Recipe: Carrot Cake

This is the Carrot Cake recipe we use in the restaurant. I love it because it is light, non-oily and tastes great. It is also reasonably healthy as it is not high in added sugar. Actually, we joke about it being a great breakfast since it has vegetables, fruit, nuts, eggs and, when iced, dairy.  And my local diabetics see little change in their blood sugar levels when they have one of our usual slices. I just know that I've never been more pleased than with this recipe.

Amberwind has called it the "World's Best Carrot Cake" over most of the last 10 years and only 3 people have ever disagreed with him. You'll have to come in and eat at the restaurant or get my cookbook when its in print to find out why they disagreed.

Preheat your oven to 350F degrees. Take a 10" round baking pan and spray with pan spray and then lightly flour. To make the cake:

• 3 cups grated carrots (feel free to use a food processor grating wheel)
• 2 cups sugar, I prefer turbinado
• 2 cups all purpose flour or 1 1/3 cups all purpose & 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup raisins &/or currants
• 1 Tbs baking powder
• 1 tsp nutmeg, ground
• 1 tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1/2 tsp cardamom, ground
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 pinch coriander seed, ground
• 4 eggs, well beaten
• 1 cup canola oil

1. Thoroughly mix all the ingredients in a bowl EXCEPT the eggs & oil.
2. Beat the eggs and oil together and add to the bowl and mix by hand to prevent over beating.
3. Pour all the batter into the baking pan. Place the pan on a cookie sheet and bake for 1 hour.
4. Spin the cake from front to back and bake approximately 15 minutes more. Test with a toothpick- it should come out clean when inserted towards the middle of the cake; the cake will also have begun pulling away from the sides of the pan.
5. Let cool about 1 hour on a cooling rack. Run a thin pointed knife around the edge of the pan when cool enough to comfortably handle.
6. Put a plate large enough to completely cover the cake pan upside down on top of the pan. Turn over holding plate and pan as one. Lightly tap them both on a counter or table, all around the edges. Cake will detach from the pan to sit upon the plate. Ice when cool, or refrigerate until ready to ice.

This frosting is quick and easy and makes the cake a classic:

• 15 oz cream cheese or neufchatel low fat cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar (you can sift it, but i usually don't bother unless its real clumpy from humidity)
• 2 1/2 Tbs 2% milk
• 4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 pinches nutmeg

1. Using a stand mixer or electric beater, beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth.
2. Add all the other ingredients and beat until smooth.
3. Refrigerate finished icing until you are ready to ice the cake. Re-beat if chilled before icing.
4. TO ICE: Cut the cake into 2 layers with a long serrated knife. Spread a nice but not too thick layer of icing between the layers of cake. Use the rest of the icing to ice the entire top and sides of the cake. This icing is rich enough you don't need a lot and the recipe doesn't make an overwhelming amount.
5. Serve. Refrigerate any unused portion- it will last up to 2 weeks when stored into a burpable plastic container.

Yield: 20 slices/cake.

Most people don't know that restaurants and bakeries often prebake their cakes and then wrap the cooled cake well and freeze them- you can do the same. The cake will last up to a month in most home freezers when wrapped tightly. Defrost by taking it out of the freezer the day before icing it. The icing will last a week to 10 days before using if stored in a burpable plastic container.

It really isn't very hard or time consuming to make, so please try it. Enjoy!