I was sightly hesitant about writing up this recipe, as there have been four other carrot cakes:
Carrot Cake Number One has only walnuts as an addition, with no coconut or raisins.
Carrot Cake Number Two is an upsized Cranks carrot cake and made with only wholemeal flour. I first made this as a university student 40 years ago.
Carrot Cake Number Three is light on flour/ gluten, dairy-free and baked in a Bundt pan.
Carrot Cake Number Four is both gluten-free and dairy-free, and uses ground almonds to replace any flour.
However, I have just delivered some banana muffins to an elderly neighbour who said that the carrot cake which I sent round last week (pictured above) was really delicious, on account of the coconut in it. It also kept fresh for a long time, a bonus when you are living alone.
This carrot cake, Number Five, is made in a Thermomix. As you will see from the recipe, it can also be made in a food processor. Just hold you nerve and count in seconds, as the blitzing only takes 15 – 20 seconds in total.
I know that raisins and sultanas taste almost the same, but I am not keen on raisins so have used sultanas instead.
For the Cake:
120 g plain flour
40 g wholemeal flour or wholegrain spelt flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
large pinch of fine sea salt
180 g carrots (peeled weight), sliced into 1 cm circles
80 g golden caster sugar
40 g dark brown soft sugar
30 g crème fraîche or sour cream
110 g sunflower oil
2 large eggs
50 g walnuts or pecan nuts
50 g sultanas
50 g desiccated coconut
You will also need a 2-lb loaf tin, lined with baking paper. The cake can also be baked in a 6-cup Bundt pan. I made the cake batter in a Thermomix.
How to Make:
Preheat oven to 160°C fan/ 180°C.
Place a sieve directly over the top of the TM bowl. Weigh in the flours, cinnamon, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
Remove the sieve.
Add the carrots, sugars, crème fraîche, oil and eggs. Mix 10 seconds/ speed 5.
Scrape down the sides of the TM bowl with a silicon spatula (I never use the TM spatula).
Add the walnuts or pecan nuts and mix 5 seconds/ speed 5.
Add the sultanas and coconut. Stir in with the spatula. Pour the batter into the baking tin.
Bake in the preheated oven for 55 minutes, or until the cake bounces back slightly when touched. A metal skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.
I used this recipe to make a birthday cake recently, doubling the quantities. This was iced with a cream cheese frosting which made it even better, but something not to be declared to your physician.
