May 20, 2015

Carrot Cake with Whipped Cream Cheese Icing

The linoleum floor tiles of Nana’s & Pop’s 1950’s duck egg blue painted kitchen/diner, worn thin by the foot traffic on a never-ending quest for cups of tea, remained untouched until the new millennium.

When I was 5 years old, afternoon tea was a daily ritual in their house but Sunday afternoon tea was special and took on a life of its own.

There was a celebratory air about Sunday afternoon tea as decorative china plates arrived one by one, laden with an assortment of delicious bites: homemade coconut macaroons, slices of buttered marzipan layered fruit bread, almond fingers (with a cherry on top) and cucumber sandwiches. Only now does the memory serve as a reminder that only 3 decades earlier, sugar rationing determined that anything sweet was a treat.

When dried fruits were also difficult to find, carrots were substituted in baked goods for sweetness, texture, flavor and moisture. The zen of slow cooking quick bread repertoire has just expanded. Carrot cake is a new favorite we’re taking to the Chicago Botanic Garden Farmers’ Market for our samples. It is moist, sweet, savory and topped with a light, whipped cream cheese frosting.

Sadly, afternoon tea isn’t a regular fixture for us but carrot cake squares make their way into our packed lunches, made more accessible by our own slow cooker methodology.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 2 hours high

Servings: 8-10 slices or 16-24 bars (depending on size)

Ingredients

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/4 cup grapeseed or light olive oil

½ cup granulated sugar

1/8 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

¼ + 1/8 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

¾ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup coarsely grated carrots,

For the cream cheese frosting

4 oz cream cheese, softened (I used Trader Joe’s Whipped Light)

1/4 cup unsalted butter (half of one stick)

1 1/2 cups+ confectioners’ sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large bowl, whisk the butter, oil, egg and sugars together. Whisk the buttermilk and vanilla extract in. This is your wet mixture.

Into the wet mixture add the flour, baking soda. baking powder, spices and carrot. Stir well.

Butter and flour a loaf tin. Pour the carrot cake mixture into the loaf pan. Place a piece of aluminium foil into your slow cooker insert and put the loaf tin on top. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.