Elizabeth’s Favorite Carrot Cake – Guest Post
Written by Rachel, Posted in Guest Posts, Thoughts
Elizabeth is a good friend of mine. I really appreciate her friendship… and her culinary skills. Anytime I’ve eaten something Elizabeth has prepared it’s been delightful. At last year’s ThanksaChristmas dinner she made these amazing Crostini with Beef and Caper Mayo. I think I ate about 75% of them. Not kidding. She and I have a good time discussing and eating food. So it just made sense to ask her to be a guest on here. I haven’t tried this cake, but it looks amazing. (Side note: Carrot cake is special to Husband and I, as it was our wedding cake. Also because it’s delicious. Anything delicious deserves to be in the “special” category… like this cake.)
Here’s Liz…
I have known Rachel for something like a year and a half. It’s crazy that it’s been that amount of time because it feels like I’ve known her for much longer! We met through our husbands who were friends in college and while over a beer, Rachel and I bonded over our skiing abilities (or to be more accurate, my lack of skills!). Over the past year or so, I’ve had the opportunity to get to know her more and am so thankful for her friendship. She has a wonderful creative energy and I truly admire the how hard she works and how she promotes herself. It is quite a talent and one that I truly respect! So Rachel, thank you for the opportunity to do a guest post for you!
A little bit about me…I live in the LA area and I have been married for almost 2 years. I’m an alright-cook but I get very nervous at the thought of having someone over for dinner where I have to cook a meal. I’ve been known to ask my husband “is this ok to make if we have people over?” “would you be embarrassed if I made this for our friends?”Ask me to make small-bites or appetizers, I’m all yours but ask me to cook for guests…I’m sweating buckets!
Thankfully, one of the few things that I am confident to make is the carrot cake recipe below. For the past 4 years I have made my boyfriend/fiance/now husband’s birthday cake. He loves carrot cake and so each year, this is the one he wants. The first time I made the cake was both the first time I had made a layer cake and the first time I had made a carrot cake. With my nerves in hand, I reached out to my amazing Aunt who provided me with this recipe. Since then, it has been a yearly tradition that my husband anxiously waits for! I love that he likes his birthday cake being homemade. It allows me to get better from year to year and it also means a lot to me that he enjoys it so much. I hope you enjoy it as well!
Liz’s Carrot Cake
Last modified on 2012-06-18 17:26:23 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
| Liz’s Carrot Cake |
- 2 cups sifted flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice
- 1/2 teas. salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup cooked carrot puree **TIP: buy shredded carrots and then steam them to soften**
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 cup golden raisins (optional)
- 1/2 cup cinnamon applesauce
- 1 cup finely chopped walnuts (optional)
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Spray pans with cooking spray.
- Onto a piece of wax paper, sift the flour, baking powder, pumpkin spice, and salt.
- In large bowl, with a electric mixer on high, beat the eggs and granulated sugar until light yellow. Beating constantly, slowly add the oil, taking 4 or 5 minutes to blend well. Beat in the carrot puree and vanilla.
- Using a wooden spoon, stir in the flour mixture just until it disappears, then fold in the raisins, applesauce, and walnuts. Spoon the batter into the pan(s) until almost half full.
- Bake and cool according to type of cake (see Notes).
- Frost with cream cheese frosting.
- While the cake cools, make the frosting.
- Swirl on the top of the cooled cakes. You can also sprinkle with more nuts for a decoration.
Cooking Time:
Cupcakes: Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan on racks for 5 minutes before turning out onto the racks to cool completely.
Bundt Cake: 1 hour 10 minutes. Let rest 15 minutes before removing from pan.
Layer Cake: Check at 25 minutes to 35 minutes.
Liz’s Cream Cheese Frosting
Last modified on 2012-06-15 23:40:28 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
| Cream Cheese Frosting |
- 12 oz cream cheese at room temperature
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter (not margarine) at room temperature
- 4 1/2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar **make to taste**
- The zest of 1 lemon **again, to taste**
- In a medium size bowl, with an electric mixer on high, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth and fluffy. Reduce the speed to low and slowly blend in the confectioners’ sugar and lemon peel. Increase the speed to high and beat until fluffy.
(measurements based on a 2 layer cake)
(Adapted by Liz’s Aunt from: Life’s Little Temptations cookbook by Beth Allen)
Cooking Notes: This recipe is great as cupcakes both regular size and mini’s. I would recommend altering the frosting amounts to accommodate the change.
