Baking for Beginners: Carrot and Orange Cake

There is nothing finer than a slice of moist, light carrot cake with a cup of tea in the afternoon.
You can even kid yourself it's healthy, if you ignore all the sugar and icing. But I wanted
something a bit lighter and fresher for summer. And so this carrot and orange combination was
born, inspired by two things:

1) our summer citrus Just Desserts theme - there's still time to get your recipes in!

2) a carrot and orange juice drink I accidentally bought, which I assumed would be horrendous
but was actually lush - refreshing, summery and a beautiful bright colour.

Cinnamon is a traditional carrot cake spice, while the ginger adds an extra kick to the flavour.
I've kept the topping simple with orange-flavoured icing, but you could add cream cheese or
buttercream if you like. But this cakes works best if you don't add too much to it, I think. It's
delicious just on its own.

Carrot and orange cake
You will need:
175g butter
175g caster sugar
3 eggs, beaten
120g carrots, grated (about 4 medium carrots)
Zest of two oranges
Juice of one orange
175g self-raising flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
For the icing
Juice of one orange
200g icing sugar
Make it!
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Grease two 18cm/7" baking tins. Don't worry
if you don't have two - if you're just making one cake, cook it for longer.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then gradually beat in the eggs.
Stir in the grated carrot (using a wooden spoon if you've been using an electric mixer,
you don't want to mush the carrot into a paste).
3. Add the orange zest and juice. I'm not going to lie - it won't look pretty at this stage. At
best, it'll look like coleslaw. At worst, it'll start to curdle. IT DOESN'T MATTER. Just
press on. The finished result will be lovely, I promise.
4. Mix together the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices and sift them into the bowl. Gently
fold it together until the flour is well mixed through. There, that looks better, doesn't it?
5. Divide between the two baking tins and pop in the oven for 25-30 minutes until a skewer
inserted into one comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tins.
6. While you're waiting, make the icing by sifting the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually
adding the orange juice to make a thin paste. When the cakes are cool, top one with the
icing and place the other on top. Drizzle the remaining icing over the top, then slice and
serve.
You might also like:

Baking for Beginners: Boozy Carrot Cake

Let Her Eat Cake: Spiced Treacle Carrot Cake

Baking for Beginners: Lemon, Basil and Almond Cake

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Carrot Cake never goes out of style and one bite will tell you why. This rich and moist spice cake, full of
grated carrot and toasted nuts, has great flavor, especially when covered with a tangy and sweet cream
cheese frosting. The interesting part is that while those pretty orange flecks of grated carrot give the
Carrot Cake color and texture, along with sweetness and moisture, its' flavor is almost indistinguishable.
I think the biggest debate surrounding the Carrot Cake is whether crushed pineapple or applesauce
should be added to the batter. Adding either of these ingredients will give the cake added flavor and
moisture so, if you like, add 1/2 cup (120 ml) of either crushed pineapple or applesauce to the batter,
right along with the oil and vanilla extract. Take note, though, that you may need to bake the carrot cake
a few minutes longer than the recipe states.

Although using carrots in baking may seem odd, Alan Davidson in 'The Oxford Companion to Food'
tells us that carrots were used in European sweet cakes since the Middle Ages when other sweeteners
were hard to find or just too expensive. In fact, carrots, along with beets, contain more sugar than most
other vegetables which might explain their use in desserts. Speaking of carrots, the orange carrots we
enjoy today originated from the purple variety grown in Afghanistan since the 7th Century AD. As
carrots moved westward into Europe the orange variety came about and this is the variety the English
settlers brought to America. 'Carrot' comes from the Greek word "karton" and the Greeks started the
belief that eating carrots would improve your eyesight. John Ayto in "An A-Z of Food & Drink" tells how
during World War II the British furthered this belief by saying that British pilots improved their night
vision by eating huge amounts of carrots. They were, however, only trying to encourage the eating of
carrots as it was one of the few foods that were not in short supply during the war.
If you would like to make marzipan carrots to decorate the top of the cake, you will need marzipan and
orange and green icing colors (can use liquid or paste food coloring). Knead a small amount of orange
food coloring into the marzipan until the color is distributed and is the desired "carrot" color. Shape into
carrots, using a toothpick to make veins. Knead a small amount of green food coloring into the
marzipan and make the carrot tops. Marzipan is a cooked mixture of finely ground almonds, sugar, and
water. It is slightly sweeter and firmer than almond paste and has a smoother texture. It comes in
plastic-wrapped rolls.
Also, for a more casual dessert you could bake this cake in a 9 x 13 x 2 inch (23 x 33 x 5 cm) pan. Just
increase the baking time to between 30 to 40 minutes.

