Carrot Cake Recipe–Lightened Up

Usually every Easter I make my grandmother’s Pound Cake recipe, that my mother forbids me to post about!  It makes a double loaf sized portion and since it is  only the 5 of us this Easter I was a little reluctant to have all the cake leftover for me to eat.  Granted I could halve the recipe, in which I have done before.

Next to chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, Carrot Cake is my other favorite.
I have only made it one other time. I saw a recipe in cooking light magazine.  I took a poll of the family and surprisingly it was unanimous, we would change things around this Easter and have Carrot Cake.  I was not going to say no as it is my favorite.

  If you can get past the long list of ingredients, which you probably have on hand, it is surprisingly easy and no mixer required.  I did not have crushed pineapple.  No worries, just drain the can pineapples you may have on hand very well and then mash in the food processor or with a fork.  I already had the food processor out to shred the carrots so no extra clean up!!

Make sure and check your oven as it baking.  I had already reduced the baking time 5 minutes, but 5 minutes before the timer went off, I started  smelling the cake.  When I finally got around to looking in, about 2 minutes before the timer, the cake was pretty browned.  No worries, the yummy frosting will cover up any imperfections.

Although the recipe suggests topping this cake with shredded carrot, I love the look of the marzipan carrots you often see at the grocery store.  Not ever worked with marzipan, I decided to try something else.  Little carrots made out of orange and green chocolate discs.  (Hello Cupcake makes some with orange and green starbursts, but I did not have any)

I traced some carrots on the back of parchment paper and then melted the chocolate discs in freezer bags in the microwave.  Cut a little notch in the corners and started creating!

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Here is the delicious, moist and pretty cute slice on a plate.

Although we are not serving it until tomorrow I wanted to take the picture and of course take a bite!!

I am hopeful the cream cheese frosting will harden up slightly.  I have not covered it yet and if you did there would be quite the mess.

Happy Easter and Passover to all my wonderful readers!

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Carrot Cake: From Cooking LIght Magazine

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (about 6 3/4 ounces)
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups grated carrot
• 1 1/2 cups canned crushed pineapple, drained
• Cooking spray
• Frosting:
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 (8-ounce) block 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Additional grated carrot (optional)

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• To prepare cake, lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, coconut, pecans, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk. Combine oil and eggs; stir well. Stir egg mixture, grated carrot, and pineapple into flour mixture. Spoon batter into a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.
• To prepare frosting, combine butter and cream cheese in a large bowl. Beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar and vanilla just until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cake. Garnish each serving with grated carrot, if desired.

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