Flicker’s Lair Blog

I realize that traditionally the orange vegetable you are supposed to work with on Halloween is pumpkin, but as we had picked up a huge bag of carrots for a very reasonable price I figured it was a fair substitution and so spent a good part of my Halloween in the kitchen creating with carrots.

Carrots are a really good source of vitamins and minerals; including beta carotene, vitamins C, E, K, B6, thiamin, phosphorus, manganese, and potassium; they are also a good source of fiber, essential oils and carbohydrates (more info at carrot nutrition information, Flicker’s Lair vegetable info).

By chance I had come across this recipe for Superbug-Chasing Carrot n’ Ginger Soup and thought it sounded interesting, I love ginger and have a giant bag of carrots. It was easy to make and turned out OK; it could be tastier so when I make it next I will probably use more carrots and ginger. I would also use fresh parsley, I used dry this time as I am trying to use up stuff in the pantry. I used water as I didn’t have any stock defrosted.

Of course me in the kitchen almost always results in something sweet and this time was no different. I haven’t had much success in the past with carrot cake so I did some searching and recipe comparing on AllRecipes and settled on this recipe for the best carrot cake ever.

While searching I also found this recipe for carrot cake cookies and decided to make both as I (well, to be fair, my KitchenAid) was going to be grating carrots anyway.

I was pleased with the results. The cake is moist but not heavy or too sticky. It is tasty and pretty good even without icing. The cookies were better and more flavourful the next day, although I would prefer them a little spicier and will try adding nutmeg, allspice, cloves and ginger to them next time I make them.

I made a second batch of the cake this morning with more vanilla and spices, and replacing the oil with apple sauce. I also used walnuts this time; I realised today that there are no walnuts in the pantry so the last batch must have been made with pecans! I had a bowl of walnuts in the shell so cracked a bunch of those for this batch. I did half in large muffin tins, and they have turned out really well, and they have the advantage of being more ‘portable’ and convenient for Steve to take to work for a snack. His description of this batch is that they smell and taste like Autumn! From the way it was said and how quickly he inhaled the cake I am thinking that is a good thing!

Steve scrubbed the carrots for me and managed to do a little extra so I have enough grated carrot to make another batch of cookies for him this afternoon! I think that might mean he likes them too.

RECIPES

Carrot Ginger Soup

• 2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 tbsp minced ginger
• 2 medium potatoes, scrubbed (not peeled) and cubed
• 4 large carrots, scrubbed (not peeled) and chopped
• 4 cups water or stock
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large saucepan, heat one tbsp of the oil on medium-high heat. Add the onion and ginger, and fry until soft for approximately 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the remaining oil, and add the carrots, parsley and potatoes. Fry to 4-5 minutes, until they soften slightly. Be sure to stir frequently, as the potatoes may stick.
3. Add the water or stock and several generous grinds of salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes.
4. In a blender or food processor, process the soup in batches until smooth. Reheat if needed, and add additional salt and pepper if required.

Carrot Cake

• 6 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup raisins
• 4 eggs
• 1½ cups white sugar
• 1 cup applesauce vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp 4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ¼ tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp ¼ tsp allspice
• 1 tsp ¼ tsp ginger
• 1 tsp ¼ tsp cloves
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (pecans work too)

1. In a medium bowl, combine grated carrots and brown sugar. In a small bowl soak raisins in drained pineapple juice. Set aside for at least 60 minutes. Drain raisin and stir into carrots.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 10 inch cake pans*.
3. In a large bowl, beat eggs until light. Gradually beat in the white sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir in the pineapple. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and spices, stir into the wet mixture until absorbed. Finally stir in the carrot mixture and the walnuts. Pour evenly into the prepared pans.
4. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes in the preheated oven, until cake tests done with a toothpick. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan. When completely cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting.

* The first time I used a single 12×12 square pan. It needed a little longer cook time due to depth. The second time I used large muffin tins and a 9×9 square pan. Just remember the smaller the pan the sooner you need to start testing.

Carrot Cake Cookies

• ½ cup butter, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
• ¾ cup shredded carrots
• 1 cup raisins
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, stir in the crushed pineapple, carrots and raisins. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; stir into the carrot mixture. Mix in the walnuts if desired. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until bottoms begin to brown and cookies are set. Allow cookies to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheets before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

I must admit after the last few weeks failures I am quite relieved that I haven’t completely lost my touch!

Tags: baking, carrots, recipe, soup

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 12:48 pm and is filed under Food & Drink. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.