Simple Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting Cooks Illustrated Recipes

Steps:

• For the cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 by 9-inch baking pan (or 2, 9" round cake pans) with nonstick cooking spray. Line bottom of pan with parchment and spray parchment.
• 2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt in large bowl; set aside.
• 3. In food processor fitted with large shredding disk, shred carrots; transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Wipe out food processor work bowl and fit with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer. Scrape mixture into medium bowl. Stir in carrots and dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. Pour into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Cool cake to room temperature in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours.
• 4. For the frosting: When cake is cool, process cream cheese, butter, sour cream, and vanilla in clean food processor work-bowl until combined, about 5 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add confectioners' sugar and process until smooth, about 10 seconds.
• 5. Run paring knife around edge of cake to loosen from pan. Invert cake onto wire rack, peel off parchment, then invert again onto serving platter. Using icing spatula, spread frosting evenly over surface of cake. Cut into squares and serve. (Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to 3 days.).

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment and lightly coat with cooking spray.
• Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until light brown and fragrant, 7 minutes. Set aside 12 pecan halves to decorate the finished cake; chop the remaining pecans. Set aside 1 cup of the chopped pecans to use in the batter; reserve the rest for decorating the finished cake.
• Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and 1 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl.
• Whisk together the eggs and granulated sugar in a large bowl until smooth, about 1 minute. Whisk in the oil until well combined. Add the grated carrots, vanilla and 1 cup chopped pecans, and mix well. Add the dry ingredients, and stir until just combined. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cakes are nicely browned, about 30 minutes. Let cool on a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Loosen the edges with a spatula, turn the cakes out and let cool completely, right-side up, on the cooling rack, about 2 hours. Remove the parchment before frosting.
• For the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, scraping down the side as necessary, until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon salt; gradually increase the mixer speed to medium-high, and beat until the sugar is incorporated and the frosting is fluffy and smooth, about 3 minutes. With the mixer on medium-high, add the cream a few drops at time until it's all incorporated. Continue beating for 1 more minute until the frosting is slightly lighter in color and creamy.
• To assemble: Place one of the cake layers on a serving plate, and spread 1 cup of the frosting over the top. Top with the other layer, and use the remaining frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake. Arrange the 12 whole pecans on top of the cake like the numbers on a clock face, and sprinkle the remaining chopped pecans in between.

Steps:

• First prepare the cake.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine all cake ingredients (brown sugar, oil, eggs, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, carrots and pecans) in a large bowl.
• Pour batter into a 13x9 inch cake pan or two 8 inch round cake pans that have been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes (if using 13x9) or until toothpick comes out clean but cake is still moist.
• Allow cake to cool and prepare cream cheese frosting.
• In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla.
• Cover cooled cake with frosting, slice and serve.
• You may want to keep it in the fridge if you aren't going to be eating it right away because of the cream cheese in the frosting.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and oil. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; beat into egg mixture. Stir in carrots., Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, in another large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar. Add enough milk to achieve desired spreading consistency. Reserve 1/2 cup frosting for decorating if desired. If desired, stir walnuts into remaining frosting. , Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. If decorating the cake, tint 1/4 cup reserved frosting orange and 1/4 cup green. Cut a small hole in the corner of pastry or plastic bag; insert #7 round pastry tip. Fill the bag with orange frosting. Pipe twelve carrots on top of cake, so each slice will have a carrot. Using #67 leaf pastry tip and the green frosting, pipe a leaf at the top of each carrot. , Store cake in the refrigerator.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
• In a large bowl, combine grated carrots, flour, white sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in eggs, oil, 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, pineapple and 3/4 cup chopped pecans. Spoon batter into prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.
• To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, Neufchatel cheese, 1/2 cup butter or margarine and 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla. Beat until smooth, then stir in 1 cup chopped pecans. Spread on cooled cake.

Steps:

• Beat cream cheese and vanilla with a mixer on medium speed until creamy. Gradually add butter, beating until incorporated after each addition.
• Reduce speed to low. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, and beat until fluffy and smooth.

Steps:

• Grease 15cm x 25cm loaf pan or 24cm round cake tin.
• Combine ingredients in a large bowl, stir well. Pour mixture into pan.
• Bake in moderate (180C) oven ~1 hour.
• Stand cake 5 minutes, turn onto wire rack to cool.
• Frosting.
• Beat cream cheese, butter and lemon until light and fluffy, gradually beat in icing sugar.
• Spread cake with frosting.

Steps:

• Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13 by 9-inch baking pan. Lightly flour pan.
• Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices together in large bowl and set aside.
• Mixer method: Shred carrots on large holes of box grater or use food processor (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat granulated sugar, brown sugar, and eggs on medium-high speed until thoroughly combined, about 45 seconds. Reduce speed to medium; with mixer running, add oil in slow, steady stream, being careful to pour oil against inside of bowl (if oil begins to splatter, reduce speed to low until oil is incorporated, then resume adding oil). Increase speed to high and mix until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 45 seconds to 1 minute longer. Mix in carrots. Mix in flour-spice mixture by hand until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. If you want nuts or raisins or both, mix them in by hand.
• Scrape batter into prepared pan, smooth top with rubber spatula, and gently tap pan on counter to release air bubbles. Bake cake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Let cake cool completely in pan on wire rack, about 2 hours.
• Mix cream cheese with sour cream, butter, sugar, and spices. Spread frosting evenly over cake and serve. Cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.