Baking
Carrot Cake with Orange Blossom Frosting
Serves 10
Ingredients
For the Carrot Cake
- 3 eggs
- 150ml vegetable oil, plus extra for greasing
- 200g light brown sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 340g carrots, grated
- 100g golden raisins
- 100g walnuts, chopped
- 200g self-raising flour
- 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
For the Orange Blossom Frosting
- 300g cream cheese, chilled
- 70g Kerrygold Original Irish Butter, room temperature
- 300g icing sugar, sifted
- 1 orange, zest only
- 1 tsp orange blossom water
Directions
Recipe by: Chef Clodagh McKenna
2. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, then add the oil, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, grated carrots, raisins and chopped walnuts.
3. Sift in the rest of the dry ingredients and bring the mixture together using a wooden or large metal spoon until well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin, smooth the surface and bake in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. If you are using a ceramic baking dish then you will need to add 15 minutes to the cooking time.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for about 5 minutes before removing. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving.
6. Using a palette knife, spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake, dipping the knife into a bowl of hot water if the icing is hard to spread out.
7. Decorate with orange zest on top of the frosting.
For the Carrot Cake:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and oil and line a 13 x 23cm loaf tin with greaseproof paper.2. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, then add the oil, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, grated carrots, raisins and chopped walnuts.
3. Sift in the rest of the dry ingredients and bring the mixture together using a wooden or large metal spoon until well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin, smooth the surface and bake in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. If you are using a ceramic baking dish then you will need to add 15 minutes to the cooking time.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for about 5 minutes before removing. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving.
For the Orange Blossom Frosting:
5. Beat the cream cheese and butter together in a bowl until well combined. Add the icing sugar, orange blossom water and finely grated zest and mix until the frosting is smooth and thick.6. Using a palette knife, spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake, dipping the knife into a bowl of hot water if the icing is hard to spread out.
7. Decorate with orange zest on top of the frosting.
