Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Western carrot cake is a cake that is a dessert and sweet with carrot as the main ingredient. On the other hand, chinese carrot cake is called fried carrot cake or "Chai Tao Kueh" or 炒萝卜糕. It is fragrant and savoury and its main ingredient is white radish. These two are complete opposites. Which one do you like? I like both ....

This carrot cake recipe is take from my favourite book by Rose Levy Beranbaum. It is very flavourful and moist. I frost it with the slightly tangy cream cheese frosting to balance the overall flavor. Yummy ......

Carrot Cake with cream cheese frosting (Adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum)

Ingredients:  
Carrot Cake
150g all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg powder (I added this)
1 tsp dutch-processed cocoa powder (I reduced it to 1 tsp from 1.5 tsp)

2 large eggs
105g granulated sugar (I reduced it to 105g from 150g)
35g light muscovado sugar (I reduced it to 35g from 50g)
134g canola or safflower oil
1 tsp vanilla extrat
227g coarsely shredded carrot
50g raisins soaked in rum the night before (I added this step to give the cake more flavor)

Cream Cheese Frosting 113g unsalted butter, cubed
113g cream cheese, cubed
20g icing sugar
Chopped walnuts, toasted and dried apricots for decoration

Preparation:
Grease and line the bottom of a 7" x 3" round cake pan with parchment paper. Encircle it with cake strips.
Remove the rum from the raisins and toss the raisins lightly with 1 tbsp plain flour.
Pre-heat the oven at 175 degree celsius

Method:

Baking the cake

1. Sift the plain flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder and cocoa powder into a mixing bowl.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the granulated sugar, muscovado sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract on medium speed for 1 minute, or until well blended.
3. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed for about 20 seconds, just until incorporated.
4. Add the carrots and half the raisins and beat for another 12 seconds.
5. Using a silicon spatula, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface evenly with a small offset spatula. Scatter the remaining raisins evenly on top of the batter and use the back of a fork to push them gently into the batter. The cake pan will be about half full with the batter.
6. Bake on the lower third rack in the oven for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the centre. The cake should just start to shrink from the sides of the pan.
7. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a small metal spatula between the sides of the pan and cake, pressing firmly against the pan, and invert the cake onto a wire rack that has been coated lightly with non-stick cooking spray. To prevent splitting, reinvert the cake so that the top of the cake is up. Cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Beat the cream cheese and butter until well-blended and light.
2. Add in the icing sugar and beat until light and well-blended.

Assembly:

Slice off the top of the cooled cake so that the top is flat and even for frosting.

Frost the top layer with the cream cheese frosting.

Decorate with the chopped walnuts and dried apricots to your liking.