Carrot or Courgette Cake

This is a vegetable cake, it can be nutty by adding the walnuts, or extra yummy by adding the optional cream cheese icing, which is completely delicious. If you have too many courgettes you can even add these instead of carrots. Preparation: 20 minutes Cooking time: 50 minutes Serves: 8

Ingredients:

Cake:

8oz (225g) plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp salt 4 floz (110ml) vegetable oil 6oz (175g) sugar 2 eggs 8oz (225g) grated carrots 4oz (110g) chopped walnuts – optional

Icing

4oz (110g) cream cheese 2oz (55g) soft butter 1 tsp vanilla flavouring 10oz (275g icing sugar

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 170°C /325°F/ gas mark 3.
2. Sieve the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon into a bowl. Mix 

1. In another large mixing bowl beat the eggs, add all the sugar and then slowly, little by little add the oil beating all the time. This may look a little odd but worry not as it will look better after you have added the rest of the ingredients.
2. Add the dry ingredients, carrots and the nuts – if you are having nuts. Mix it all up.
3. Pour the mixture into your tin and put it in the oven for 45 – 50 minutes, until it is golden brown and has passed the* cake cooked test.
4. Take it out of the oven, allow it to cool for 20 minutes, before turning it out onto a wire rack.
5. When it has cooled properly spread your icing on the top.

Icing

Cream together the butter, cream cheese and vanilla, when this is soft add in the icing sugar. It should have the consistency of very soft smooth butter. Downloadable pdf for you to print here Carrot or Courgette Cake. We would love to see your finished cakes. Post with #Haxnicks