Carrot Cake

I have to say, this carrot cake is superior to any others I have tried. While warm, its gooey-ness makes it almost like a pudding and when it has cooled it is filling, moist and full of flavour. The recipe is probably my Dad's favourite and was even made by him (with a certain amount of yelling involved) for a work competition! For a taller cake, use a 20cm tin as I have suggested, but if you want to serve slightly smaller slices, perhaps t0 more people, try using a 23cm tin for a slightly flatter, although still fairly large, cake.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

  • 300ml vegetable oil
  • 400g caster sugar
  • 250g plain flour
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 350g grated carrot
  • 125g chopped pecans

For the cream cheese icing:

  • 125g softened butter
  • 180-200g cream cheese
  • 450g icing sugar, sieved
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • Optional: 125g chopped pecans
  • Pecans or grated carrots for decoration

Method:

 

Making the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius

 

2. Grease and flour a 20cm diameter tin that is quite deep

 

3. Mix up the eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla extract

 

4. Add in the flour, salt, cinnamon, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder 

 

5. Stir in carrots and pecans and pour into the tin

 

6. Bake in the oven for 40-50mins, or until a skewer stuck into the centre comes out clean

 

7. Leave in the tin for 10 mins to cool, before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely

 

Making the cream cheese icing:

1. Mix together the butter, cream cheese, icing sugar and vanilla extract until it is smooth and creamy

 

2. If you want to, now add the pecans to the icing

 

3. Spread over the top of the cake when cooled