I was racking my brains to find the location for a recipe for Carrot Cake I had saved somewhere. It has been sitting in my file notes for I think, several years.
Last week, I made it. The M.o.t.h. loves Carrot cakes as he figures as it is a vegetable, it is all healthy and he can have a larger helping! Although it doesn’t work like that, at least he is getting a bit more fibre in his diet!
The added bonus of cardamon gives it an aromatic hint of something more. Something a little Nordic.
Research online tells me that this recipe is adapted from the bakery of the iconic Rosendal trädgården (a horticultural garden in front of Rosendal Palace) in Stockholm.
I don’t ever ice my cakes, they are sweet enough, already – for me. And cake icing and a sub tropical climate doesn’t make a good marriage. It is melts everywhere and is so messy.
If you do want to ice the cake the cream cheese icing works really well and provides a slightly savoury and sweet combination, so popular in Scandinavian cuisine.
Carrot and Cardamon Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 225 ml sunflower oil, plus extra for greasing
- 310 g caster sugar
- 170 g grated carrot
- 3 eggs
- 240 g plain flour
- ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 40 g chopped walnuts
Icing
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 200 g cream cheese
- 180 g icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
Cook’s notes (Source: sbs.com.au)
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
Preheat the oven to 200ºC – (390º F) bit lower if using a fan-forced oven.
- Beat the oil and sugar together in a large mixing bowl for 5 minutes, until light yellowish white.
- Keep beating while you add the carrot and the eggs, one at a time.
- Add the flour, spices, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and salt. Mix for a few minutes
- Stir in the walnuts with a spatula.
- Using a greased 23 cm round cake tin or an 11 x 6 ” loaf pan, bake in the oven for 30–35 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Cool in its tin for 10 minutes then turn out. If using the loaf pan, you might have enough over to make a smaller friand loaf as well – (around 5″x3″) – good to pop in the freezer if needed later.
To make the icing by beating together all the ingredients until smooth.
Recipe originally from The New Nordic by Simon Bajada
Linking to the Trent’s Weekly Smile and Curl’s and Skirls Tea Party
A Home by the Sea 
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