Easy Carrot Cake with Whipped Icing
This cake is perfect for those of you who love carrot cake but don't want to spend the time and energy to make a layer cake. This cake is quick, simple, and small, so you won't end up with too many leftovers. And this whipped icing is basically the best icing in the universe.
Other than that, I wrote you a long, venty rant on the blog -- so if you're into that sort of thing... ha.
Easy Carrot Cake with Whipped Icing
Recipe by: Adapted from Barefoot Contessa and icing adapted from Missy Dew on Tasty Kitchen
Yield: 9-12 servings
Cake Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup and 5 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 eggs, at room temperature
2/3 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup raisins
2/3 cup chopped walnuts, plus more for toasting and topping
2/3 pound carrots, grated
1/3 cup diced fresh pineapple
Whipped Icing Ingredients:
1 cup milk
5 tablespoons flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar (not powdered sugar)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup butter, at room temperature
Directions:
Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with a parchment paper sling. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, and eggs together until light yellow. Stir in the vanilla. In another bowl, whisk together 2 1/2 cups of flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Toss the raisins and walnuts with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour and fold them, with the carrots and pineapple, into the batter. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake around 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Allow the cake to cool completely.
Make the frosting: Heat the milk, flour, and granulated sugar together over medium heat, whisking constantly. Once it starts to boil, continue whisking and heating it for around 7 minutes or until it’s very thick, like cake batter consistency. Remove the mixture from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Remove the mixture to a shallow pan and let the mixture cool completely (after a bit, I stuck mine in the fridge to hurry it along). Once the mixture is completely cool, beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until soft and fluffy. Add the completely cooled mixture and beat on high until you have fluffy frosting the consistency of stiff whipped cream (this takes several minutes, so be patient). Frost your completely cooled cake with a thick layer - you’ll probably use about 3/4 of the frosting, but not all. Top with toasted walnuts. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, but be sure to let it sit out for 30 minutes before serving so the frosting can soften.
To read more about this cake, read my venty rant about an article that sent me right over the edge this week, and see more photos, please head over to Willow Bird Baking!
x-posted to food_porn, picturing_food, cooking, bakebakebake
Other than that, I wrote you a long, venty rant on the blog -- so if you're into that sort of thing... ha.
Easy Carrot Cake with Whipped Icing
Recipe by: Adapted from Barefoot Contessa and icing adapted from Missy Dew on Tasty Kitchen
Yield: 9-12 servings
Cake Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup and 5 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 eggs, at room temperature
2/3 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup raisins
2/3 cup chopped walnuts, plus more for toasting and topping
2/3 pound carrots, grated
1/3 cup diced fresh pineapple
Whipped Icing Ingredients:
1 cup milk
5 tablespoons flour
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar (not powdered sugar)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup butter, at room temperature
Directions:
Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with a parchment paper sling. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, and eggs together until light yellow. Stir in the vanilla. In another bowl, whisk together 2 1/2 cups of flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Toss the raisins and walnuts with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour and fold them, with the carrots and pineapple, into the batter. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake around 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Allow the cake to cool completely.
Make the frosting: Heat the milk, flour, and granulated sugar together over medium heat, whisking constantly. Once it starts to boil, continue whisking and heating it for around 7 minutes or until it’s very thick, like cake batter consistency. Remove the mixture from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Remove the mixture to a shallow pan and let the mixture cool completely (after a bit, I stuck mine in the fridge to hurry it along). Once the mixture is completely cool, beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until soft and fluffy. Add the completely cooled mixture and beat on high until you have fluffy frosting the consistency of stiff whipped cream (this takes several minutes, so be patient). Frost your completely cooled cake with a thick layer - you’ll probably use about 3/4 of the frosting, but not all. Top with toasted walnuts. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, but be sure to let it sit out for 30 minutes before serving so the frosting can soften.
To read more about this cake, read my venty rant about an article that sent me right over the edge this week, and see more photos, please head over to Willow Bird Baking!
x-posted to food_porn, picturing_food, cooking, bakebakebake