Best Ultimate Carrot Cake Recipes

THE ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan.
• Beat brown and white sugars, oil, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla extract in a large bowl until well combined. Mix in flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in carrots and pineapple, then fold in pecans. Pour into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• While the cake is cooling, combine powdered sugar, cream cheese, butter, and vanilla extract for frosting in a medium bowl. Beat until mixture is smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped pecans.
• Spread frosting over the cooled cake.

THE ULTIMATE MAKEOVER: CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. For the cake, finely grate the zest from the orange and squeeze 3 tbsp of juice. Pour the juice over the raisins in a bowl, stir in zest, then leave to soak while you make the cake. Lightly oil and line the base of a deep 20cm square cake tin. Mix the flours with 1 tsp baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon.
• Separate one of the eggs. Put the white in a small bowl and the yolk in a large one. Break the remaining whole egg in with the yolk, then tip in the sugar. Whisk together for 1-2 mins until thick and foamy. Slowly pour in the oil and continue to whisk on a low speed until well mixed. Tip in the flour mix, half at a time, and gently stir it into the egg mixture with a rubber spatula or big spoon. The mix will be quite stiff. Put the extra pinch of baking powder in with the egg white and whisk to soft peaks.
• Fold the carrot, raisins (and any liquid) into the flour mixture. Gently fold in the whisked egg white, then pour into the tin. Jiggle the tin to level the mixture. Bake for 1 hr until risen and firm or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin 5 mins, turn out onto a wire rack, peel off the paper, then leave until cold.
• To make the frosting, stir the soft cheese, Quark, icing sugar and orange zest together - don't overbeat. Stir in the lemon juice. Swirl the frosting over the cake and cut into 16 square. This cake is even better if left well wrapped for a day or two before icing and eating. Will keep up to 5 days uniced in an airtight tin, or in the fridge if iced.

ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Sift dry ingredients twice.
• Beat the eggs until thick, add the sugar gradually (use an electric beater at high speed for about 3 minutes) until the mixture is very thick.
• Add the oil slowly and beat for another 2 minutes.
• Add carrots, pineapple, nuts, Amarula Cream and apricot jam and mix by hand.
• Add the dry ingredients to the mixture and fold in with a spatula until well blended.
• Butter a 28 cm diameter loose-bottomed spring form ring, an angle cake tin or 2 loaf tins**.
• Either line the base with baking paper or sprinkle with dry biscuit crumbs to coat lightly.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake at 356 degrees to 375 degrees for 1 hr and 10 minute or until done.
• Allow to firm and cool in tin for 10 minutes before turning out.
• ICING:.
• Cream the butter and gradually add the icing sugar.
• Gently stir in the Amarula Cream and the cream cheese.
• Don't over mix once the cheese has been added as it is inclined to become watery.
• Garnish:.
• Crystallized pineapple slices and pecan nuts.
• (**CAKE TINS: If using a 28cm springform tin with a hole in the middle there will be a little too much mixture. Fill the tin 2/3 full and bake the rest of the mixture in a muffin tin will make plus/minus 6 muffins extra.
• Angel cake tin - the mixture fits fine.
• Loaf tin - use one very large loaf tin - 30cm x 10 cm or 2 smaller ones).
• (Tip: If you "drip-dry" the cheese in a muslin cloth overnight, it becomes much drier. Allow the cake to cool completely before icing.).

THE ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Sift together the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and ginger onto a sheet of waxed paper.
• Mix the sugars together in a large bowl.
• Stir in the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla.
• Stir in the flour mixture, grated carrots, chopped pecans, coconut and raisins.
• Stir until well blended.
• Grease and flour three 9 inch round cake pans.
• Line each prepared pan with wax or parchment paper that has also been greased and waxed.
• Pour equal amounts into each of the cake pans.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of each comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes.
• Turn out onto cooling racks, remove wax paper and allow to cool completely.
• In a large bowl beat the butter and cream cheese together until light.
• Add the confectioners sugar, orange peel and vanilla mixing until smooth.
• Spread frosting between layers and stack evenly.
• Frost the top and sides of cake.
• Decorate with perfect pecan halves.

ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Prepare muffin tins with papers (about 48 regular cupcakes) or two 9-inch round cake pans (2 inch sides) with parchment and oil.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coarsely grate the carrots in a food processor using the grater attachment.
• Chop them into finer pieces with the medal blade attachment in the food processor, if you want the texture of the cake a little bit finer.
• Mix together the eggs, sugar, oil, brown sugar, vanilla extract and orange zest.
• Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a bowl with a whisk.
• Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture.
• Add the finely chopped carrots, walnuts (or coconut), and raisins (or dried cherries).
• Pour the batter into the prepared pans or scoop into cupcake papers (fill 3/4 full).
• Bake cupcakes for about 18-25 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.
• Bake 9-inch cakes for about 35-40 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.
• Cool in pan(s) on wire rack for 10-15 minutes.
• Make frosting by combining all frosting ingredients and beating well, until fluffy.
• NOTE: If you like lots of frosting, double this recipe, but you'll have some left over, even if you are generous with it while frosting the cake. But it's delicious on EVERYTHING!
• To assemble the cake, remove from pan(s) and peel off the parchment paper from the bottom, place on cardboard rounds.
• With a thin serrated knife slice off the very top of the cake layer, using a sawing motion, to level the tops, if desired.
• Cut the cake layers into 2 equal layers. Slide the layers onto a cardboard round or any other flat surface.
• Using an offset spatula spread about 1½ cups of the frosting evenly over the surface of the first layer.
• Top with the next layer and repeat for the rest of the layers.
• Place about 2 cups of the icing on the top of the cake and spread evenly.
• Spread the icing onto the sides of the cake.
• Using the spatula, create swirls in the frosting on the cake. This cream cheese frosting is very soft so you won't want to try for anything too exacting.
• Press additional shredded coconut onto the sides of this cake, as a garnish, if desired.

ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• For the cake:.
• Line 3 (9-inch) round cakepans with wax paper; lightly grease and flour wax paper. Set pans aside.
• Stir together first 4 ingredients.
• Beat eggs and next 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add flour mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Fold in carrot and next 3 ingredients.Pour batter into prepared cakepans.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Drizzle Buttermilk Glaze evenly over layers, cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely.
• on wire racks. Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers on top and sides of cake.
• For the Buttermilk Glaze:.
• Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Boil, stirring often, 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla.
• For the Cream Cheese Frosting:.
• Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth.

THE ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350.
• 2. sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add sugar, oil and eggs; mix well. add carrots, pineapple, nuts and coconut; blend thoroughly. Pour into 3 greased and floured 9 inch cake pans.
• 3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or til toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Don't overcook. Cool in pans for a few minutes, then remove and let cool on wire rack.
• 4. To make frosting, beat butter, cream cheese and vanilla til creamy. Gradually beat in sugar. If too thick, add a small amount of milk. Frost the cake. Sprinkle with coconut if desired. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

ULTIMATE CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• The Medium Mixer Bowl: * In a medium bowl, combine the carrots, nuts raisins and crushed pineapple, mix to blend together.
• The Mixing Bowl: * In a larger mixing bowl, combine cake mix (DO NOT USING THE DRIED RAISINS & CARROTS), and cinnamon, mixing to evenly combine.
• * Add, folding in carrots, pineapple and chopped nuts until well blended.
• * To the mixing bowl, add melted butter, eggs and water mixture to the mixing bowl. With mixer on medium speed, mix until well incorporated and creamy, about 2 minutes.
• The Oven: * Preheat oven temperature 350ºF.
• Prepare Pan: Butter and flour bottom and sides of a 13X9X2-inch cake pan.
• Bake 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes. Then remove from pan, and cool completely.
• LEMON FROSTING:Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar 12 ouncescream cheese, room temperature 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 2 tsps. Fresh lemon peel 2 tbsps. Fresh lemon juice
• Directions: * Add all ingredients to a mixing bowl.
• * Beat at second speed until thoroughly blended and creamy. If too thick, add 1 tbsp. milk at a time, if too thin, add tbsp. confectioners' sugar at a time. * Refrigerated until your ready to frost the completely cooled cake. Frost cake using an offset spatula.
• Frost the cake using an offset spatula. Top with remaining toasted pecans. I hope you enjoy this cake!!!!