Carrot Cake recipe

I have to confess, I’m not a huge fan of cakes. Generally, I prefer a cheesecake, and find many ‘normal’ cakes a little too dry. The exception to this rule is carrot cake, which I always find delicious, and this recipe in particular produces a lovely moist cake bursting with flavour.

This carrot cake recipe is dairy-free so is perfect for those with a lactose intolerance. If you choose to add icing to the cake, that does include butter and soft cheese, but it is also delicious without the topping.

This carrot cake recipe comes from NorthLink Customer Service Supervisor Dana Flett, who is a familiar face in the Stromness Ferry Terminal. Dana made the recipe dairy-free so that it can be enjoyed by those with a lactose intolerance (though if you choose to add icing to the cake, that includes butter and soft cheese.) I’m certain Dana’s version of the cake looks much better than my effort!

The recipe is easy to make, tastes absolutely delicious, and making it will have your kitchen smelling heavenly for hours afterwards!

Ingredients

For the cake

• 150g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 150g sugar
• 250g carrots (grated)
• 150ml oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the icing

• 50g butter
• 75g soft cheese (Philadelphia or supermarket brand)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla
• 100g icing sugar

Method

1. Stir the oil, eggs, and vanilla together, then mix in the grated carrots in a big bowl.
2. Use a fork to mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, ground cinnamon and sugar together in a smaller bowl.

3. Add the dry ingredients to the big bowl of wet ingredients.
4. Line the bottom and sides of a cake tin with baking paper. We used a cake tin which measured 8 inches (across)!

5. Drop the mixture in, and bake in a preheated oven at 160°C for approximately 45 minutes.

6. To make the icing, mix the butter, soft cheese, vanilla and icing sugar together – we used an electric whisk.

7. When the carrot cake is cool, you can spread icing on the top. If you’re feeling brave, before doing that, cut the cake in half and put icing in the middle too.
8. Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top to finish.
9. Serve to the people you like best in the world!

Top Tip: We worried that the carrots, which we grated on the normal side on a grater, might be too big, and would need to be smaller. However the grated carrots worked very well at a normal size.

By Magnus Dixon
Orkney and Shetland enthusiast, family man, loves walks, likes animals, terrible at sports, dire taste in music, adores audiobooks and films, eats a little too much for his own good.

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