← Nouns Cooking · Bakery

Ingredients

• 300 g plain flour
• 1 tsp Bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ tsp Salt
• 300 g light brown sugar
• 200 ml sunflower or vegetable oil
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract
• 1 orange, zest only (optional)
• 280 g carrots (about 4), peeled and finely grated
• 100 g raisins or sultanas
• 100 g Walnuts, roughly chopped (optional)
• 100 g unsalted butter, soft
• 150 g full-fat cream cheese, fridge-cold
• 300 g Icing sugar
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan, 350°F). Oil two 20 cm round cake tins and line the bases with baking paper.
2. Whisk the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, spices and salt together in a bowl.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla and orange zest for 1 minute until smooth. Fold in the dry ingredients, then the carrots, raisins and walnuts, if using.
4. Divide between the tins and bake for 25–30 min until risen and a skewer in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tins for 10 min, then on a rack until completely cold.
5. For the frosting, beat the butter until very soft, beat in the icing sugar, then add the cold cream cheese and vanilla and beat only until smooth and thick; overbeating makes it runny.
6. Sandwich the cakes with a third of the frosting and spread the rest over the top. Chill for 30 min to set before slicing.

Tips

• The walnuts are optional; leave them out for a nut-free cake.
• Grate the carrots finely so they melt into the crumb rather than staying as strands.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

BBC Good Food RecipeTin Eats Joy of Baking