Sophisticated Carrot Cake with Sweet Walnut Topping

My 5-year old son doesn't like sweets very much amazingly.  It really is hard to believe!  He loves eating carrots dipped in ranch, though.  It's one of his favorite snacks.  And when he recently found out there's such a thing as carrot CAKE, he wanted me to make one just for him.

Today was a rainy day - more like a down pour - and since I had all of the ingredients, it was the perfect day to make his carrot cake. 

I had lots of time on my hands, and I started experimenting with my tried and true recipe.  This is the same recipe I've used in the past to create wedding cakes for my custom bakery in Michigan.  What was already a great recipe turned out even better with the addition of my newly concocted Citrus Syrup and Sweet Walnut Topping (recipes below).

I'm calling this recipe "Sophisticated Carrot Cake" because it's beyond any carrot cake I've ever had.  This cake is definitely gourmet with the mellow orange and lemon flavors really pairing nicely with the spice in the carrot cake.  The crushed pineapple gives the cake a moist texture without changing the classic carrot cake flavor. 

Whether you're making it for your family or for a wedding reception of 150+ guests, this cake is bound to be a huge hit!

Sophisticated Carrot Cake

*Makes enough for 1 dozen cupcakes, or one 6-inch, 3-layer cake.

2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/8 c. sugar
1/3 c. light brown sugar
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 c. shredded carrots
1/2 c. crushed pineapple
1 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ginger

The first thing I do is set my eggs and carrots out on the counter to come to room temperature, which is important in order for the cake to rise properly.  If you keep your brown sugar in the refrigerator, bring that to room temp, too. 

STEP 1:  Preheat oven to 335 degrees.  Beat eggs and sugars together into large bowl.  Mix in oil and vanilla.  Fold in shredded carrots and pineapple.

This is what the consistency of my carrots look like after shredding in the food processor.

STEP 2:  In mixing bowl, blend together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.

STEP 3:  Slowly incorporate the wet mixture into the dry mixture on low speed until evenly moist.  Careful not to overmix the batter, only mix until just blended.

STEP 4:  Pour into prepared pan(s), and bake for 25 minutes for cakes or 19 minutes for cupcakes (or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean).

Now it's time to prepare the syrup and frosting!

Citrus Syrup

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. water

1 tsp. lemon juice

2 drops orange emulsion (you may substitute orange juice)

Boil sugar and water.  Simmer 7 minutes.  Add juice and emulsion.  Brush tops of warm cakes lightly with syrup.  Reserve remaining syrup for use in Sweet Walnut Topping (recipe below).

Orange-Cream Cheese Frosting

1 lb. cream cheese (room temp)

4 oz. butter (room temp)

5 oz. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest

1 drop orange emulsion (may substitute 1/2 tsp. finely grated orange zest)

Cream butter, cream cheese, zest and emulsion on medium until smooth.  Scape bowl and paddle to avoid lumps.  Slowly add powdered sugar, and continue to beat on medium speed until smooth.

Normally, I would combine 3 parts of the above Orange-Cream Cheese Frosting with

1 part regular American-style butter cream.  The resulting mixture is more stable and

easier to work with when piping borders on cakes.

Sweet Walnut Topping

1 1/2 c. coarsely chopped walnuts

Citrus Syrup (recipe above)

Coat walnuts in syrup.  Drain on parchment paper.  Transfer walnuts to food processor and chop into small (not fine) pieces. 

To assemble, fill and frost glazed 3-layer cake or pipe cupcakes with Orange-Cream Cheese Frosting.  Top with Sweet Walnut Topping.