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Monday, April 5, 2010

Carrot Cake Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting


With a tupperware full of cream cheese frosting from the cinnamon rolls, I knew I had to find another use for it...aside from eating it straight from the container, which I had already done plenty of! My trusty friend Google led me to this recipe for carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. I liked that it was made in a loaf pan which is unusual for carrot cake. This carrot cake omits walnuts, pineapple, and coconut, all features of various carrot cake recipes. The simplicity of this worked, however, with the carrot and spices nicely supplementing the shining glory that is cream cheese frosting :) I doubled the recipe to make two loaves but pawned one off on my brother-in-law.

My only complaint was how much it dried out in the fridge. Fresh out of the oven it was amazing, and once it cooled I wrapped it up and stuck it in the fridge. Twenty-four hours later it had lost the majority of its moisture. Granted, it still tasted good (nothing a few extra spoonfuls of cream cheese frosting can't fix!), but compared to the first day it was a disappointment. Thus, I suggest making this and serving it all on the same day!

Carrot Cake Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting
from the Deelish Dish
*makes 2 9x5 loaves

Ingredients:
-2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
-2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-2 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp salt
-1 tsp ground cinnamon
-1 tsp ground nutmeg
-1 cup packed dark brown sugar (I used light brown sugar)
-4 large eggs
-3 tsp vanilla extract
-2 cups packed grated carrots (about 4 carrots)
-your favorite cream cheese frosting

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease two 9 x 5 loaf pans.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Beat in carrots.
4. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until just combined.
5. Evenly divide batter between the two loaf pans. Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
6. Turn cakes onto a wire rack and let cool completely. When cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting if desired.