The Home Economics Bit
A (Very) Brief History of Carrot Cake
Carrot cake is a sweet treat that uses grated carrots as a natural sweetener and to add moisture and texture to the cake.
It is reported that the first ever carrot cake recipe appeared in a French cookbook published in Britain in 1827.
During World War II, England was forced to ration sweeteners. As a substitute, the government promoted the usage of carrots to provide the sweet factor in cakes and puddings.
It wasn’t until the 1960s that carrot cake was paired with decadent cream cheese icing.
For more, see The History Of Carrot Cake Goes Back Way Longer Than You Might Expect (tastingtable.com)
Gluten Free Carrot Cake
A moist, sweet and lightly spiced gluten free carrot loaf cake, topped with a decadent cream cheese icing. Delicious.
Ingredients
- 175 ml sunflower oil
- 3 large eggs
- 250 g carrots grated
- 200 g soft light brown sugar
- 200 g *gluten free self raising flour blend sifted
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda ensure it's gluten free
- 1 tsp ground ginger ensure it's gluten free
- 1 tsp nutmeg ensure it's gluten free
- 1 tsp mixed spice ensure it's gluten free
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon ensure it's gluten free
For the cream cheese frosting
- 140 g butter at room temperature
- 140 g icing sugar sifted
- 250 g mascarpone
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan).
- Wash and grate the carrots. Set aside.
- Add the sunflower oil, eggs and sugar to a large mixing bowl, and whisk to combine.
- Add the grated carrots. Whisk again until just combined.
- Sieve in the gluten free self raising flour blend, the bicarbonate of soda, and the spices. Whisk until evenly incorporated, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.
- Pour the mixture into the lined loaf tin, and bake in the preheated oven for 55-60 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
- Once baked, allow the cake to cool in the tin for 15-20 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
For the cream cheese frosting
- Beat the butter until it is very soft and has turned paler in colour (approx. 2-3 minutes).
- Sieve in the icing sugar and beat until the mixture is smooth and pale (approx. 5 minutes). Make sure to stop and scrape down the sides and the bottom of the mixing bowl at least once (using a rubber spatula), to make sure that all of the icing sugar has been fully incorporated.
- Add in the vanilla extract. Beat again for 1 minute.
- Add the mascarpone and beat until just combined. Use the rubber spatula to ensure that all of the ingredients have been thoroughly incorporated, to create a smooth cream cheese frosting.
- Pipe or spread the cream cheese frosting on top of the cooled carrot cake, and decorate as desired.
Notes
*Please note that if your flour blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum, you should add 1 tsp of xanthan gum to the 200g of flour.