I remember my very 1st true carrot cake: it was during a USA holiday trip many years ago somewhere in Northern California in a small diner – rather late in the evening – when it turned out that only carrot cake was left for dessert. It wasn’t a simple cake it was a 3-layer structure w/ lots of frosting & minced walnuts … it was just delicious!
To set the record straight from the beginning:
This post does not exemplify how to create a 3-layer cake w/ lots of decorations!
We’re baking a 1-layer cake w/ lots of creamy frosting!
… & there are these little marzipan carrots!
Let’s start!
What do we need for the cake?
It’s basically:
- flour
- carrots
- sugar
- vanilla
- eggs
- sour cream
- butter
- spices.
We start by oiling/buttering a springform & adding fine breadcrumbs covering bottom & edge – after having started the oven (preheating to 160° C fan).
Then we shred the carrots – roughly!
… & concerning the spices we are dealing w/ ground …
- cinnamon
- mace
- cloves
- coriander
- ginger.
We activates our electric handheld mixer for combining butter & sugar – later adding the eggs. Then there are the spices & the flour … & the sour cream …
Finally we fold in the shredded carrots.
All marches in the waiting springform …
… & the springform marches in the preheated oven for about 35-40 min.
The result is a fine golden cake!
While the cake cools down we prepare the cream cheese frosting.
We need:
- icing sugar
- butter
- cream cheese
- an organic lemon.
We grate the lemon zest & press the lemon juice as well as counting the little marzipan carrots.
We start w/ combining cream cheese & soft butter (remember to let the butter rest at room temperature for some time!). Icing sugar, lemon zest & lemon juice are added. Finally we get a rather soft cream.
We transfer the carrot cake to its final plate & start spreading the frosting. It’s soft: there will be drops running down the edge! (Doesn’t matter – it’s coming down at the edge, but it’s ok: it’ll stop soon enough – you’ll get a very soft & creamy frosting!)
Just add the little marzipan carrots & store the cake in the fridge!
The carrot cake is moist & full of tiny carrot pieces… cake & frosting melt into each other…
Where’s the coffee?
Enjoy!
- 150 g flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch of salt
- 175 g roughly minced carrots
- 150 g sugar
- 1 packet vanilla sugar
- 3 eggs
- 100 g sour cream
- 75 g butter
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground mace
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
- 1/4 tsp ground coriander
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 200 g cream cheese
- 100 g butter
- 100 gr icing sugar
- a pinch of salt
- zest of an organic lemon
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 12-16 marzipan carrots – optional
- 25 cm springform
- electric handheld mixer
- egg whip
- Preheat the oven to 160 degrees C fan.
- Butter/oil the springform & cover bottom & edges w/ fine breadcrumbs
- Shred the carrots.
- Mix flour & baking powder.
- Combine butter & sugar (incl. vanilla sugar) & salt w/ the handheld mixer.
- Add eggs.
- Add spices.
- Add flour.
- Add sour cream.
- Fold in the shredded carrots w/ a tablespoon.
- Pour the dough in the prepared springform & put it in the preheated oven for about 35-40 min.
- Make the test w/ the wooden skewer – you know…
- Let the carrot cake cool down. After about 5 min remove the edge of the springform.
- When the cake is at room temperature transfer the cake from the bottom of the springform to its final plate.
- For the frosting mix butter (best at room temperature!), cream cheese, salt, lemon zest, icing sugar & lemon juice – in this order – w/ an egg whip until smooth.
- Add frosting to the cake.
- Optional: decorate w/ marzipan carrots.
