A nut and dried fruit-free carrot cake layered with a delicious brown butter cream cheese frosting. Deliciously spiced caramelized flavors throughout!
Equipment
- 2 9" Round Cake Pans
- Mixer
- Small pot
- Spatulas
- Fine Mesh Sieve
- Wire Rack
- Measuring Spoons
- Measuring Cups
Ingredients
CAKE
- ¾ cup brown sugar lightly packed
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup coconut oil* melted
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 2 cups carrots grated (approx. 4 medium carrots)
- 1 tbsp orange zest optional (approx. 1 orange)
- 2 cups flour
- 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
FROSTING
- ¾ cup salted butter
- 6 oz. cream cheese room temperature
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp milk
Instructions
- Start by browning your butter. Place your butter into a small pot over medium heat. Swirl the pan every minute or so. As the mixture begins to separate, the milk solids will rise and then slowly drop to the bottom of the pot and begin to brown. Once browned, leave to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before moving to the fridge to set.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper
- In a bowl, sift together your flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir and set aside
- In another bowl, beat together your sugars, coconut oil, and applesauce for a minute until combined.
- Add in two of your eggs, mix them in completely, then add the remaining two eggs. Mix in your grated carrots and orange zest
- Fold in your dry ingredients until just combined, do not overmix
- Split your batter between your lined cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely (remove parchment paper from the cake)
- Once your butter has cooled to a room temperature consistency, add your room-temperature cream cheese and browned butter to a mixing bowl and beat for a minute until smooth. Sift your powdered sugar into the bowl and beat until all is incorporated. Add the milk and give one final mix.
- Once cooled, layer with frosting and top with fresh carrot shavings as desired. Enjoy!
Notes
*You don’t have to use coconut oil for this recipe. Simply swap for canola oil or olive oil if desired. If you chose olive oil, there might be a slight olive oily flavor to your cake, FYI
*If you prefer to leave out the orange zest, you do you, my friend! It adds a little citrusy tang without a fruity texture, but again, totally respect aversions to fruit in cakes
*Make sure your ingredients are at room temperature! This cake is packed, so you want to ensure that your various ingredients combine together easily and you avoid overmixing your batter, which could result in a cake with a texture much denser than you want
