Cardamom-Spiced Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe by - CHOW
I made this (with some modifications) while watching Treme on HBO. Not done yet but my apt smells wonderful.
My version:
INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons greek yogurt
- 1/4 half and half
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups grated carrots
- 2 apples, thinly sliced
- 1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
INSTRUCTIONS
- Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange the rack in the middle. Coat two 8-inch cake pans with butter and flour, and tap out any excess flour. Set aside.
- Combine flour, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl, and whisk to aerate and break up any lumps. Set aside.
- Combine eggs, sugar, oil, butter, greek yogurt, half&ha;f and vanilla in a large bowl, and whisk until eggs are broken up and mixture is thoroughly combined.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in flour mixture until just combined.
- Fold in carrots, ginger, apples, and pecans until evenly mixed.
- Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 to 60 minutes.
- Remove cakes from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool, about 15 minutes. Run a knife around the perimeter of each, and turn cakes out onto the rack to cool completely.
To frost, place a cake layer on an 8-inch cardboard round, a tart-pan bottom, or a cake plate. Evenly spread about 1/3 of the frosting over the top of the layer. Stack the second layer, and evenly spread another 1/3 of the frosting over the top and sides of the whole cake. (Don’t worry about looks at this point—this is just a basecoat, a.k.a. a crumb layer, and it will be covered up later.) Place in the refrigerator until frosting is set up and slightly hard, about 15 minutes. Remove from the refrigerator and spread remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake, ensuring it’s as even as possible. Serve.
