Carrot cake to die for (seriously, who doesn't love carrot cake?)

#sweettpatisserie

Deliciously smooth, sweet and spicy!

I may have a small obsession, ok I admit, a rather large obsession with carrot cake. There's something about the spicy taste paired with a vanilla buttercream or cream cheese frosting that puts me in my happy place!

When I was living in Barcelona for three months in the beginning of 2017, I had a mission to track down all the Spanish (perdó, Català) cafes serving carrot cake. And, to my surprise and good fortune, it was a very popular sweet in Barcelona! I think I consumed at least 2 to 3 pieces of carrot cake each week. Thankfully, I'm into running!

I'd like to say I'm an expert carrot cake taster and I’m constantly tweaking my carrot cake recipe based on my tasting experiences. I’ve found that this one is the perfect amount of sugar and spice and melt-in-your-mouth nice! I hope you liked that pun, and more importantly, I hope you like this cake ;-)

Pro tip: err on the side of more carrots as they add moisture to the batter and are packed with vitamins

Ingredients:

To make the cake, you’ll need:

• 1 1/2 cups of flour (cake or all-purpose)

• 1 1/2 cups of sugar

• 1 tsp of salt

• 2 tsp of baking soda

• 2 tsp of cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg

• 3 eggs

• 3/4 cup of oil (vegetable)

• 2 cups of grated carrots

• 3/4 cup of diced walnuts

To make the frosting, you’ll need:

• 3 cups of confectioners sugar

• 1 cup of butter, at room temperature (salted or unsalted)

• 1 tsp of butter vanilla flavor (or vanilla extract)

• 1-2 tbsp of whipping cream

• ¼ cup of chopped walnuts (optional - for garnish only)

Baking Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

3. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs for 1 minute using a hand mixer. Add the oil and mix for 1 minute more.

4. Pour the eggs and oil mixture all at once into the dry ingredients and mix on low speed to combine.

5. Stir in the carrots and walnuts using a large spoon.

6. Prepare two, 8-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray or grease (with Crisco) and flour.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and place on the center rack of the oven.

8. Bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes. A few minutes before time, insert toothpick into center of cakes; if toothpick comes out clean, cakes are ready.

9. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes. Then, remove from the pans and let cool for an additional 5-10 minutes.

10. While the cakes are baking, begin to make the frosting. Using a hand mixer, beat butter on medium speed until smooth.

11. Add the confectioners sugar, ½ cup at a time, beating on low speed for about 2 minutes after each addition, until combined.

12. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

13. Add vanilla flavor and whipping cream and continue to beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, until frosting is smooth, thick and fluffy.

14. Assemble the cakes Place one cake layer on a cake stand and top with frosting. Repeat with second layer. Garnish the top of assembled cake with chopped walnuts.

15. Enjoy!

Storage:

• To keep fresh be sure to lock in the moisture by covering cake with a cake dome or tin foil.

• Store cake on the kitchen counter at room temperature for up to 5 days.