Carrot Cakes have been a long tradition in our family. My Grandmother was a master carrot cake maker! She started with a recipe that she cut out of an American news paper while staying in the states one year. Over the next 50 years she fiddled and tweaked the recipe until it was no longer recognisable as the news papers carrot cake. When she past away a few years ago my mother and I found her old news paper recipe with all the scribbles on it and started tweaking it ourselves. Many many carrot cakes later we are finally happy with the recipe. 

Now as you know I am not a fan of sugar, however certain things require sugar and this cake is one of them. 

Have a go, you will not be disappointed! 

Ingredients

  • 250 grams all-purpose flour 
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 180ml olive oil
  • 4 large eggs room temperature
  • 300 grams light brown sugar
  • 50 grams brown sugar
  • 125 grams unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 300 grams grated carrots, lightly packed

For the cream cheese frosting:

  • 225g package brick style cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 115 grams unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 180 grams powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Method

To make the carrot cake:

  1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Wipe two 9-inch round cake pans well with coconut oil or butter
  2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
  3. In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract until fully combined. Add the grated carrots into the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk or rubber spatula until just combined, making sure not to over mix the batter.
  5. Pour the cake batter evenly between both prepared cake pans. Bake at 180°C for 30-35 minutes or until the tops of the cakes are set and a toothpick inserted into the center of each one comes out clean. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack, and allow to cool in the pans for about 20-25 minutes. Once the cakes have cooled, remove from the pans and return the cakes to the wire rack to finish cooling.

To make the cream cheese frosting:

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl using a hand-held mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the butter and mix for about 30 seconds-1 minute until well combined and smooth.
  2. Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue mixing until fully combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

To assemble the cake:

  1. Level the tops of each cake with a knife or cake leveler. Place one of the cakes on a cake stand, top with a little over 1/2 cup of the frosting, and smooth it out into one even layer. Place the other cake on top and use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. Top with pecans or other toppings of choice if desired.