Carrot Cake With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe 455 Food

CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Coat three 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper; coat the parchment with more cooking spray. Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and bake until toasted, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool, then roughly chop 1 1/2 cups walnuts and finely chop 1 1/2 cups. Set aside the finely chopped nuts for topping.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat the vegetable oil, granulated sugar and brown sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until just combined. With the mixer on medium-low speed, beat in the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk, until combined. Stir in the vanilla. Gently fold in the carrots, raisins and roughly chopped walnuts with a rubber spatula.
• Divide the batter among the cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer to racks and let cool 20 minutes in the pans. Remove the cakes from the pans, remove the parchment and let cool completely on the racks.
• Meanwhile, make the frosting: Beat the butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and vanilla in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
• Place one cake layer on a platter or cake stand and spread 1 cup frosting on top. Add another cake layer, spread with another 1 cup frosting and then add the last cake layer. Cover the top and sides of the cake with a very thin layer of frosting (this is the crumb coat). Refrigerate 1 hour.
• Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting, then carefully press the finely chopped walnuts into the sides.

AWESOME CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
• In a large bowl, combine grated carrots, flour, white sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in eggs, oil, 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, pineapple and 3/4 cup chopped pecans. Spoon batter into prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.
• To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, Neufchatel cheese, 1/2 cup butter or margarine and 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla. Beat until smooth, then stir in 1 cup chopped pecans. Spread on cooled cake.

CARROT CAKE WITH MAPLE-CREAM CHEESE ICING

Steps:

• For cake:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch-diameter cake pans. Line bottom of pans with waxed paper. Butter and flour paper; tap out excess flour. Whisk flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in medium bowl to blend. Whisk sugar and oil in large bowl until well blended. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time. Add flour mixture and stir until blended. Stir in carrots, walnuts and ginger. Divide batter between prepared pans.
• Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool cakes in pans 15 minutes. Turn out onto racks. Peel off waxed paper; cool cakes completely.
• For icing:
• Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar and beat at low speed until well blended. Beat in maple syrup. Chill until just firm enough to spread, 30 minutes.
• Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread with 3/4 cup icing. Top with second layer. Spread remaining icing over entire cake. Arrange walnut halves around top edge. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; chill. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving.)

OLD-FASHIONED CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and oil. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; beat into egg mixture. Stir in carrots., Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, in another large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar. Add enough milk to achieve desired spreading consistency. Reserve 1/2 cup frosting for decorating if desired. If desired, stir walnuts into remaining frosting. , Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. If decorating the cake, tint 1/4 cup reserved frosting orange and 1/4 cup green. Cut a small hole in the corner of pastry or plastic bag; insert #7 round pastry tip. Fill the bag with orange frosting. Pipe twelve carrots on top of cake, so each slice will have a carrot. Using #67 leaf pastry tip and the green frosting, pipe a leaf at the top of each carrot. , Store cake in the refrigerator.

CARROT CAKE WITH MAPLE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger in medium bowl to blend. Whisk sugar and oil in large bowl until well blended. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time. Add flour mixture and stir until blended. Stir in carrots, walnuts and raisins, if using them. Divide batter among cupcake molds, filling 3/4 of each.
• Bake cupcakes 14 to 18 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of one comes out clean. Let cool in pans for five minutes or so, then transfer cakes to a cooling rack. Let cool completely before icing them.
• To make a carrot layer cake: Butter two 9-inch-diameter cake pans instead of cupcake molds. Line bottom of pans with waxed paper. Butter and flour paper; tap out excess flour. Divide the batter between the prepared pans, and bake the layers for about 40 minutes each, or until a tester inserted into center comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans 15 minutes. Turn out onto racks. Peel off waxed paper; cool cakes completely.
• In a stand mixer beat all the ingredients on medium until fluffy. Chill the frosting for 10 to 20 minutes, until it has set up enough to spread smoothly.
• The spazzy star decorations were created by putting the maple cream cheese frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and dolloping away. An extra layer of dollops were piped nearer to the center, to create a domed effect.
• To assemble a carrot layer cake, frost the top of one cake, place the other cake on top. Frost the sides and top, swirling decoratively. Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes to set up frosting.