The Olive Oil Carrot Cake
This recipe was shared with me by a great friend (the best way to receive recipes!) just a few weeks ago and we’ve already made it twice!
In the process, we’ve adjusted down the sugar and reduced the vanilla essence to allow the main ingredients to sing out.
INGREDIENTS
250g Chopped Pecans
200g Muscovado Sugar
75g Brown Granulated Sugar
250ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil – we used Faresse from Frantoio Ciccolella in Puglia which has a lovely buttery consistency but a good level of structure to carry the carrots and spice
4 large eggs
130g Smooth Apple Puree
½ tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
300g Plain organic (all purpose) Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
½ tsp Salt
1 ½ tsp Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp Ground Ginger
¼ tsp Ground Nutmeg
¼ tsp Ground Cloves
250g Grated Carrots (about 4 large carrots)
For the Frosting
450g Full fat Cream cheese
100g Unsalted butter
300g Icing Sugar
A pinch of salt
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 150C / 300F and line a baking sheet with parchment. Spread the chopped pecans on the sheet and toast for around 6-7 minutes. Remove and allow to cool.
Turn up the oven to 180C / 350F and grease and line 2 x 9-inch loose bottom round cake tins.
Whisk the muscovado sugar, granulated sugar, olive oil, eggs, apple puree and vanilla together until combined and no sugar lumps remain.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate, salt and spices together. Then pour the wet ingredients in to the dry ingredients and fold in with a spatula. Then fold in the carrots and pecans.
Pour the batter evenly between the two cake tins and bake for between 30-35 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
Allow the cakes to cool completely in their tins on a wire rack. Don’t try to assemble or add frosting until the cakes are cold.
To make the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter together on a medium-high speed for about 2 minutes or until smooth. Add the icing sugar and a pinch of salt and mix for a further 30 seconds then raise to a high speed and beat for around 3 minutes until copleted combined and creamy.
Assemble your cake using the frosting between the layers as well as around the outside and top.
We finished with rose petals, but you could do so with pecans or other edible flowers.
This cake keeps for up to 5 days when refrigerated.