Classic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I have tried many, many carrot cakes in my time, but this one is my favourite by far. So good is it that I'm planning to have a slice after I've written this post with a cup of coffee!! I was planning to bake two of these for my children's teachers for the end of the school year as a thank you, but I was over ruled and instead they opted for a chocolate cake, anyway I still think that this would be a beautiful gift for someone special and it's well worth the effort. 

Recipe complements of Cake Decorating Magazine Issue 2

Serves 8 -10

Ingredients

225g Butter, softened

225g Light brown sugar

4 Eggs, medium

1 Orange, juice and grated zest

175g Wholemeal flour

2tsp Baking powder

1 Pinch of salt

2tsp Ground cinnamon

1tsp Mixed spice

50g Ground almonds

110g Walnuts, chopped (You can substitute the walnuts with dessicated coconut or raisins)

350g Carrots, finely grated

Cream Cheese Frosting

125g Unsalted butter, softened

50g Icing sugar

250g Cream cheese, at room temperature

Method

Preheat your oven to Gas Mark 4/180C/350F and grease and line a 20cm (8in) round cake tin (I sometimes use two sandwich tins instead) . Beat the butter and sugar together in a (large) mixing bowl until light and creamy.

Separate the eggs and bead the egg yoke into the mixture, then stir in the orange juice and zest.

Sift in the dry ingredients- the flour, baking powder, salt and spices - and fold into the mixture. add the ground almonds and chopped walnuts, (or whatever you choose) and gently stir. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff and then fold into the mixture.

Stir in the grated carrots until everything is mixed together, then spoon into the cake tin.

Hollow the mixture in the centre a little and bake for 75 to 90 minutes (60 -70 minutes if you use the two sandwich tins) until the cake is golden and firm to the touch (skewer comes out clean). Cool in the tin for a few minutes, then place on a wire rack.

To make the cream cheese frosting, beat together the butter and the icing sugar until mixed well, then mix in the cream cheese. Place in the fridge for 20 minutes, then spread it generously on the cake. I split the cake so as to have frosting sandwiched between the layers, but that is optional.

To make the mini carrot toppers, colour some marzipan with a dab of red or orange food colouring. Knead it in well and separate into 10 balls. Roll each ball into a sausage shape and pinch at one end to make a carrot shape.

Score lines across each carrot with a cocktail stick. For the leaves, colour a small amount of marzipan with green food colouring and roll into 10 small balls. Flatten each with your thumb and then score lines using a cocktail stick. Press the leaves into the wide end of the carrot and arrange evenly around your carrot cake. I grated some fresh nutmeg over the cake for a final flourish!!



David Lebovitz's Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

Recently I bought a passive ice cream maker from Aldi for €24.99 and I have been experimenting with it ever since, this is the simplest recipe yet! It is very rich and creamy but it has less calories than ice cream, so it is a treat you can enjoy more often. I am planning to try his Strawberry Frozen Yogurt Recipe next, which looks equally easy and will go down a storm here I'm sure. If you have no ice cream maker then this post will help. Enjoy!

Recipe Note:
How to make strained yogurt
To make 240g of strained yogurt, line a mesh strainer with a few layers of cheese cloth/ muslin. Then scrape 480g of plain whole-milk yogurt into the cheesecloth. Gather the ends and fold them over the yogurt, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours. So, for the above recipe start with and strain 1.5kg of yogurt.

Recipe compliments of  The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

Makes 900ml

Ingredients
720g - 750g Strained yogurt or Greek-style yogurt (I used Greek style yogurt)
150g White sugar
1tsp Vanilla extract

Method
Mix together the yogurt, sugar, and vanilla.

Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Refrigerate for 1 hour (as with any passive ice cream maker your ingredients need to be completely chilled, so I usually leave it overnight)

Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions (usually about a half an hour or until it begins to click) .

Aldi Ice Cream Maker (Review)

I bought this recently in Aldi for €24.99 and while I was researching it, I found very little information to help me make the decision, so I write this in the hope that it will answer some of your questions.

The machine is a passive ice cream maker which means that you have to freeze the bowl for 24 hours beforehand and your recipes must be completely chilled also, otherwise the machine will be less effective.

Pictured below is the unboxed machine, the user guide comes with four recipes (none of which I have tried) and full operating instructions. The machine isn't too big, so your cupboard space won't be completely taken up. 

 

The motor is 12 watts, which is more powerful than some branded makers (at twice the price) I compared it with and it will make up to 1liter of ice cream, which is a generous family size.

The freezer bowl needs 15cm height clearance (which fits with ease into my built-in freezer shelf). I now keep it permanently in my chest freezer, ready at a moments notice.

A word of advice, DO NOT lift the freezer bowl out with your bare hands as you will get freezer burn (I found this out the hard way!). Lastly it comes with a 3 year parts and labour warranty once you return the warranty card and a ROI helpline number.

I have found the machine very easy to use and if you want to start making your own ice cream, sorbets or frozen yogurt that this is a good starter machine.


Almost one year on....
I wanted to update you one my ice cream making endeavours, firstly I still have my trusty machine, it has never gave me a minutes trouble. I use it about once or twice a month at least and the only criticism I would have is, the opening to pour in your ice cream mix in is very small, to compensate I pour the ice cream mix directly into the freezer bowl and quickly put on the lid. It's working for me, put you decide if that is a deal breaker for you. The recipe I use the most is David Lebovitz Vanilla Frozen Yogurt which is a real keeper and comes out perfect every time. I still keep the bowl in the freezer so that if there is a blink of sun I can make ice cream in record time. I don't regret buying this machine and because it is so easy I find I use it more often. Believe me it is not collecting dust at the back of my cupboard!!

*This is not a sponsored review

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Kind regards,

Lisa Duffy