Torta di Carote - Carrot Cake

-strong enough for winter but light enough for spring-

I've had my eye on this recipe for somewhere around a year. marcella hazan, as you probably know, is the quintessential itallian cook. i've had her "italian kitchen" book for some while now and have loved every thing that comes out of it. i promise you, you will not find a recipe for pasta roses anywhere else. yeah - i said pasta roses and they are amazing.

the deserts are just as warm and homey as the rest of the book but unlike the rest of the recipes this once is actually pretty light, there is no butter or flour for goodness sake!

so back to that year in waiting. there are a few things that stood in my way of completing this cake mostly the lack of lady fingers. who keeps lady fingers in the pantry anyways? well i suppose its not such a stretch for a baker to have them on hand but, really, that and buttermilk give me a break won't ya! so this Christmas when a vendor sent foodie baskets to everyone, which oddly contained ladyfinger, i went around the office and snagged then all. yeah i'm that person; i horde office treats for later use at home. oh the shame. the second strongest force against this cake is, well there never seemed an appropriate time. and finally the day came that an friend of mine and her girlfriend came for dinner. score! the cake was made, slices were doled out and mouths were happily stuffed.

two things i changed: i left out the tablespoon of amaretto called for and used a mix of a vanilla and almond extract. i'm not a 70 year old man by the way nor do i own a silk robe so this i did not have in my pantry, nor was i going to buy any. and Marcella calls for fresh whipped cream to be served alongside but i also don't keep a stash of heavy cream on hand so i whipped up a batch of coconut milk and vanilla bean ice cream. stay tuned for the ice cream recipe, i assure you the warmth of the dense crumbly cake paired with the cool fresh ice cream was-a perfecto!

TORTA DI CAROTE

9oz unpeeled ground almonds

1c + 2 tbs sugar

9oz peeled carrots

4oz ladyfingers

2 1/2tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

4 eggs, separated

*preheat oven to 325F, place ladyfingers on a large baking sheet and cook for about 20 minutes

*take the ladyfingers out of the oven, let cool

*raise temp to 350F, grease an 8" springform pan

*pulse the almonds and sugar in a processors to a consistent mixture, place in a large bowl

*finely chop the carrots in the processor to as fine as you can get it, add to bowl w/ almonds

*place ladyfingers in the processor and chop until you have a fine powder, add to bowl w/ carrots & almonds

*add baking powder, vanilla, almond and salt. mix thoroughly

*mix in egg yolks

*in a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.

*add 1-2 tbs of the egg whites to the almond mix to help loosen

*gently (will take a while) fold in remaining egg whites.

*pour batter into the prepared springform. tamp the pan on the counter to level - do not press the batter.

*bake for 50 minutes, until toothpick is clean.

*let cool completely, slice and serve.

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

as you know (maybe) i hate cream cheese frosting. i just don't get it, i'm sorry everyone. with that said its my workmate shyam's birthday on tuesday. he loves carrot cake and of-course the cream cheese frosting that goes along with it, i double checked. i promised cupcakes and that is what i will deliver. but that doesn't stop me from reserving a few extras for josh (fellow cream cheese loather) and i to slather honey whipped cream on and enjoy. honey whipped cream seems so exotic but if you think about it, its actually strange that whipped cream wouldn't be sweetened with honey more often. ever heard of milk and honey? well just in case you haven't (which would be ridiculous) god "promised" land flowing with milk and honey to descendants of abraham etc etc - ever heard of the promise land? yeah so even god knows dairy and milk belong together. which would make sense because he is evidentially omniscient. this is ancient knowledge people. that and figs.

with all of that said, the first picture up top shows off the cream cheese icing and the one below is of the honey whipped cream icing. enjoy that!

CARROT CAKE CUPCAKES

1c flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

1c sugar

1/2c (+ 1 tbs) oil

2 eggs

1 1/2c shredded carrots

1/2c chopped walnuts

*preheat oven to 350F line your pan with papers

*sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices

*in a separate bowl whisk together the oil and sugar

*add eggs one at a time

*pour egg mixture into the flour and mix just to combine

*fold in carrots and walnuts, spoon into prepared pan

*cook for 20 minutes until toothpick comes out clean

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

8oz cream cheese, soft

4oz butter, soft

1c powdered sugar

1tsp vanilla

*beat the bitter and cream cheese together unit smooth and fluffy

*add in the sugar and vanilla beating to light and fluffy

*chill if needed to bring to desired consistency

Juiced Up Carrot Cake

so josh is gone. he left monday night and won't be back to corrupt my strictly healthy dietary requirements with his seemingly unquenchable - yet starting to gradually wane - need for delicious sugary treats. i admit it: sugar and butter are delish. but sooner or later i have to get back on track, not just for me but for my poor salivating father who has to sit through these posts, week after week. sorry dad.

anyways so my plan while alone for the next 8 weeks (josh is back mondays and tuesday) is to gather a decent amount of reasonably healthy baked treats. that and kick the habit of eating cereal for dinner when alone (ugh how sad is that?). i can do it!

so here we go: healthy treat number uno. i packed away the week's supply of "daily bread" with josh and i wanted to make something i could convince myself was a healthy substitute to house my almond butter for lunch at the office. pack in the fruit, vegetables, nuts and whole wheat and viola! one day i may try to substitute the sugar with maple syrup or honey. one day.

JUICED UP CARROT CAKE

1/2c whole wheat flour

1/2c AP flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/2c + 2tbs sugar

1/2c peeled and grated granny smith apple

1/2c peeled and grated carrot

1/2c grated zucchini

1/4c + chopped walnuts

1/4c buttermilk

2 eggs

1/4c canola oil

*preheat oven to 350 F, grease a loaf pan

*sift together the flours, sugar, soda, cinnamon & salt

*add the apple, carrots, zucchini & walnuts - stir to combine well

*in a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, oil and buttermilk

*add wet to dry and mix to just combine

*pour into prepared loaf pan and cook for 45-50 minutes until toothpick is clean

*let cool completely before slicing in.