CARROT CAKE + TANGY CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM
In my last post, I wrote about how it was finally starting to feel like fall in New York. Well, today it feels like WINTER! I am soooo not ready for winter yet! Therefore, in order to keep myself in the fall spirit of things, I made this four-layer carrot cake. Carrot cake has always given me this warm and cozy feeling, so it was really the only choice for a fall baking day.
Since going gluten free a year ago, I have definitely been missing the whole stop-by-the-bakery-and-get-a-slice-of-carrot-cake thing. Not that I did it so often… but when I did, it was so worth it. When I first moved to New York City five years ago for graduate school, my then-roommate and I were so obsessed with the Manhattan Diner carrot cake (still one of the best I’ve ever had), that we would quite often come home from school or studying to find the other sitting on the couch eating a (gigantic) slice.
The carrot cake recipe I have posted here is actually one that my mother has made for as long as I can remember. This means that I have no idea where the recipe came from, but it is so perfectly moist and carrot-y, as all carrot cakes should be, that I suppose it doesn’t really matter. In my version though, I swapped out the vegetable oil (lots of it!) for unsweetened natural apple sauce (perfect for fall!).
The chocolate frosting may come as a surprise, but it is inspired by the Brazilian version of carrot cake which is topped with chocolate icing. The carrot-chocolate combination is more subtle than the traditional carrot-cream-cheese, which makes for a heartier dessert -- perfect for fall.
Carrot Cake + Tangy Chocolate Buttercream
Ingredients:
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For the cake:
1½ cups sugar 1½ cups gluten-free flour mix* 2 tsp baking soda 3 tsp baking powder 2 tsp cinnamon ¼ tsp salt 1 ½ cups apple sauce 4 eggs 1 tsp vanilla 2 lb carrots (grated or chopped in a food processor) ½ cup chopped walnuts (for garnish) For the frosting: 3½ cups powdered sugar 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 tsp vanilla extract 5 tbsp cocoa powder 1 tbsp distilled white vinegar *note* I make my own gluten-free flour mix rather than buying the pre-packaged variety (although pre-packaged mixes should work just fine, too). I found my go-to mix on the blog Gluten-Free Goddess. It is a combination of 1 cup sorghum flour, 1 cup potato starch, 1/3 cup almond meal and 1 teaspoon xanthan gum. I keep a container of the mix handy at all times, so that I can just scoop out however much I need, when I need it! |
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Mix all dry ingredients together. Add the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Add the carrots and mix well until fully incorporated. Pour the batter into four 6” greased cake pans.
Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the cake(s) comes out clean.
Allow the cake(s) to cool completely before assembling.
While the cake(s) are cooling, prepare the frosting.
With a mixer, beat the butter until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating on medium-high speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Once the powdered sugar is fully incorporated, add in the vanilla and cocoa powder, and beat until just combined. Finally, add the vinegar and beat on high for 2-3 minutes, until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Now it’s time to assemble the cake!
Recipe makes one 6” cake.
Have questions or comments about this recipe? Feel free to send me an e-mail at [email protected].
Mix all dry ingredients together. Add the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Add the carrots and mix well until fully incorporated. Pour the batter into four 6” greased cake pans.
Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the cake(s) comes out clean.
Allow the cake(s) to cool completely before assembling.
While the cake(s) are cooling, prepare the frosting.
With a mixer, beat the butter until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating on medium-high speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Once the powdered sugar is fully incorporated, add in the vanilla and cocoa powder, and beat until just combined. Finally, add the vinegar and beat on high for 2-3 minutes, until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Now it’s time to assemble the cake!
Recipe makes one 6” cake.
Have questions or comments about this recipe? Feel free to send me an e-mail at [email protected].