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Easy carrot cake

Name: Easy carrot cake
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: Serves 10-12
Ingredients: Butter, for greasing; 100g raisins; 4 tbsp sweet sherry or orange juice; 3 large free-range eggs; 175ml sunflower oil; 200g light muscovado sugar; 2 tsp ground cinnamon; 225g self-raising flour; ½ tsp baking powder; ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda; 50g desiccated coconut; 60g walnut pieces, plus extra for the topping; 200g carrot, roughly grated; For the icing; 300g low-fat cream cheese; 50g icing sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract

Published: 13 Jul 18
Updated: 18 Mar 24

It’s always good to have a carrot cake recipe up your sleeve for birthdays and celebrations. This subtly spiced cake with cream cheese frosting is one everyone should have in their repertoire.

Or, how about Paul Hollywood’s ultimate carrot cake?

Easy
February 2009

Test kitchen approved

Serves 10-12
Takes 15 minutes to make, 45 minutes in the oven, plus cooling

It’s always good to have a carrot cake recipe up your sleeve for birthdays and celebrations. This subtly spiced cake with cream cheese frosting is one everyone should have in their repertoire.

Or, how about Paul Hollywood’s ultimate carrot cake?

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 406kcals
Fat: 23g (6.5g saturated)
Protein: 5.3g
Carbohydrates: 43.4g (27.8g sugars)
Salt: 0.7g

For 12 servings

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Ingredients

Butter, for greasing
100g raisins
4 tbsp sweet sherry or orange juice
3 large free-range eggs
175ml sunflower oil
200g light muscovado sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
225g self-raising flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
50g desiccated coconut
60g walnut pieces, plus extra for the topping
200g carrot, roughly grated

For the icing

300g low-fat cream cheese
50g icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

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Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4. Grease a 22cm round, loose-bottomed cake tin with a little butter. Line the base of the tin with a circle of baking paper.
Place the raisins in a pan with the sherry or orange juice and bring to the boil. Simmer gently for 2 minutes until the raisins have absorbed all of the liquid. Set aside.
Put the eggs, sunflower oil and sugar in a large bowl and whisk with an electric whisk for about 3 minutes, until the mixture becomes creamy.

Sift the cinnamon, flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda over the mixture, and fold it in with the coconut, walnuts, carrot and raisins. Spoon into the tin and bake for 45 minutes or until a skewer pushed into the cakes centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
For the icing, beat the cream cheese with the icing sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy, adding more icing sugar to taste, if needed. Spread over the top and sides of the cake and sprinkle with extra walnuts.