Monday, October 8, 2012

Carrot Cake and a Birthday



Is there a better aroma than that of something baking in the oven...especially when the fragrance of spices wafts throughout the kitchen? I guess not!
It was my husband's birthday a few days ago and I baked him a cake. I have been wanting to bake a carrot cake for quite some time now and this seemed like the perfect occasion. This super moist cake is mildly flavored with cloves and cinnamon and is complemented by the sweet cream cheese frosting, with specks of lemon zest, slathered all over. So, am I guilt laden for eating such an indulgent cake?? No, of course not…I used fat free cream cheese and slightly less sugar and butter than the original recipe…so all is well in the guilt department. :-)
Ingredients
Cake
½ cup walnuts/pecans
1 ¼ cups grated carrot
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
¾ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp powdered cloves
2 eggs
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup vegetable or canola oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
⅛ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature (I used fat free cream cheese)
1 cup powdered or icing sugar
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
Method
Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Depending on the number of layers you want, butter the cake pans and keep ready. Heat a small pan on medium heat and toast the nuts for a few minutes (until they turn slightly darker and fragrant). Once cooled, chop coarsely and keep aside.
Finely grate the carrots and keep ready.
In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and powdered cloves, and ground cinnamon.
In another bowl, beat the eggs until frothy. I recommend using an electric beater, as it makes the work a lot easier. Add the sugar gradually and beat until the mixture thickens. Pour in the oil and the vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients and beat until just mixed. Fold in the grated carrots and half of the chopped nuts. If making multiple layers, divide the batter between the pans and bake for 20-25 minutes (or until a toothpick pierced in the middle comes out clean).
Remove from oven and let them cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
In a bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter, with an electric beater, on low speed. Once the mixture is smooth, slowly add the sugar and vanilla and continue beating until completely incorporated. Fold in the  lemon zest.
Assembly
If you are making a single layer cake, just spread the frosting smoothly, all over the cake, and garnish chopped nuts.
For multiple layers, place one layer on a cake pedestal/serving plate, spread the frosting on top, place the next layer and continue the process. You could make more frosting to cover the cake completely and add add the chopped nuts either on the sides or on top. 

 
Note:
The same batter can also be used to make cupcakes.
Leftovers should be refrigerated.







Linked to Delicious Dish Tuesday Recipe Link Up 



22 comments:

  1. delicious carrot cake...

    EzCookbook
    Inviting to join Ongoing Events
    Let's Party - Prasadam Special
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  2. Happy Belated Bday to your dear hubby. The cake look a winner. Would not mind such cakes on my special days.
    Love Ash.

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  3. Thanks Follow Foodie and Ez Cookbook.

    Ash, thank you for the wishes. Would love to bake it for you :-)

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  4. Happy bday to your husband....Nice cake :)

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  5. Thank you for the wishes, Shema :-)

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  6. Belated Happy birthday to ur better half and lovely cake

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  7. Happy Birthday to the hubster! I LOVE carrot cake too. now ifeel like having some too! :)

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  8. Thank you so much for the wishes, Gauri and Kajal (would love to send you some slices).

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  9. Thank you so much, Petitchef. It'll be our pleasure to be part of your group.

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  10. Wow it looks awesome!! I love it with lot of nuts

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  11. That's a great idea for a birthday cake and everyone in my family loves carrot cake! Looks delicious!

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  12. Thanx for the wishes,Aparna:)
    Its very easy to make it to your own domain,just edit settings in your dashboard,where u have an option stating would u like to own your domain?? click that & check the availability of your domain and then follow up the instrustions.The cost is 10$ per year from google,if u would like to choose from anything other than google then u'll have to have the host & domain too:)
    Hope its clear dear:)

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  13. Delicious carrot cake..

    You have a greattt space here.. Happy to follow you :)

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  14. OMG. I lurrrve carrot cake. A fat-free frosting version is always welcome!

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  15. Thanks Ruchira, you should definitely try it. It was aweeesome :-)

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