Recipe: Carrot Cake

It's the first time i've ever made a carrot cake, and this is the recipe I used. When cooked just right it makes the most lovely, moist cinnamon-sweet cake!

You will need:

300g plain flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

200g soft brown sugar

4 eggs

250ml oil

1 orange, zested

200g carrots, finely grated

And for Cream Cheese Frosting:

125g unsalted butter at room temperature

50g icing sugar

250g cream cheese

Preheat the oven to 150°C/Gas 2. Sift the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda together and stir in the sugar. Beat the eggs with the oil and orange zest. Stir in the carrots and fold everything into the flour mixture. Divide the mixture between two tins and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted through the centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave to cool.

For the frosting, beat the butter and icing sugar together until soft and then beat in the cream cheese. Chill the mixture until it's thick but spreadable. Place the first cake topside down on a serving plate and spread a thick layer of frosting on top. Carefully place the second cake, topside up this time onto the first cake and cover both cakes with frosting.

Note: I made this cake in your average sized shallow sandwich tin - remember the finished cake will be double that size!