YUMMY SCRUMMY CARROT & WALNUT CAKE

Who can resist a slice of moist, frosting-topped carrot cake with a warming cup of tea? If you have time bake the cake a day before, I found the cake tastes even nicer.

This gorgeous cream cheese icing on the carrot cake is an absolute treat. It is light, moist and most enticingly delicious cake ....you must find a good hiding place if you have any leftover..which is exactly what I have to do every time I bake this cake...otherwise it disappears as soon as the cake is sliced.

 

Ingredients

140 ml vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing – approx ¾ cup

2 eggs

200 g light brown sugar – approx 1.5 cups

300 g grated carrots, (grated weight) – approx 2 cups

100 g raisins

100 g pecans or walnuts, chopped (optional)

180 g self-raising flour – approx 2 cups

1 pinches salt

1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp mixed spice

 

For the orange cream cheese icing

250 g cream cheese, chilled

50 g butter, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

275 g icing sugar, sifted

1 orange, zest only

 

 

 

 

 

 

Method

1.     Preheat the oven to 150C/gas 2. Oil and line a 24inche tin with greaseproof paper. (You may use two sandwich tins).

2.     Beat the eggs in a large bowl, then add the oil, brown sugar, grated carrot, raisins and chopped nuts (reserve some chopped nuts for decoration).

3.     Sift in the rest of the dry ingredients and bring the mixture together using a wooden or large metal spoon until well combined.

4.     Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin, smooth the surface and bake in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

5.       Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool in the tin for about five minutes before removing. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving.

6.       Cut the cake across into two equal slices as seen in picture. Leave aside to further cool down.

If you can see the texture of the cake, it’s so moist......

For the icing: beat the cream cheese and butter together in a bowl until well combined. Add the vanilla extract, icing sugar and finely grated orange zest and mix until the icing is smooth and thick. Using a palette knife, spread the icing evenly over the cooled cake, dipping the knife into a bowl of hot water if the icing is hard to spread out.

8. Sprinkle the reserved nuts over the cheese icing. Cut into slices to serve.

 

Brinda’s Note:

You can decorate your cake as you wish either with just chopped mixed roasted nuts or sugared whole pecan nuts and decorate as illustrated in the pictures above.