By Linda Cicero
Knight Ridder Newspapers
(KRT)
Q: I am looking for a carrot cake recipe that calls for jars of baby-food carrots. It is a delicious, smooth cake. -Cathy Castelli, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
A: This recipe probably dates to the days before food processors, when grating carrots by hand was a real chore. The cake's texture is certainly lighter than the traditional carrot cake. Personally, I prefer the old, moist, bordering-on-heavy cake with discernible bits of carrot. I will confess, however, to relying on baby food bananas to make banana bread or cake when I haven't planned ahead.
Carrot Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1-½ cups vegetable oil
2 (6-ounce) jars baby-food carrots
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts
½ cup raisins
Cream cheese frosting (see note)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan.
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In another bowl, beat the sugar with the oil for 1 minute. Add baby food, then eggs, one at a time. Beat in the vanilla.
Beat in all but about ¼ cup of flour mixture. Toss nuts and raisins in flour, then fold into batter.
Pour into pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes, until cake tests done. Cool on wire rack before frosting. Makes 12 servings.
Note: For frosting, beat 8 ounces softened cream cheese with ¼ cup butter until smooth; beat in 1 pound confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla until creamy.
Per serving: 806 calories (51 percent from fat), 45.7 g fat (10.9 g saturated, 12.2 g monounsaturated), 102.5 cholesterol, 7.9 g protein, 95.1 g carbohydrates, 2.1 g fiber, 456 mg sodium.
© 2003, The Miami Herald.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
