Easter carrot cake features carrots, pecans, brown sugar, ground cinnamon, Greek yogurt, and vanilla bean paste. It’s a delicious flavor packed cake that’s perfectly moist and tender.
Friday. May 8. I baked a carrot cake and decorated it for Easter, a holiday that was several weeks back. Better late than never? Maybe. It’s a good cake.
This carrot cake features chopped pecans, light brown sugar, cinnamon, Greek yogurt, and vanilla bean paste. It’s a delicious cake on its own, a great snack cake loaded with flavor that does not need to be frosted.
The cake bakes up a beautiful brown color with specks of carrot and pecan. It smells incredible as it bakes and later when you cut slices the lovely aroma hits you.
This is a fairly simple cake recipe. It creates 1 thick (9-inch) round cake layer, or 3 thin (6-inch) or 2 (8-inch) round layers. It bakes well in any of these configurations. I usually make this in a three layer 6-inch round variety as seen here, as I like to frost and decorate the cakes exterior.
Today I frosted the cake with a white butter/cream cheese frosting that I flavored with vanilla extract and “painted” it abstract fashion with orange, pink, and yellow colored frosting flavored with orange, grapefruit, and lemon essential oils.
More often than not, I frost this cake with orange flavored buttercream and leave it fairly plain, not unlike the pear cake I shared a few weeks back.
The recipe as written produces enough cake batter to bake 12 regular size cupcakes. They will not need as much time in the oven (around 30 minutes) to bake up. Always check to see the little cakes have set and a toothpick or sharp knife inserted in the center of one comes out clean.
This cake starts with carrots and pecans ground down to a smooth, finely ground mix.
All-purpose flour, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and ground cinnamon are combined in a large mixing bowl and whisked together. The carrot mixture is added to this flour mixture and whisked or stirred to combine. I like to whisk the dry ingredients together and fold the carrot mix in with a spatula. Not looking to over mix.
The vegetable oil, egg, Greek yogurt and vanilla bean paste are combined in a small bowl and whisked together. The egg mixture is added to the carrot mixture and stirred or folded until smooth and well combined.
The cake batter is poured into the parchment lined cake pan(s). I use my kitchen scale, tare the pan, add some to each pan and then add or subtract until each pan has the same amount of batter. Give each pan a slight shake to make sure its level. Bake the cakes until they have completely risen and have set.
The cake layers need to cool completely before frosting or decorating.
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Easter Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Carrot Cake:
- 400 grams raw peeled orange carrots, roughly chopped
- 120 grams chopped pecans (1 cup)
- 175 grams light brown sugar (3/4 cup)
- 100 grams granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
- 225 grams all-purpose flour (1-2/3 cups)
- 5 grams baking powder (1 teaspoon)
- 5 grams baking soda (1 teaspoon)
- 4 grams ground cinnamon (1-1/2 teaspoons)
- 120 grams vegetable oil (1/2 cup)
- 70 grams Greek yogurt (1/4 cup)
- 100 grams egg (2 large), lightly beaten
- 10 grams vanilla bean paste (2 teaspoons)
Vanilla Buttercream:
- 113 grams unsalted butter (1/2 cup OR 1 stick), softened
- 250 grams powdered sugar (2 cups)
- 30 grams heavy cream (2 tablespoons), cold
- 10 grams vanilla extract (2 teaspoons)
Citrus Buttercream:
- 113 grams unsalted butter (1/2 cup OR 1 stick), softened
- 250 grams powdered sugar (2 cups)
- 15 grams heavy cream (2 tablespoons), cold
- 5 grams fresh lemon juice (1 teaspoon)
- 5 grams fresh grapefruit juice (1 teaspoon)
- 5 grams fresh orange juice (1 teaspoon)
- 3 drops (1 each) yellow, pink, and orange food coloring gel
Instructions
Carrot Cake:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line bottom of three (6-inch) round, OR two (8-inch round), or one 9-inch round baking pans with parchment paper.
- Add roughly chopped carrots to food processor and pulse until very finely chopped. Add pecans and pulse until well combined. Set aside.
- Add light brown sugar, superfine sugar, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and ground cinnamon to large mixing bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Add carrot mixture to flour mixture and stir to combine.
- Add vegetable oil, Greek yogurt, egg and vanilla bean paste to small bowl. Whisk to combine.
- Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Fold together with spatula until smooth.
- Divide cake batter evenly between cake pans. Bake 45 to 60 minutes (depending on the size of pan you’ve chosen), or until cakes are set, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.
- Remove pans from oven and place on wire rack. Allow cakes to cool completely before inverting and removing from pans.
- Remove parchment from bottoms of cake layers.
Vanilla Buttercream:
- Add unsalted butter to stand mixer. Beat on medium speed for 5 minutes. Add powdered sugar and beat on medium for 5 minutes.
- Add heavy cream and vanilla extract. Beat on low until incorporated.
Citrus Buttercream:
- Add unsalted butter to stand mixer. Beat on medium speed for 5 minutes. Add powdered sugar and beat on medium for 5 minutes.
- Add heavy cream and beat on low until incorporated.
- Divide buttercream into three small bowls.
- Add fresh lemon juice and 1 drop yellow food coloring gel to one bowl. Stir to combine.
- Add fresh grapefruit juice and 1 drop pink food coloring gel to one bowl. Stir to combine.
- Add fresh orange juice and 1 drop orange food coloring gel to one bowl. Stir to combine.
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