What better way to eat your vegetables than baked in a cake. This Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is perfectly spiced and extremely moist and is one of my favourite recipes to make.
What Is Carrot Cake?
Carrot cake is exactly just that – cake made with carrots. After much research I came to find out that carrot cake originated in Europe during the Middle Ages when sugar and other sweeteners were scarce or too expensive to purchase. Carrots were used to naturally sweeten and add moisture to baked goods which I believe is a fabulous idea.
How To Make Carrot Cake
This cake is a one bowl wonder! I’m not going to lie, there are many ingredients used for this recipe but don’t fret most of them are staple pantry items or if you need to do a quick grocery run I promise it is well worth the trip.
Here are the ingredients you will need.
Carrots – You can’t make carrot cake without carrots. I used 5 medium size carrots but if you have large ones, 3 is a good number, you are looking for 2-3cups of shredded carrots. I loath grating carrots (or cheese) so to make this a painless and easy process I always use my food processor to grate the carrots. You want to use the coarser attachment for this recipe.
Flour – All-purpose flour is my go-to because of it’s versatility. Remember, always spoon flour into measuring cup and level off with a knife.
Eggs – Large or extra large are ideal for this recipe just ensure they are room temperature.
Oil– A neutral tasting oil works best for this recipe, we wouldn’t want any other flavours to take away from the carrots and spices.
Sugar – Granulated white sugar. Brown sugar can also be used in this recipe for added flavour and moisture. If you choose to use brown sugar remember to pack it in order to press out any tiny air pockets stuck between the large sugar crystals.
Baking Powder and Soda – Leavening agent to help the cake rise.
Salt – Just a little to help bring the flavours together and to balance out the sweetness.
Milk – 2% or whole milk is my go-to. The fat and sugar content adds texture, sweetness and moisture. Just like the eggs, you want your milk to be at room temperature.
Applesauce (optional)– A lot of recipes call for crushed pineapple but since this is my food allergy I wanted to add the same moisture but with another fruit, so I opted for unsweetened applesauce.
Coconut – For some added flavour and texture.
Spices – Cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Ideally, you would want to use all these spices but I have made this recipe without ginger once and it really didn’t make a difference.
Vanilla – Don’t skip out on this one, artificial or natural extract work very well in this recipe.
Cream Cheese Frosting – 5 simple ingredients – powdered sugar, unsalted butter, cream cheese, vanilla and a pinch of salt. All ingredients are at room temperature for easy mixing. I used my cream cheese frosting recipe from my I Can’t Believe It’s Not Cinnabon! recipe.
Optional ingredients – there are many other ingredients you can add to this carrot cake to make it that much more delicious. Nuts, fruit, dried fruit, and seeds are all great additions to this recipe. Commonly used add-ons are raisins and walnuts.
How to Store Carrot Cake
Carrot cake that has not been iced can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to one week. Due to the dairy content of the cream cheese and butter, if your cake is iced, it is recommended to store it in the refrigerator.
Equipment
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Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
Description
What better way to eat your vegetables than baked in a cake. This Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is perfectly spiced and extremely moist and is one of my favourite recipes to make.
