Carrot cake with cream cheese icing

Here, after a couple of busy days, is the recipe to go with the pictures below! I used a mix of white and wholemeal flour to give it some texture and lots of carrots to make the cake moist. The cake will keep for up to three days but in our house it does not even last a day!

Preparation:  20 minutes             

Cooking: 1 hour

Tin size: 23 cm round or 20 cm square greased and lined with baking paper

Oven: 180C (fan 160C)

Ingredients

3 cups thickly grated carrots

1 plain flour

¾ cup whole meal flour

1 ½ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon ginger

½ teaspoon mixed spice

¾ cup roughly chopped walnuts

¾ cup sultanas

3 large eggs

1 ½ cups dark brown sugar

¾ cup vegetable oil

Method

• Whisk oil and sugar together until combined.
• Add eggs one at a time beating well into the mixture.
• Sift flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda & spices over the wet mix and stir with a metal spoon until almost combined.
• Then add the grated carrots, sultanas and walnuts – mix well with the spoon.
• Pour into the prepared tin & bake for 60 minutes or until a skewer (inserted in the middle) comes out with clean/with little crumbs. Check the cake after 40 minutes and cover with baking paper if browning too much.
• Cool in tin, then tip out on a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, spread with icing of your choice.

Cream cheese icing

Take 250g full fat cheese and mix with a wooden spoon till smooth. Add 1 ½ cups sifted icing sugar, 1 ½ teaspoons of finely grated lemon rind and 1 ½ teaspoons of lemon juice and mix until well combined. Spread over the cake and chill in fridge for one hour before serving.

Notes

• If you don’t like icing then just give a dusting of icing sugar or simply eat plain – the cake is yummy eaten warm or cold.
• If you don’t like nuts, substitute with half a cup extra of sultanas.
• To make the cake more decorative, place whole walnuts on top of the cake mix before baking.

Carrot cake

Here's one I've just finished. . . recipe later!

Carrot and Lentil Soup

As they say in these parts, it is a dreich day on the west coast of Scotland - cold, wet and windy. Just the day in fact, for a bowl of soup. So here's one to try.

Prepping: 20 minutes                         

Cooking: 45 minutes

Serves 4 – 6 generous portions

Ingredients

4 large carrots

1 large onion

2 large potatoes

2 large parsnips

2 cups red lentils

1 tbsp garlic

2 tbsp malt vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

3 pints vegetable stock

Method:

• Cut onion into small cubes and keep aside.
• Peel carrots, parsnips and potatoes and cut into small cubes. Rise out and soak in cold water.
• In the meantime cook the onions in olive oil in medium heat till they go get some colour and become soft. Drain the chopped vegetables and add to the onions.
• Add garlic & vinegar, mix well and cook for another 10 minutes in low heat. This enables all the different flavours to blend with each other.
• Now add the lentils and vegetable stock, bring to boil then simmer for half an hour or till lentils and vegetables are cooked.
• Blend the mix if you like a smooth creamy soup. I personally prefer the soup to have vegetables still intact!
• Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve with thickly sliced home made wholemeal bread.

Notes:

1. Red lentils are very easy to cook and need no pre soaking. If you want to add more weight to the soup add a broth (assorted lentils & grains) mix instead.
2. You will notice I have not put any salt & pepper as I feel they are not required. Do season to taste but taste the soup before doing so – you will not be disappointed!
3. If you want a little kick add one teaspoon cumin powder, half teaspoon coriander powder and half teaspoon curry powder when the soup is simmering. You will get a gently spiced & aromatic sensation with every spoonful.