Marshas Carrot Cake Recipes

CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter three 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper, and butter parchment. Dust with flour, tapping out excess. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg.
• Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat 3 minutes. Add vanilla, water, and carrots. Beat until well combined, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture, then finely chopped pecans.
• Scrape batter into prepared pans, dividing evenly. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cool in pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around edges of cakes to loosen, and turn out cakes onto rack. Turn right side up, and let cool completely.
• Using a serrated knife, trim rounded top of 2 cakes. Place one trimmed cake, cut side up, on a serving platter. Spread 1 cup frosting over cake. Top with second trimmed cake, cut side down. Spread 1 cup frosting over cake. Top with remaining cake. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides. Gently press coarsely chopped pecans onto sides of cake. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving.

MARSHA'S CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Mix flour, cinnamon, soda, and salt and set aside.
• In a large bowl or mixer beat eggs with sugar until fluffy and lemon colored.
• Mix in oil and freshly grated carrots (best to buy whole carrots and grate them in food processor - the store-bought pre-shredded carrots don't integrate well into the rest of the cake like freshly-grated ones do).
• Add flour mixture and stir to mix well.
• Pour into well greased and floured bundt pan.
• Bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for 1 hr 15 minutes, or until prick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Cool in pan on rack.
• Make frosting by beating the cream cheese with the softened butter, then add lemon zest. From there gradually add the powdered sugar, adding more/less based on the feel. Note that as you make the frosting, it'll seem like it will never soften but it does!
• Spread icing on the cooled cake. Be sure to store in the refrigerator if you're not going to eat right away, but do set it at room temperature about 30-60 minutes before serving.