Knead the Dough

This recipe started as the Carrot Top Cake recipe from Carrot Top Pastries in NYC.  I found it in the New York Cookbook by Molly O’Neill.  Wouldn’t you know I ran out of carrots, didn’t have walnuts & felt like using up a nub of fresh ginger as well as the last handful of raisins and I really don’t like baking with white sugar.  The recipe below is my version of carrot cake and includes the swaps I made to create the spicy/sweet, moist & rich cake pictured above.  I was a half a package short of cream cheese, other wise the frosting recipe did not go under any changes.  Oh and I also used an extra cup of chopped pecans to garnish the sides of the cake.  Which leads me to an important question.  How many changes to a recipe do you have to make before you can claim it?

Carrot-Zucchini Cake 

1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups carrots, grated
1 cup zucchini, grated
1 cup pecans, toasted & coarsely chopped
2 cups all purpose flour 1 tbl baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon ground
.5 tsp nutmeg, ground
2 tsp fresh ginger, grated fine w/microplane
.5 tsp salt
2 tbl raisins
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350° & spray your favorite cake pan or 2 ea. 8 in. rounds.  I used my stand mixer but this can be done by hand.  In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients except eggs.  Once ingredients are combined, add eggs, mix well, pour in to prepared pan(s).  Bake until cake is springy to the touch.  About 30 min.  Let cool on wire rack, about 10 min., and remove from pan. 

Carrot Top Pastries Cream Cheese Frosting

4 tbl butter, unsalted & softened
.25 cup shortening
8 oz cream cheese
2 tbl milk
1 tbl vanilla extract
1.5 cups powdered sugar

Cream together the butter, shortening & cream cheese in a bowl w/ wooden spoon or mixer.  Add milk, vanilla & powdered sugar - mix until smooth.  Refrigerate until cake is cool enough to frost.