Cracking the code!

 

I get this craving for the carrot cake from Draeger's Market, once every few months. This carrot cake is so good. I don't know what they do to this cake, but it's to die for! So, last night I decided to try and crack the code of their famous Carrot Cake. There is something about it, it's very simple but SO good! I used the recipe from the "Gourmet" Cookbook edited by Ruth Reichl.

The Cake: (this is for half a reipe)
About 1 cup of shredded carrots
1 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 large eggs
(4-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts


For Frosting:
4-ounces of cream cheese, softened
1/2 stick (4tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Make the Cake: Put a rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour cake pans, knocking out excess flour.
1. Shred enough carrots on smallest teardrop holes of box grater or with fine shredding disk in a food processor to measure 2 cups.
2. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir in sugar, oil, eggs, carrots, pineapple, coconut, walnuts and raisins (if using).
3. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then run a thin knife around edge of pan and invert onto rack to cool completely.

Make the Frosting: Beat together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until fluffy about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium, add confectioners’ sugar, and beat until frosting is smooth.
Place 1 cake layer bottom side up on a cake plate and spread with some of frosting. Place remaining cake layer right side up on top and spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake.

Juju notes:

I decided to just make half the recipe since there is only two of us in the house.
I ran out of oil so I was only able to use just 1/2 cup instead of 3/4 cup it asked for when cutting the recipe in half.
I used canned pineapples slices and then blended it so the consistency was very liquidity

Here is a cool trick I just discovered! Add a piece of parchment paper to the bottom before adding the cake mix to the pan. This way when the cake is cooled you can just pull it out without messing up the cake!