Related Recipes You May Like




Carrot Cupcakes Carrot Muffins Hummingbird Cake Boston Cream Pie Zucchini Bread Red Velvet Cake



Carrot Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees
C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter or spray two - 9
x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm) cake pans and line the bottoms of the
pans with a circle of parchment paper.
Toast the pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until
lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool and then chop
coarsely.
Peel and finely grate the carrots.
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda,
baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon.
In bowl of electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the
eggs until frothy (about 1 minute). Gradually add the sugar
and beat until the batter is thick and light colored (about 3 -
4 minutes). Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in
the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat just until
incorporated. With a large rubber spatula fold in the grated
carrots and chopped nuts. Evenly divide the batter between
the two prepared pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a
toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about
5 -10 minutes invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove
the pans and parchment paper, and then cool completely
before frosting.
To assemble: place one cake layer onto your serving plate.
Spread with about half the frosting. Gently place the other
cake onto the frosting and spread the rest of the frosting
over the top of the cake. If desired, garnish with toasted
nuts on the top of the cake. Cover and refrigerate any
leftovers.
Serves 10 - 12.
Cream Cheese Frosting: In bowl of electric mixer (or with
a hand mixer), beat the cream cheese and butter, on low
speed, just until blended with no lumps. Gradually add the
sifted powdered sugar and beat, on low speed, until fully
incorporated and smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract, and
lemon zest.
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Quick and Easy Lemon Basil Chicken
Here's a simple chicken recipe flavored with a simple marinade of garlic, lemon, and basil. These
tasty grilled or broiled chicken breasts are great with rice, pasta, or baked potatoes.
Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breast halves, without skin
.
Marinade
3 tablespoons fresh chopped basil, or 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
juice of 2 lemons, or about 1/3 cup
1 tablespoon olive oil or canola oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
.
fresh basil or fresh parsley for garnish
Preparation:
Put chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap; gently pound to even thickness for even and
quick cooking.
Combine marinade ingredients in a plastic food storage bag; add chicken and refrigerate for 1 to
2 hours. Heat an oiled grill pan, grill rack, or broiler pan. Arrange chicken on hot pan or rack and
grill or broil for about 10 to 12 minutes, turning often. Serve with fresh basil leaves or parsley, if
desired.
Serves 4.
http://southernfood.about.com/od/chickenbreastrecipes/r/bl60110b.htm

Baked Chicken And Potatoes..
Published Friday, 12 July By Karthika
250g boneless chicken
150g baby potatoes boiled and peeled
1/2 cup onions
1/2 tspn peppercorns crushed
1/2 tspn chilly flakes
1/2 tspn oregano
1/2 tspn red pepper and white pepper
Salt and pepper
2tspns hung yogurt
1 tbsp butter
Any kind of cheese
Method
Marinate the chicken with white and red pepper,hung yogurt. Saute the chicken in a pan till
tender & dry. Melt butter in a wok, stir fry the onions and add peppercorns, red chilly flakes, salt
& white pepper. Stir-fry and then add the baby potatoes, mix well & cook for 2-3 mins.Add the
cooked chicken & mix well... Transfer to a microwave proof dish & sprinkle cheese evenly over
it. Microwave for 5 mins, garnish with capsicum & tomato julienne. Serve hot with grilled french
bread.
Report
Comments
Chicken Casserole
Published Tuesday, 16 July By Not Saying
Ingredients
1 onion
1 carrot
1 leek
1 potato
8 mushrooms
8 chicken thighs
1 x 15ml oil
1 x 15ml spoon flour
800ml stock (water and cube)
1 x 15ml spoon mixed herbs
Knife and chopping board x2
Vegetable peeler
Saucepan
Wooden spoon
Casserole dish with lid
Measuring spoon/jug
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180c or gas mark 4
2. Preheat the vegetables
peel and chop the onion
peel and chop the carrot
trim the leek and slice
peel and cut the potato into 8
slice the mushroom in half
3. With a fresh knife on a clean chopping board, remove the chicken skin and cut into chunks
4. Fry the chicken for 5 minutes in oil, until it has turned white. Place in oven proof dish
5. Add potatoes to the chicken
6.Fry the onions for 2 minutes, then add the leeks mushrooms and carrots
7. Sprinkle over the flour, then gradually add the stock, stirring all the time until thickened
8. Pour this mixture over the chicken and then add herbs
9. Cover the oven proof dish cook for 1-1.5 hours
hicken Fry
Published Wednesday, 7 August By Hima Bindu A Manae
Chicken-500g
Red chilli powder-as you require spicy or less spicy
Salt-for taste
Soya sauce-1table spoon
Ginger garlic paste-2 table spoon
Onions-1big sliced
Chillis
Method
Marinate chicken wit red chilli powder n soya sauce and salt.
After half an hour fry d chicken with oil and then add onions and ginger garlic paste and chillis.
Serve hot