Carrot Cake
I’m not a huge cake person, but I do love this cake. It’s simple to put together, rich with cream cheese frosting, moist with carrots and raisins, and loaded with warming cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. This is a pretty traditional version of carrot cake, but that doesn’t make it any less spectacular. I’ve served this cake at each of my children’s baptisms, several birthday parties, Sunday dinners, and of course for Easter. It holds a special place in our household, and I hope it will in your’s as well.
Besides being delicious, this cake is perfect for kids for a couple of reasons. While I wouldn’t call this dessert healthy, it does have lots of carrots, walnuts, and raisins. If you’re a mom like me, then you are always trying to sneak more nutritious fruits and veggies into your kids’ diets, and carrot cake is a great way to work some in.
In addition to the hidden nutrients, this cake is easy to make, so it’s a good one to bake with your kids. I always find that including my children in the cooking process is an ideal way to get eater buy-in; they’re so much more likely to eat whatever it is I’m making (no matter how bizarre or “adult” the ingredients) if I involve them in the recipe preparations. So even if carrot cake sounds unappealing to your picky eaters, try recruiting them in the kitchen, and see if it doesn’t get them on board. Young kids can assist with peeling, grating, stirring, pouring, frosting, and of course tasting (all with your help of course). My kids love to help crack eggs, and I let them take turns sifting or measuring. Even the smallest of tasks can make them feel included and excited about the food and their role in the making.
Here’s a few tips on this recipe. You can dress it up or down to meet your needs. I’ve made it as a sheet cake and a layer cake; in round or rectangular forms. You could even cut the cake with circle cookie cutters to make cutie little individual cakes. Whatever your needs, I’ve included some guidelines for baking different sized cakes.
You can also scale back the decoration and the frosting. If I’m making the cake for a picnic or to bring to work, I cut the frosting recipe in half and simply frost the top of the cake. However, if I’m baking for a celebration, I use the full recipe of frosting and dress the cake up with some finely chopped walnuts, a little piping, and some edible flowers. If you do decide to pipe the frosting, be sure to chill it for about 45 minutes-1 hour in the piping bag before decorating. It’s a soft, not overly sweet cream cheese frosting, so your piping ridges will hold their shape much better after some chilling time.
Finally, unlike many cakes, I think the flavors in this recipe improve after a day, so I often bake and frost the cake the day before I intend to serve it. This makes carrot cake the perfect make ahead dessert for a party.
Equipment:
Box grater
Vegetable peeler
Stand mixer (optional but recommended)
Sifter or sieve
3 6inch round cake pans*
Baking bands (optional but recommended)
Piping bag and star tip (optional)
Angled spatula
Ingredients:
Cake:
1 cups all-purpose flour
1 cups sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 large eggs
1/2 cup canola oil*
2TBS. unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups carrots, peeled & finely grated (about 3 carrots)
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup + 2TBS. roughly chopped walnuts
Flowers + Finely chopped walnuts for decorating (optional)
* For a 9X13in. sheet pan or 3 8in. cake pans, double the cake ingredients and bake according to recipe.
Cream Cheese Frosting:
2 (8oz. packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
Juice of 1/2 small lemon
2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Method:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Liberally butter the bottom and sides of the cake pans and line the bottom with parchment paper. Coat the buttered sides with a thin layer of flour to prevent sticking. Fit pans with baking bands if using.
Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Use a fork to stir the mixture together well. Make sure that all the spices are fully mixed in.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, combine the eggs, butter, oil, and vanilla. Mix on low speed until well blended. In three parts add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, mixing on low speed and scraping down the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed. Mix until all the flour is fully incorporated. Add the grated carrots, raisins, and walnuts and mix again until evenly combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans, and bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan before removing it from the pan.
Make the cream cheese frosting. Combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and lemon juice in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on medium speed until fluffy and fully combined. A cup at a time, add the sifted powdered sugar to the cream cheese mixture, mixing on medium and scraping down the bottom and sides as needed. Continue adding powdered sugar and mixing until all the sugar is fully incorporated and the frosting is smooth.
Once the cake is completely cool, turn it out on a serving platter or cake board.
Frost your cake. Use an angled spatula to cover the top, sides, and in between layers fully with frosting. Finish the cake by piping a seashell or other border around the top edge of the cake. You’ll also have enough frosting to pipe a bottom border, rosettes, kisses, or other decorations if you’d like. Finish with an arrangement of edible flowers.
The cake can be stored in the refrigerator, covered, for 5 days.
*If you don’t have canola oil on hand or don’t want to use it, you can substitute melted butter in equal amounts.
Recipe adapted from The Founding Farmers Cookbook
