Loaf of Carroty Goodness

Mom asked me to make carrot cake. I took the challenge and wanted to make something different out of it. Of course, she wouldn't have any of that. So to compromise I halved the recipe batter and the frosting. I made her a carrot cake without the layers and baked it in a loaf pan. The other half of the recipe went to my Christmas Project.

Normally we would not add the cream cheese frosting for our carrot cakes. But I wanted to play with food coloring that time so I went ahead. I enjoyed making pink and green colored frosting. As a result, I had 3 colors of frosting: white which ended up on the carrot loaf; pink for chocolate cupcake 1 and green for chocolate cup cake 2. I still had a lot left over and decided to do this. Just click on the link to find out ;).

For amateur "food colorists", do be careful that you do not get some on your palms. I ended up having red and green spots. But need not be alarmed, they wear off in time.

Carrot Cake
from Mom's Recipe files

The Ingredients:

The Cake:
   3 eggs, beaten
   1 1/2 cups sugar
   1/4 cup vegetable oil
   1 teaspoon vanilla
   1 teaspoon baking soda
   1 teaspoon salt
   1 teaspoon cinnamon
   2 cups flour
   3/4 cup buttermilk*
   3 cups grated carrots (about 1 - 1/2 kilo carrots, peeled and grated)
   1/2 c. chopped nuts


Cake Cooking Procedure:
Preheat your oven at 350 degrees. Grease and dredge 2 9x9 round cake pans or 2 loaf pans. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Beat the eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla together. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture then 1/2 of the buttermilk; add the flour and buttermilk alternately until the mixture is slightly lumpy. Add carrots and nuts; blend well. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the cake is done**.

Prepare the frosting recipe below.

If you used 2 9x9 round pans, Frost the top of the bottom layer by spreading almost 1/3 of the frosting. Place the second cake on top. Frost the top and sides with the remaining frosting.

If you used loaf pans, divide the frosting into to and frost each of the loaves.

The Cream Cheese Frosting:
   3 ounces cream cheese, softened
   1/4 cup butter or margarine
   2 cups powdered sugar
   2 teaspoons vanilla
   1/4 cup chopped nuts

Frosting Procedure:
Cream butter and cream cheese. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar. Fold in the nuts.

My Notes:
* Buttermilk Substitute
   If buttermilk is not available, add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice for every 1 cup minus 1 tablespoon of milk. Let it stand for a at least 10 to 15 minutes.

** Cake-is-Done Test
   You may use the knife or toothpick test to check if the cake is done. Insert the knife at the center of the cake; when you pull it out and it comes out clean, the cake is done. If not, continue to let it cook and retest.