Dry Ingredients: 2 ½ cups flour 2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp each: cinnamon & nutmeg, ½ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp sea salt To Cream in Mixer: 2 sticks butter 1 cup each: white & brown sugar Wet Ingredients: 4 eggs ¼ cup milk 2 tsp vanilla extract Zest & Juice of 1 large orange ¼ cup coconut oil 2 ½ cups carrots
Like a traditional cream cheese frosting, with a little orange liqueur and/or vanilla added 3 cups powdered sugar 1 stick of softened unsalted butter 1 1/2 tsp orange liqueur 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (not pictured/optional) Just a dash of salt
Prep cake pans
Grease pans & cut out 9 inch rounds of parchment paper to line bottoms of pans.
PREPARE TOPPINGS
Optional toppings are unsweetened coconut flakes & chopped pecans. I roast the coconut for 4 mins and pecans for about 6 mins.
Prepare Flour Mixture
In a medium bowl add flour, baking soda, and spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger & salt.
PREP CARROTS & ORANGE
Shred carrots in food processor and zest orange, then juice it.
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. Cream room temp. butter & sugars.
After creaming butter & sugar till smooth, Add 4 eggs- 1 at a time while mixing on low.
Scrape sides as needed, add milk, then start adding dry flour mixture with spices, about 1/2 cup at a time.
Mix in wet ingredients: coconut oil, orange zest, vanilla extract & orange juice. Stop mixing as soon as it's incorporated.
Fold in shredded carrots. Don't over-mix.
Divide cake batter evenly into 2 9 inch pans and smooth tops to sides.
Remove cakes from pans with a gently tap on the back of the pan and use wax or parchment paper to catch it in your hands.
Then flip back over and level rounds off tops of cake. Flip back over to start frosting flat bottoms.
-Frost top of bottom layer -Place other cake on top -Then frost top and outer edges as you like. I decorate with roasted pecans and coconut flakes (Orange zest for color)