We all know the Easter Bunny loves carrots…but his real favourite is carrot cake. And this one is moist, spiced, slathered in cream cheese icing and decorated with easy icing carrots!

Prep:
60 min
Cook:
35 min
Serves:
8-10

Ingredients

Carrot Cake

  1. 4 large eggs

  2. 1 1/3 cup (215g) brown sugar

  3. 1 1/3 cup (330ml) vegetable oil

  4. 1 tsp Queen Organic Vanilla Bean paste

  5. 2 2/3 cup (400g) plain flour

  6. 2 tsp baking soda

  7. 2 tsp cinnamon

  8. 2/3 cup (80) pecans, chopped

  9. 2 cups grated carrot (240g)

  10. ½ cup (125ml/g) sour cream

Icing & Decorating

  1. 150g butter, softened

  2. 150g cream cheese, softened

  3. 3 cups (450g) icing sugar

  4. 1 tsp Queen Organic Vanilla Bean Paste

  5. 220g white chocolate

  6. Queen Food Colour (blue, red, green, yellow)

Method - Cake

  1. Step 1

    Preheat oven to 160C (fan forced) and grease and line a 32x20cm baking tin (or similar size).

  2. Step 2

    Place the eggs, sugar, vegetable oil and vanilla into a large bowl and whisk with electric beaters for about 2 minutes or until very well combined.

  3. Step 3

    Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pecans and carrot. Stir until combined.

  4. Step 4

    Finally, stir through the sour cream until no streaks remain.

  5. Step 5

    Tip batter into prepared tin and smooth the top. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Set aside to cool for 15 minutes and then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

Method - Icing & Decorating

  1. Step 1

    To make icing, beat butter until pale and fluffy. Add cream cheese and beat again until completely incorporated.

  2. Step 2

    Add icing sugar and vanilla then beat, slowly at first until everything comes together in a smooth, thick icing. Be careful not to over-mix.

  3. Step 3

    Spread icing evenly over the completely cooled cake, and then place in fridge to firm up slightly.

  4. Step 4

    While cake is in the fridge, melt chocolate, either in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, or in a heat-safe bowl in the microwave.

  5. Step 5

    Take about a quarter of the chocolate and place in a small bowl. Tint the smaller amount green (for the carrot tops) being careful not to add too much gel – go slowly and add more if needed.

  6. Step 6

    Tint the larger amount orange, using a combination of the red and yellow food colour gels, again adding a small amount and then more if needed.

  7. Step 7

    Slice the cake in half, and then slice each half into long, thin triangles.

  8. Step 8

    Using a piping bag with a small, round tip, or a sandwich bag with the very end of one of the corners snipped off, pipe a carrot-shaped outline onto each slice of cake, using the orange chocolate. Pipe a squiggle of orange into the centre of each carrot. Switch to the green chocolate, and then pipe a top onto each carrot.

  9. Step 9

    Place back in the fridge to set for a minute, and then serve!

If using Queen Cinnamon Baking Paste, incorporate paste into wet ingredients.

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