Delia's Carrot Cake - modified a bit.

The Ultimate Carrot Cake with Mascarpone, Fromage Frais (or Crème fraîche) and Cinnamon Icing

This recipe is based on one that can be found at Delia on Line. It was first made for me by a 3^rd cousin  of mine when I visited him at Tetbury, where he works as a gardener on Prince Charles’ estate.

Equipment

Two 8 inch round tins, 1½ in (4 cm) deep, base lined with baking parchment – or greased & floured. (I have also used one 9” tin and made it deeper.

Method

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C), then turn it down to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C) when you have toasted the pecan nuts that are used in the cake. NOTE: In my oven, 325°F is too cool. 350°F is closer to the mark.

Ingredients

Triple	Double	1X	Ingredients
21 oz	14 oz or 400g	7 oz (200 g)	wholemeal self-raising flour [1] If you do not have scales, this is about 1 c whole wheat flour (or 3 if trebled). If you are grinding wheat to make the flour, it requires 7 oz or about one heaping cup of soft wheat.
3 tsp	2 tsp	1 tsp	baking powder (skip if you have self-raising flour)
1 tsp	2/3 tsp	1/3 tsp	Salt (skip if you have self-raising flour)
4 ½ tsp	1 T	1 ½ tsp	Cinnamon
1 ½ tsp	1 tsp	½  tsp	Ginger
1 ½ tsp	1 tsp	½ tsp	Nutmeg
1 ½ tsp	1 tsp	½ tsp	Allspice
1T	2 tsp	1 tsp	Baking soda
3c	12 oz or 350 g	6 oz (175 g) or 1 c.	Golden soft sugar – not lumpy
6	4	2	Large eggs
15 oz	10 oz	5 fl oz (150 ml)	Sunflower oil
3	2	1	Grated zest orange
6c	14 oz or 400g	7 oz (200 g) or 2 c.	Carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
2c	9 oz or 220g	4 oz (110 g)  or 1 c.	Sultanas
1 ½ c	4 oz or 100g	2 oz (50 g)  or ½ c.	Desiccated coconut
1 ½ c	4 oz	2 oz (50 g) or ½ c.	Pecan nuts (set some aside for garnish)

METHOD TO MAKE CAKE: 

·       Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C), then turn it down to gas mark 3, 325°F (170°C) when you have toasted the pecan nuts. NOTE: In my oven, 325°F is too cool. 350°F is closer to the mark.

·       Place all the pecan nuts on a baking sheet and, using a timer, toast them in the oven for 8 minutes. Now chop one half of them roughly for the cake and the other half more finely, to be used for garnish on the topping later.

·       Whisk the sugar, eggs and oil together in a bowl with an electric hand whisk for 2-3 minutes, then check that there is no sugar left undissolved (and there are no lumps).

·       Now sift the flour, mixed spice and bicarbonate of soda into the bowl, tipping in the bits of bran left in the sieve. Then stir all this in gently, followed by the remaining cake ingredients.

·       Divide the batter evenly between the prepared tins and bake the cakes on the centre shelf of the oven for about 30 minutes. They should be nicely risen, feel firm and springy to the touch when lightly pressed in the centre, and show signs of shrinking away from the sides of the tin. If not, give them another 2-3 minutes and test again.

·       While the cake is baking, make the topping (see beneath) by whisking all the ingredients together in a bowl until light and fluffy. Then cover and chill until you are ready to ice the cakes. Also make the sugar glaze.

For the syrup glaze: 

Triple	Double	1X	Ingredients
3	2	1	juice  small orange
3T	2T	1 T	lemon juice
9 oz	6 oz or 150g	3 oz (75 g)	dark brown soft sugar

METHOD TO MAKE GLAZE:

·       To make the syrup glaze, whisk together the fruit juices and sugar in a thick-bottomed small pan and bring to the boil.

·       When the cakes come out of the oven, stab them all over with a skewer and quickly spoon the syrup evenly over the hot cakes.

·       Leave the cakes to cool in their tins, during which time the syrup will be absorbed.

·       When the cakes are completely cold, remove them from the tins. Spread one-third of the filling over one of the cakes, place the other on top, then cover the top and sides with the remaining icing - or else just ice the top – which is what I do. Left-over topping freezes well.

For the topping:  

Triple	Double	1X	Ingredients
750mg	500g	1 x 250 g	tub mascarpone
600g	400g	1 x 200g tub	Crème fraîche
3T	2T	1 rounded T	golden caster sugar
3T	2tsp	1 heaped tsp	ground cinnamon

NOTE: The original recipe called for 8% fromage fraiche, which our local grocers don’t carry. The substitution works well, in my opinion.

To garnish:  Scatter the remaining toasted pecan nuts over the top

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[1] Self-raising whole wheat flour is not available in much of North America. If you are curious: Self-rising flour. Leavening agents are used with some flours, especially those with significant gluten content, to produce lighter and softer baked products by embedding small gas bubbles. Self-raising (or self-rising) flour is sold premixed with chemical leavening agents. It was invented by Henry Jones and patented in 1845. Self-raising flour is typically composed of the following ratio:

1 cup (100 g) flour

1 teaspoon (3 g) baking powder

a pinch to ½ teaspoon (1 g or less) salt