


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