This recipe contains alcohol. Use of alcohol is the responsibility of the user, should be used in moderation and in accordance with local laws of country, state or region. brandy

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This is a delux carrot cake with a sumtuous frosting to delight the palate from the kitchens of  chrismukkah

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I'm pretty sure I promised this one to  xenotropos- so this has been a LONG time coming :3

This recipe I got from my local Roche. Bros. supermarket - from their 'Tidbits' magazine and more often than not, has some great recipes in it!

Now- please note that this supermarket just LOVES to plug their own store brand- (for example "Food Club AP flour", "Food Club baking powder", etc.)

...I think I can live without the "food club" part, don't you folks :P

* Optional

For the Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour (I'm pretty sure you can also use gluten free, if you dont like / cant handle the gluten)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
good shake of nutmeg

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 medium carrots, finely shredded (about 3 cups)

1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple in juice (I had the can of chunks- but, its nothing a mini-chopper cant take care of :P)*
1/2 cup raisins* (I actually used some golden raisins, plus a good bit of dried currants)
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped candied ginger*
(I still had a good bit of it leftover, I figured why not :P)
1 nip of brandy* (VERY optional- I used this to 'plump' the raisins/currants)

1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts, toasted*

For the Frosting:

1 1/2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese- I used two whole blocks of Neufchatel*
3/4 cup (or 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar...um...here, oddly enough, I cut down the sugar to TWO cups, and quite frankly, thats all you need. (I mean- the cake has got enough sugar in it, on its own, so yeah :P)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon extract*
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

To make:

1.) Prepare carrot cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with baking spray (and a dusting of flour- it'll pop right out once its all said and done, instead of still stick a bit)

In a large bowl, combine, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Whisk it around so that all of it gets incorporated.

2.) In a medium-sized bowl, with mixer at medium speed (er...did this by hand folks- I dont have a mixer and my beater is WAY too strong, even on the first speed *dies*) beat granulated sugar and oil until just combined. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat for two minutes scraping the sides with a spatula. Add lemon zest and vanilla and beat for another 30 seconds or until blended.

Now here I will mention: In a separate medium-sized bowl...off to the side...you can have your raisins and currants soaking away in the brandy.

And- once you have peeled the carrots a bit and removed the ends- get a microplane and shred those carrots!!! Once everythings all shredded *whew* you can just mix it all around so that the booze coats everything :P

One other thing- by now, your oven will have let you know that it is ready to go heat-wise...granted your cake might not be ready at this stage!

BUT- what you CAN do is, get a small cookie sheet- cover it with a bit of foil, or parchment paper- and toast your walnuts in it for about 10 minutes!

Then get back to what you were doing, which is...

3.) Gradually add the wet mix (the egg & sugar stuff) to the flour and stir until combined. This would ALSO be the time you should throw in the carrot/raising/brandy goodness and keep folding that all into the mix...plus the chopped pineapple plus juice if so desired (I kept the pineapple, but drank the juice)

With the candied ginger, just take a minute or two to chop that roughly, and stir that in as well.

By then, the walnuts will be done...just take them out, let rest for a minute...please resist eating said toasted walnuts *nom nom* :P

Once those have cooled, get a ziploc bag, throw them in the bag...seal it up and then just give them a few good whacks with your mallet or other blunt object. Don't turn it into a dust- you do want nice bits that can spread out.
Stir into the batter once again...and then...

4.) Pour batter evenly into prepared pans. Bake 35 to 45 minutes (I did it for 40 myself, but it might depend on your own oven- not to mention if you live at a high altitude!) or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pans on wire rack for about 10 minutes, then invert on the wire rack to cool completely.

And while its doing THAT...time to make the frosting!

5.) In a large bowl- and more preferably, with that bowl in your sink- with your mixer on low speed, beat cream cheese and butter for 3 minutes or until smooth, scraping the sides with a spatula every so often. Gradually add powdered sugar- a cup at a time folks, DON'T throw in the whole 2 or 3 3/4 cups in all at once, or you'll end up looking like a powdered donut :P

Add lemon juice, zest and vanilla extract and keep beating until its all well-combined. What it also needed was just a teaspoon or two of warm water, just to get the right consistency.

Chill frosting for 30 minutes so that it can firm up, then frost with a flat butter knife or spatula- it said to frost it on the rounded side down, but um...well, didn't do that, as you can see :P

When in doubt, I also still have a good cup of leftover frosting, just in case anyone has an 'uneven' layer....or frosting shots *burp*

Sprinkle with any leftover nuts, if desired...

Slice up and serve for Easter / Mother's Day, enjoy!

Rated mature for the alcohol

Inset Image

And here is a slice of said carrot cake in case you were wondering :3

And HOLY CRAP this is good...the candied ginger I would DEFINITELY add in, it really adds a punch to otherwise regular carrot cake (though I have seen other versions more tropical, with coconut, and macadamias in it)

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Allergy warning – recipe contains treenut & egg products