I don’t bake cakes as much as I used to since recently I tend to choose savoury over sweets. It’s surprisingly rare that I crave desserts but, I do crave this carrot cake from time to time. It’s a family recipe that has been adapted many times over the past few years.

As for the topping, I decided to use some of my Maple Syrup & Olive Oil Granola. It’s always nice adding a little crunch on a carrot cake, and the granola was the perfect addition. It added a little saltiness that was just so so perfect.

This recipe calls for some orange juice, but do yourself a favour…use freshly squeezed juice. You only need 1/4 cup which is the juice of one orange. Don’t be shy to throw in a little of the pulp too! The orange will also be needed for some zest that goes into the cream cheese icing. It just adds a beautiful hint of brightness to it.


INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 cups of grated carrots

  • 2 tsp of baking powder

  • 1 tsp of cinnamon

  • 1 tsp of ground ginger

  • 1 tsp of nutmeg

  • 2 cups of flour

  • 1/4 tsp of salt

  • 2 eggs

  • 3/4 cup of brown sugar

  • 3/4 cup of olive oil

  • 1 tbsp of vanilla

  • juice of 1 orange (about 1/4 cup)

FOR THE ICING:

  • 1 1/2 cup of cream cheese

  • 1/2 cup of icing sugar

  • 1 tbsp of vanilla

  • 1 tbsp of orange zest

  • 1/2 cup of granola (recipe here)

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Take a 9-inch spring pan (or round baking pan) and grease the sides and bottom. I like to spray it with a little vegetable oil.

  2. Using the larger holes of a cheese grater, grate the carrots and set them aside.

  3. In a mixing bowl; add the flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking powder and salt. Mix to combine.

  4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, orange juice, olive oil and vanilla.

  5. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet, stir to combine.

  6. Add the grated carrots and mix again.

  7. Add the batter into your baking dish and bake for 40-45 minutes.

To prepare the icing; combine the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla and orange zest. Whisk with an electric mixer until it has a smooth texture. Spread the icing over the cake once its cooled. Garnish with granola however you please!

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