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The Perfect Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Medium
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 8 people

Ingredients

For the carrot cake

  • 235 g all purpose flour + more to flour the mould
  • 3 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 225 g sugar
  • 75 g brown sugar
  • 250 g vegetable or canola oil + more to grease the mould
  • 340 g grated carrots
  • 3 eggs

For the cream cheese frosting

  • 250 g unsalted butter
  • 210 g cream cheese
  • 150 g icing sugar

Instructions

For the cake

  • Put the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix together. It can be done with a whisk or in a stand mixer. We're just bringing everything together. If you're using an electric mixer use a low speed so the flour doesn't go everywhere.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until homogeneous.
  • Cut baking paper to the size of the base of two 16cm moulds and stick it to the bottom using a few drops of vegetable oil spread with a piece of kitchen paper.
  • Add more oil and grease the moulds using a piece of kitchen paper, including on top of the baking paper. 
  • Add a tbsp of flour and make a thin layer of flour stick to the oil. Remove the excess.
  • Add the same amount of mix to each mould and bake at 180C for 45min or until you insert a skewer or pointy knife and it comes out without any uncooked mix.
  • Let cool down completely and run a thin knife around the cake. Unmould by turning around. Don't unstick the paper from the base just yet.

The cream cheese frosting

  • Whip the butter using a stand mixer or handheld mixer for 5 minutes. If it's really hot where you are add the butter straight from the fridge. If it's 25 degrees celsius or below, first let it come to room temperature.
  • Add the cream cheese using the same temperature rule as above and whip for 5 minutes again.
  • On low speed, add the icing sugar which was previously sifted one tbsp at a time. Whip until evenly mixed.

Assembly

  • Remove the top of the cakes using a serrated knife. Make sure they are completely cool or else the frosting will melt. 
  • Use a glossy cardboard cut to size as the base. The glossy side faces up. This will allow you to lift the cake easily when you want to change it to its cake stand. Spread a bit of frosting on it to stick the cake.
  • Turn over one of the cakes so the top is now the bottom and place it onto the cardboard. Remove the baking paper.
  • Spread out a nice amount of frosting on top.
  • Turn over the second cake and place on top of the frosting. Remove the paper as well.
  • Spread more frosting on top and there you have a naked carrot cake.
  • For a semi naked carrot cake add more on the sides and spread it out so some cake is still seen through the sides.
  • If you want a cake that is completely covered like mine, take the semi-naked cake into the fridge for that layer to firm up first for at least 30min. This layer is called a crumb coat and it traps all the crumbs that fall off the cake so that then the next layer can be completely white.
  • Apply the second layer on top and on the sides and make a texture around the cake with the back of a spoon or the tip of a small palette knife. For further reference watch the video above.
  • Let it rest in the fridge for at least 4 hours before cutting.
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