Carrot cake

In my kitchen, baking has been ongoing for a while now, from the time when my brother handed me down his convection oven. Usually, I get stunned with all wonderful recipes from Milu because she loves baking from scratch. So, I just rely on Ms.Betty crocker for my cookies and cakes.
My friend Yun Ping baked a cake for us a few months back. It was so delicious and soft. When me and Manu determinedly finished a significant portion of the cake, she mentioned that it is really very easy to prepare and shared the recipe with us . 

Ingredients

• 1 cup. flour
• 1 cup. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 cup. grated carrots
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup. canola oil
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, well drained

The Magic steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit or 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Mix together flour, sugar, soda, salt, cinnamon, carrots and walnuts. Set aside.
3. Beat the eggs until frothy.Then slowly add in the oil. Add the flour mixture all at once and blend, just until everything comes together. Then add the pineapple and mix for just a few seconds.
4. Bake 20-23 minutes and then test with a toothpick for doneness. Let the cake cool in pan for 5 minutes. Remove from the rack and let cool for about 1 hour.

The ingredient I love the most in this recipe is cinnamon powder. So, even when the cake is warm, it doesn't have an egg smell. :) Brilliant idea!
I skipped the crushed pineapple, and also made the with a little less sugar. I did not do the frosting as well. On a couple of rush days, we packed few slices for breakfast. It goes well with black tea.

I do not have a picture of the full cake. It smelled so good that we started eating it as soon as it was done. Have to say, tastes the best when its warm!

Last wednesday, when I invited my friends over for dinner, but the cooking-gas ran out, we finished the cake while waiting for alternate cooking arrangements. So, I guess it was good :)

Oh, there is a frosting part for the cake, which I did not make. 

Cream Cheese Frosting:4 oz. cream cheese2 Tablespoon. butter1 cup powdered sugar1/4 tsp. lemon extract1/2 tsp. vanilla1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts for garnish

Cream the cream cheese and butter together. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and cream for another minute. Add the lemon extract, vanilla and powdered sugar. Beat for 1 minute, scrape down the bowl and beat for another 2 minutes, until frosting is fluffy.
To assemble: Frost cake with cream cheese frosting and top with chopped nuts.

Cake Time !!!!

My cooking experiments continue ...
Wish to make a cake and dont have an oven ??

Here comes the simplest recipe ..

1) 4 cups all purpose flour (maida)
2) 4 cups sugar
3) 400 gm unsalted butter
4) 4 tsp vanilla essence
5) 4 tsp baking powder
6) 1 – 1 ½ cups of milk
7) 8 eggs
Note: If you need chocolate cake, then take 3 cups of maida and1 cup of coco powder instead of #1.

Dissolve the butter in milk
Make fine Powder of the sugar (a mixer ll be of help here).
Beat together 2, 3, 4, 6, 7
Sieve 1 and 5 atleast three times to evenly mix the baking powder with maida.
Beat this also with the previous mixture
Take the vessel that fits in your pressure cooker and spread butter on all sides to avoid sticking (if possible use butter paper…that is better…then it wont stick at all)
Place the ring at the bottom of the pressure cooker and put the vessel on top of the ring. This is to prevent the cake from getting burnt !
(NOTE: Not even a drop of water in the pressure cooker)

Put on highest flame for abt 7 mnts. Then low the flame to least and keep for arnd 25 – 30 mnts.
CAKE IS READY !!!!!!! N’JOY !!!!!

Dont you want a chocolate frosting on top of the cake ?

1) 2 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
2) 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
3) 6 tablespoons butter
4) 5 tablespoons evaporated milk
5) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a medium bowl, sift together the confectioners' sugar and cocoa, and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth, then gradually beat in sugar mixture
alternately with evaporated milk. Blend in vanilla.
Beat until light and fluffy. If necessary, adjust consistency with more milk or sugar

And the final result is ...