My favorite carrot cake

Long time no see! I am very sorry it has been so long since my last post, but somehow November, December and now January just slipped away before my eyes. I have been very busy, and somewhat stressed over my upcoming four-month ethnographic fieldwork that I am doing all by my lonesome in New Caledonia. I am leaving in a little over a week now, and am starting to look forward. Maybe you will hear more about my (food) adventures while I’m away.

But first I want to introduce you to my favorite carrot cake recipe. I have been making it for the last five years, and every time I feel convinced that I will never find a carrot cake that I like better. I found the recipe some years ago on DR’s website, created by the Swedish chef Tina Nordström. It is not really showing up online anymore, though, and I also made several adjustments, so here is my version of Tinas carrot cake.

To make a pretty big batch (about 2 springforms) you need:

For the cake

3 eggs

3½ dl. /1.1 cup sugar

3 dl./1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

1½ tablespoon ground cardemom

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

2½ teaspoons bakingpowder

½ teaspoon salt

4 dl./1.7 cups flour

4 dl./1.7 cups finely grated carrots

2½ dl./1.1 cups neutral oil

 

For the frosting

2 dl./0.9 cups powdered sugar

200 grams/7 oz. butter, melted and cooled

200 grams/7 oz. cream cheese

Finely grated peel and juice of one lemon or two limes

2 tablespoons vanilla sugar

How to:

Heat your oven to 200c/390F. Beat the eggs with the sugar until white and foamy. Add the walnuts, cardemom, cinnamon, bakingpowder, salt and flour to the sugar/egg mixture and combine. Add the carrots and oil to the mix and combine until smooth. Grease two springforms (or one  big ovenproof dish) and pour in the batter. Bake in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes (40 if you are making one big cake), or until a knife or pin comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely. Now you are ready to make the frosting. In a bowl, beat the powdered sugar with the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and the lemon/lime peel, and juice and beat until it is all combined. Now you can decorate the cake as you wish. To make a high cake, first frost the top of one cake. Then place the other one on top of it and frost the top and sides. Decorate with walnuts. And remember to have it with a glass of cold milk!

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