Ingredients
4 eggs
3/4 C rapadura sugar
1 1/4 C olive oil
3 C grated carrot, about 4 medium carrots
2 C plain spelt flour, or other
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly groung nutmeg
1 rounded tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bi-carb soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 C finely chopped walnuts
Summary
Some little mini carrot cakes this week – awesome with or without the traditional cream cheese icing. Use a combo of gluten free flours, or plain wheat, or spelt as I’ve used here. This recipe is adapted from one by Rose Bakery. Makes about 15-18 mini cakes (these baking cups from the webstore worked a treat and go straight in the compost). This will make one big cake, too.
Preheat oven to 180ºC and pop the little baking cases into a muffin tray. Grease and line a 23cm cake tin if you are making a single cake.
Cream the eggs and sugar together with a stand mixer or hand held beater until they are light and well, creamy. Not stiff like meringue, just starting to firm up. Add the oil and beat for a few more minutes.
Fold in the grated carrots and then the combined dry ingredients – flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, bi-carb and salt. Lastly, gently stir in the chopped walnuts.
Pour into the baking cups (or cake tin), mindful not to fill the cups up all the way to the top. 20 minutes for the little cakes and about 45 minutes for the single cake will do it. Check by inserting a skewer or knife into the middle of the cake – they’re done if it comes out clean.
ICING
If you’re keen on the thick cream cheese icing that usually accompanies a carrot cake, and not fooled by maple syruped labne or something yoghurty like that, try this combination: Beat half a cup of butter with 1 cup of cream cheese, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and your sweet thing of choice (1/2 cup icing sugar, say) until it is as delicious as you want it. I’d be tempted to add some citrus zest (ahem, orange) and a squeeze of the juice too. Ice once the cakes are cold.
Hints and Tips
In the absence of rapadura sugar, note that you’ll need more of its alternative for the same level of sweetness. Try 1 or 1 1/2 cups of brown or castor sugar.
