HOMEMADE CARROT CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

This tried and true carrot cake recipe is basically my baking claim to fame (I mean, maybe just within my family but who’s counting). I have adapted it over and over, adding and removing until it was perfect…bound and determine to make a carrot cake that was as good as my husbands grandma used to make (because it’s his all time favorite dessert). I’ve shared this before as it’s a go to for Easter and my husbands birthday but I’ve gotten a bit fancier with my cake skills so I wanted to share an update. It turned out so cute for our Easter dinner yesterday!

CARROT CAKE:
4 eggs
1 1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2-3 teaspoons cinnamon (although I go a little heavier on the cinnamon for extra flavor)
3 cups of grated carrots
Optional but highly recommended ingredients: unsweetened coconut, raisins, dried cranberries, chopped walnuts or pecans
(these items will not make or break the recipe, add what you like and omit what you don’t! I use about a half cup of each of these)

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
1/2 cup butter (softened, not melted)
8 oz package of cream cheese (softened, not melted)
4 cups of confectionary sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Optional: 2-3 teaspoons cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 350. Grease two cake pans and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat together eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon continuing to beat until smooth. Stir in the carrots (and any other mix in options you choose). Pour the mix evenly among your greased pans. Bake for approximately 30-40 minutes (I start with 30 and check it using a wooden toothpick or skewer to see if the middle comes out clean). The sides should start looking golden brown. If you make cupcakes they need less time. I start with 20 minutes and check on them.
While the cake is baking, beat all frosting ingredients together in a separate mixing bowl until smooth and creamy. Side note, I usually put the butter and cream cheese out when I first start so when it’s time to make the frosting it is soft enough for mixing. Let the cake completely cool before assembling and frosting. This year since we had a big group I doubled the recipe and made some cupcakes as well. I toasted the coconut to make a ‘nest’ and used Cadbury mini chocolate eggs for the topper.

Happy Baking xo