You can’t beat an iconic carrot cake recipe. This one is deliciously soft and perfectly complemented by a soft cream cheese frosting. I’ve added a little ring of chopped pistachios for decoration as I love the colour and flavour but you can use any nuts you like or even sprinkles for a pop of colour.
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INGREDIENTS
- 200g light muscovado sugar
- 200ml sunflower oil
- 200g self raising flour
- 4 medium eggs
- 150g grated carrot
- 125g sultanas
- The zest of one orange
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 250g soft unsalted butter
- 500g unrefined icing sugar, sieved
- 125g cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 2 tablespoons chopped nuts
YOU'LL NEED
- 2 x 8” round cake tins, greased, base and side lined
- Bowls
- Whisk
- Wooden spoon
- Cake plate, board or stand
- Medium sized offset spatula
METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 170°C fan. In a large bowl, whisk the sugar into the oil until any large lumps mostly have disappeared.
- Add the eggs and whisk through. Tip in the carrot, sultanas and orange zest, mix together with a spoon
- In a separate bowl, whisk the bicarbonate of soda, allspice and ground ginger through the flour with a fork. Add to the wet mixture and gently combine until just mixed, then divide into the tins.
- Bake for approximately 30-35 mins until the sponges are golden, springy and cooked through. Leave to cool in the cake tins for 5 mins then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the frosting by beating the butter, icing sugar and vanilla until pale smooth and creamy, then gently beat the cream cheese into the mixture.
- If the cakes have a little hump from the rise, trim them to level. Place one layer on your plate, board or stand, trimmed side up and spread or pipe over with a layer of frosting.
- Place the second cake on top, trimmed side down so the smooth part that was in the bottom of the tin is uppermost. Press gently then pile on the rest of the frosting and cover generously over the top and sides.
Top Tip: Use a crank handle palette knife to smooth over the top and sides so it looks fairly neat and even.
- For a decorative effect, run the end of a small palette knife or butter knife in a swirl around the outside edge on the top of the cake, continuously swirling inwards to create a swirly pattern on into the centre as shown, then dress with a ring of chopped nuts to finish.
The cake will keep for up to three days in the fridge, covered or in an airtight box, but do bring it to room temperature before eating.
Professional baker and author, Juliet Sear has created this delicious recipe exclusively for Rangemaster using her Elise 110cm Dual Fuel range cooker.
