Carrot Cake (part 2)

Success! Isn't it beautiful? And so tasty. Every problem that I had with my previous attempt was magically solved.

Here's the recipe:


Three-Layer Carrot Cake *click here for printable version*

adapted from Teresa Sanderson, Melody Downey, and Alton Brown

Cake:
1-1/2 c. cake flour
1 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 c. sugar
1-1/2 c. canola oil
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. raw carrots, shredded, and then processed (8-10 average size carrots)
1 tsp. orange zest

Combine both flours, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt in a large bowl and set aside. Cream together sugar, oil and eggs in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add vanilla and beat well. Gradually add dry ingredients and beat on medium just until combined. Add carrots and orange zest and stir by hand just until combined.

Pour batter evenly (I actually weighed my empty batter bowl and then the bowl filled with batter so I would know how much total the batter weighed, then placed each pan onto the scale to measure exactly a third of the batter into it) into three 8” round cake pans (greased, bottom lined with parchment, then greased again). Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean (depending on your oven, you may need to rotate your pans halfway through cooking time). Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a rack and allow to cool completely.


Frosting:
24 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
8 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. kosher salt
27 ounces powdered sugar
chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted (optional)

Cream together the cream cheese and butter in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Gradually add powdered sugar, with mixer on low, beating until smooth between each addition. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours before using.

Assembly:
After frosting, pat chopped nuts around sides of cake and/or sprinkle on top if desired.

Refrigerate cake until ready to serve.


TGIP Rating--Three-Layer Carrot Cake--KEEPER. I love this cake like I have never loved carrot cake. I will make it many times in the future. A hint--if you want a frosting that is absolutely delicious on homemade cinnamon rolls (like these), use the frosting recipe as is (maybe a half recipe), plus 1/2 tsp. of orange zest. So delicious.

Next up: Grasshopper Pie with Thin Mint Crust.