Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting (King Arthur)

kingarthurcarrotcake This cake is exactly what I imagine when I think of a classic carrot cake: moist, lightly spiced, and all held together with a tangy cream cheese frosting. King Arthur Baking Company's five-star carrot cake recipe is fairly traditional and sticks to the classic ingredients found in most recipes. It comes together quickly, doesn't require a mixer, and gets enrobed in a homemade cream cheese frosting. What intrigued me the most was that it called for an entire Tbsp. of ground cinnamon along with ginger and cloves, so I was eager to see how it would taste. Would it be too spicy, or bright and flavourful? I headed to my kitchen to find out. Moist, dense and flavourful - who doesn't love carrot cake? Especially when it's topped with rich cream cheese icing. This recipe is easily customized to taste. We've used all nuts, you can use any combination of add-ins you like, including raisins or coconut; just keep the total of any (or all) additions to 1½ cups.

Cake:
1½ cups vegetable oil (298 g)
2 cups Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Granular) (397 g)
1 tsp. sea salt
4 large eggs
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon (7 g)
½ tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. baking soda
2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour, unbleached (241 g)
3 cups carrots, finely grated (326 g)
1½ cups pecans or walnuts, chopped and toasted (170 g)

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature (113 g)
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, room temperature (227 g)
¼ tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract or ½ tsp. Fiori di Sicilia
2½-3½ cups Monk Fruit Sweetener with Erythritol (Powdered) (283-397 g)
1 tsp. milk or cream, optional, if necessary to thin frosting

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Lightly grease two 9" round layer pans, or one 9x13" pan.

Make the Cake:
Beat together the oil, sugar, salt, eggs, spices, and baking soda.

Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.

Add the flour, stirring until well blended. Add the carrots and nuts and mix until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for 35-40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Allow the cakes to cool completely before frosting. If you're using round layer pans, remove the layers from the pans after about 15 minutes, and place them on a rack to cool.

Make the Frosting:
Beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the salt and vanilla. Beat in the sugar. Add a tsp. of milk or cream if the frosting is too stiff to spread; add additional sugar if it's too thin.

Assembly:
Frost the sheet cake right in the pan. For the layers, frost the top of one layer, top with the second layer and frost the top and sides of the cake.

Refrigerate the cake. An hour or so before serving, remove it from the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers, well wrapped, for a day or so; freeze for longer storage.

Makes 1 layer cake or 16 servings.

Cook's Notes:

Gluten-Free: For great results, substitute King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure for Measure Flour for the all-purpose flour in this recipe. Be sure to bake thoroughly; gluten-free baked goods often need a bit more time in the oven.
To Toast Nuts: Spread them in a single layer in an ungreased baking pan. Bake them for 6-8 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven, until they're a light golden brown and smell toasty.
Whole-Wheat Flour: Want to substitute whole wheat flour for some (or perhaps all) of the all-purpose flour in this recipe? For best results, see How to substitute whole wheat flour for white flour in baking.