76 | December 2017 http://www.cakedecorationmagazine.co.ukCHRISTMAS CAKE BAKER
SPICED CARROT CAKE
WITH COINTREAU SOAKED
CRANBERRIES
An indulgent alternative to traditional Christmas cake, this is perfectly spiced and
warming, yet light and moreish with a hint of festive spirit. I use orange extract in
this recipe as it gives a much stronger fl avour than orange zest and is far less messy
to use. Good quality natural orange extract is divine. I also use Cointreau for an
extra Christmastime treat!I always fi ll my carrot cake with an
American inspired cream cheese
frosting. This is essentially just
buttercream made with half butter
and half cream cheese but the
result is a wonderful creamy texture
to sandwich your cake layers
together and holds up to being
spread all over the cake if you want
a quick and easy decoration.For the carrot cake:- 500g dark brown muscovado
sugar - 450ml sunfl ower oil
- 6 large eggs
- 1 tsp orange extract
- 600g self-raising fl our
- 3 tbsp mixed spice
- 1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
- 300g dried cranberries
- 75ml Cointreau
- 600g grated carrot
- 150g desiccated coconut
- Preheat oven temp to
170°C/150°C fan/ gas mark 3. - Bake in 3 x lined 20cm (8in)
sandwich tins
1 Whisk the sugar, oil and eggs
until combined. You will need to
whisk until the sugar is all dissolved
and this should take three minutes
or so. Add the orange extract.
2 Combine the fl our, mixed spice
and bicarbonate of soda in a
separate bowl.
3 Pour Cointreau over dried
cranberries in a heatproof bowl
and heat for one to two minutes in
a microwave until the cranberrieshave absorbed most of the liquid
and plumped up. Set aside to
cool slightly.
4 Fold the dry ingredients into the
wet ingredients a third at a time.
5 Add the grated carrot, coconut,
and soaked cranberries to the cake
mixture and fold these through
until all are well covered.
6 Spoon the cake mix into three
lined 20cm sandwich tins and bake
in a 170°C oven for around forty
minutes. The cake is done when it
has risen and springs back when
pressed lightly. If you are unsure,
a skewer inserted into the centre of
the cake should come out clean or
with only a few crumbs on it.
7 Leave the cakes to cool on a
cooling rack in their tins for ten
minutes before turning them out to
cool completely.For the cream cheese frosting:- 250g unsalted butter
- 250g cream cheese
- 750g – 1kg icing sugar
1 Cream the butter in a
freestanding mixer for two to three
minutes until soft.
2 Add half of the icing sugar and
mix until combined, then add half
of the cream cheese and mix again.
3 Repeat until all of the
ingredients are thoroughly
combined and the frosting is light
and creamy. You may not need to
use a full kilo of icing sugar.
4 Use this frosting to sandwich
your layers of carrot cake together.
You will also have suffi cient frosting
to cover the top and sides of
the cake too if you like or cover
with white sugarpaste icing for a
glamorous festive showstopper.
5 For a trendy metallic drip fi nish,
sugar candy canes and poinsettia
fl owers to top this indulgent cake,
please refer to this month’s cover
DVD or visit our website to watch
the full festive tutorial. the full festive tutorial.
£12.99RRPCHARLOTTE WHITEHOW TO DECORATE IN TWO STUNNING STYLES, STEP BY STEP. SHARES HER FESTIVE CARROT CAKE RECIPE AND
WILL YOU BE TEAM CANDY CANE OR TEAM POINSETTIA?Bake the perfect carrot cake, then learn how to cover with sugarpaste and decorate in a hurry with a trendy metallic drip and adorable handmade sugar candy canes or take your time and enjoy making a vintage
glamour style poinsettia with royal icing fi nish...both are beautiful and completely delicious!1Bake and decorate a showstopping
Christmas Cake in 3 simple stages.Bake and decorate a showstopping
Christmas Cake in 3 simple stages.BEGINNERFROM^
TO THREE EXPERTEASY IN
STEPS!3FROM BEGINNER...
2TO EXPERTDecember17 DVD.indd 2 12/09/2017 15:43p76-77_Christmas Cake Baker.indd 76 06/10/2017 11:06