Go Back
Totally The Bomb

Carrot Cake

You sometimes take a crazy chance and do something you normally wouldn't and you make the Carrot Cake of Your Dreams--and Bunny Dreams.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Servings: 16
Calories: 573
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • Cake
  • 2 ½ cups flour
  • 1 ⅓ cup sugar
  • ¼ cup light brown sugar
  • ½ tspn salt
  • ¼ tspn allspice
  • ¼ tspn nutmeg
  • ¼ tspn cinnamon
  • 1 tspn baking soda
  • 1 tspn baking powder
  • 3 eggs
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 cup grated finely carrots (about 2 large ones)
  • Icing
  • 1 brick 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tspn vanilla extract
  • ½ cup raisins optional
  • ½ cup pecans optional
  • Carrots make ahead
  • 1 lb white baking chocolate white is important for the whole coloring thing
  • ½ cup corn syrup
  • You’ll also need a cake pan I used a 9×12 lined with wax paper.
  • Orange gel paste food coloring
  • Green gel paste food coloring
  • Big Flowers
  • 2 slices pineapple
  • 2 maraschino cherries
  • Other Decorations
  • Sprinkles I had laying around

Method
 

  1. To make ahead the modeling chocolate carrots, break the baking chocolate up into small chunks into a medium, microwave-safe bowl.
  2. Pop the chocolate into the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between until it’s all melty and smooth.
  3. Pour the corn syrup into the chocolate and stir until the two ingredients have uniformly mixed together. STOP IMMEDIATELY. Don’t over-stir because this will make it all clumpy.
  4. Put the mixture in the wax paper-lined cake pan, spreading it out evenly so it will dry consistently.
  5. Let this sit overnight on the counter. You may have to install an anti-theft device to keep the kids out.
  6. Come morning, you should be able to break small pieces off and massage the food coloring paste into a couple of small lumps. To shape the carrots, just massage some orange modeling chocolate into small cones of no bigger than about your pinky. I found it easiest to do this in the palm of my hand. Then flatten the green chocolate and cut it with a knife. I found it easiest to do this on wax paper so I could move it around and peel it up without making a mess. Then use a toothpick to texturize the carrot and push the green into the tops.
  7. For the cake, preheat your oven to 350-degrees.
  8. Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix them together well (except the carrot).
  9. Combine all wet ingredients into a bowl and mix them together well (except the carrot).
  10. In 1/3 increments, combine the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing well until combined.
  11. Add the carrots (and raisins and/or pecans, if desired) and stir to combine, trying not to break up the carrot shreds too much.
  12. Cover 3 9-inch round baking pans in parchment paper.
  13. Pour 1/3 of the batter into the baking pan. Repeat with the 2 additional baking pans.
  14. Place pans in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
  15. Remove cake from oven when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  16. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before you try to turn it out to cool on a rack or on the counter. I just did the counter--I only have a small rack.
  17. While the cake is cooling, make the icing. Cream the cream cheese with the vanilla extract.
  18. Add the powdered sugar in 1/3 increments. Set aside until you're ready to ice the cake.
  19. Place the two slices of pineapple on the bottom of a cupcake tin--yes, the tin should be upside down, while the oven is cooling. Leave in the oven for 20 minutes or until your cake is ready to ice.
  20. Ice your cake. I went with "naked" so there was more icing in the middle. Fun.
  21. Then put your carrots on the side--I had to kind of "glue" them with icing to get them to stay.
  22. Turn your pineapple upside down and place a cherry in the middle.
  23. Then sprinkle your cake and serve!