Carrot Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
This was the result fo the google search Moist carrot cake and was mostly inspired by this recipe here. However, Im not a fan of heavy cream. I find I can eat cream cheese but I stay away from heavy creams. My version of the buttercream on top is much simpler and I personally think it tastes nicer. I also add lemon juice and zest to garnish. The acidity of the lemon balances the sweetness of the icing sugar. I probably will add (at some point) another healthier version? But I don’t do/make “healthy cakes”. Cakes aren’t healthy, they are meant to be enjoyed - sometimes - so we need to allow ourselves to indulge and enjoy it. There was not an ounce of regrets after enjoying this “500+ calories per slice”.
Life is too short.
I have only made this cake on a 9” inch circular pan. If using two 6” inches pans, increase temperature and lower time of baking.
Ingredients
For the sponge:
• 2 cups self-raising flour
• Pinch of salt fine sea salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 Tsp of Nutmeg
• 1 ¼ cups vegetable oil
• 2 cups granulated of brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 3 cups grated peeled carrots
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup raisins (personally don’t add raisins)
Frosting:
• 225 grams cream cheese
• 225 grams of powdered sugar
• 125 grams butter (room temperature)
• Juice of half a lemon
• Lemon zest of half a lemon and,
• Pecans to decorate cake
“For the cake:
Tip: If you don’t have baking soda, you can substitute with 2 cups of self-raising flour and omit the baking soda and salt.”
Directions:
For the sponge:
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Prepare the cake tins: Line the bottom of your cake tins with parchment paper, using butter to stick it down. Butter the sides as well. Alternatively, you can butter the entire tin and dust with flour, but parchment works best.
Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, sieve together the flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Mix wet ingredients: In another bowl, whisk the vegetable oil and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Break each egg in a separate bowl first to avoid any spoiled eggs.
Combine the mixtures: Slowly fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in three parts. Mix gently, being careful not to overwork the batter.
Fold in the extras: Stir in the grated carrots, chopped pecans or walnuts, and raisins.
Bake: Divide the batter evenly into your cake tins. Bake for 35–45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool the cakes: Let the cakes cool in the tins for at least 30 minutes. For best results, refrigerate them for 1 hour before frosting. This prevents the frosting from melting.
“Have your bake a cake in your oven and it comes out with a dome in the middle? This happens due to your tins heating up quicker than it should, maybe to a hotter oven or a very thin tin. If the sides of the cake cook before it needs to, there is no place for the cake to go but up. Try to line the side of your baking tins. You can make your own tin sleeve by wetting kitchen towels and wrapping them with tin foil. ”
For the frosting:
Prepare the frosting: Sieve the powdered sugar into a bowl. In another bowl, beat the butter (use an electric mixer if available) until light and fluffy. Gradually mix in the powdered sugar.
Add cream cheese: Beat the cream cheese into the butter-sugar mixture until smooth.
Add lemon: Stir in the lemon juice to taste. For a zingy flavor, use the juice of half a lemon.
Chill the frosting: Place the frosting in the fridge for about 1 hour to firm up.
Frost the cake: Spread the frosting on top of the cake. If you baked your cake in one tin, you can slice it in half to add frosting between the layers for extra moisture.
Decorate: Top with lemon zest and pecans or walnuts
“Tip: You can substitute oil with melted butter. Use about 285g of melted butter for a richer flavour”
Don’t have icing sugar?
Make your own by adding 1 cup of granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon of corn starch in a high velocity blender. Blend until achieve the desired consistency (about 3-5 mins)
