Carrot Cake

                 I had made a small carrot cake last week  and  it got polished off pretty fast. So I am planning to make another one (this time bigger) so that I can take it to my friends' place too.
               Last week we had guests. Mr.KB had some of his friends coming over for tea and one of them, I was told, hates anything with chocolate. And we had done with a lot of fritters and fingerfoods that week. So Iwas not in a mood to make anything fried. Baking was the preferable option which looked out. Thought of making brownies. That was when the 'no chocolate' bell rang in my head. So what should I bake then? I had been planning to make carrot cake for a while and had a bunch of fresh and juicy carrots resting in peace in my refrigerator too. They were taken out from their undisturbed abode and transformed into carrot grates to make the subject of talk yummy.

           I was a little apprehensive as to how it may taste. A cake that tasted like a bunch of cooked carrots was definitely a No No. I even pictured Mr.KB's friend telling him with a grimace that he preferred chocolate to vegetable cakes. Had a mind to throw in some nuts, but decided otherwise later. Fingers crossed, I waited for the cake to rise and get done.. and my nose flared to pick even the slightest hint of that 'cooked vegetable smell' which may erupt from the oven. What reached my nostrils instead was cinnamon and something sweet. So, I don't have to worry about the smell of the cake at least. That was a relief!

          Now, for the taste. I got some bits and flakes to taste as I levelled the base of the cake with my serrated knife. Wow! not at all carroty! I resisted the temptation to dig in as I was planing to serve it whole, without disturbing the shape. Didn't have time for frosting. So decided on sprinkles of icing sugar. Garnished the top with carrot slices passed through my design slicer and took it to the tea table and the rest is history.. :)

Carrot Cake Recipe

Things you need:

(To make a small cake enough for 5 to 6 persons)

1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/4 cups(120g) grated carrots
2 large eggs
3/4 cup (150g) powdered sugar
1/2 cup (120ml) veg.oil/canola oil
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degreeC (350 degree F) and place rack in center of the oven. Butter a medium cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
2. Peel and finely grate the carrots. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground cinnamon.
3. In a bowl, beat the eggs until frothy (about 1 minute). Gradually add the sugar and beat until the batter is thick and light coloured (abt 3-4 min). Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in the vanilla extract. Now fold in the flour mixture and grated carrots with a rubber spatula until just combined.
4. Transfer the batter to the lined baking pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hr at 180 degree C.
5. Remove from oven when done or when a skewer inserted into the center come out with out crumps and let cool on a wire rack. After about 5 to 10 minutes, invert the cake carefully onto the wire wrack and cool completely.
6. Serve sliced with sprinkles of icing sugar and carrot slices. Enjoy!