Carrot Cake

Carrots are super healthy, a creative color and sweet and yummy - carrots make a delicious holiday carrot cake.

“Vegetables are a must on a diet, i suggest carrot. cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie.” - Jim Davis American Cartoonist

Funny quote, eh? Truth be told desserts can include veggies and fruits, too, although desserts are a treat, a once in while enjoy cake. Just saying!

Heading to Michigan to visit my son in college this weekend, and what better greeting than showing up with his favorite cake, a few days before the holiday - Rosh Hashanah.

Gotta share this recipe inspired by my sister Merle (a talented baker) This recipe made it in our cookbook: ‘Dinner Table Family Headquarters’ - available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles.

I’ll be following my sisters recipe instructions and ingredients pretty much, although as. a food modifier I put a twist on a few ingredients - my style! I keep the recipe amounts status quo as baking is a science, especially cakes.

So, why do think carrots are a great choice for a Carrot Cake holiday dessert?
On the holidays we traditionally eat specific foods that represent tastes that inspire an experience. I’ll share a list of symbolic fruits and veggies we cook with and enjoy on Rosh Hashanah - the head of the new year in the Jewish lunar calendar. We intentionally bring in sweet foods into our dining experience to represent our blessings for a sweet new year. Some families I’ve met over the years (I’ve been invited to many dinners) don’t even add salt to their recipes or serve salt at the table during the high holidays - (this recipe calls for 1 tsp - it’s a baking must have). Some people don’t even serve chrein - aka horse radish - way too bitter - we save the bitter taste for the Passover holiday. I’ll be serving horse radish, although, it will be sweetened for Rosh Hashanah. Tradition!

Symbolic Foods on Rosh Hashanah
carrots: in yiddush the word means ‘meren’ translated as carrots and increases
symbolizing our hope that our merits will increase in the coming year and increased in blessings, too. Tzimmes. - a sweet. based stew. It’s a traditional dish made on Rosh Hashanah.
Pomegranate: celebrating new and unusual experiences - get creative - it’s our birthright!
Honey: the taste and sweetness towards a ‘sweet new year’ that we pray for ourselves and others.
Fish: the eyes of a fish never close - a reminder of G-D’s awareness and opportunities to do good things in this world.

Recipe
4 eggs
1 cup. granulated sugar
1 cup grapeseed oil
2 cups flour - all purpose, whole wheat or gluten free flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pink salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
2 cups grated. carrots
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup drained crushed pineapples - optional
1/2 cup moist flaked coconut or finely chopped walnuts - optional

instructions

• preheat oven to 350 degrees

• In a large bowl or blender, mix the eggs, sugar and oil

• combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices and stir this into the egg mixture

• add the carrots, coconut, vanilla , and (pineapple and nuts optional)

• mix all the ingredients thoroughly

• line your choice of baking pans with parchment paper: pans are either two 9 inch layers, 13x9 inch rectangle, bundt pan or spring pan

• pour the batter into the baking pan or pans

• for the 13x9 inch rectangular pan bake for 45-50 minutes or for the bundt or spring pan bake for about 60 minutes

• cool the cake or layers for 5-10 minutes and then turn them out onto a wired cooing rack and let them cool completely

• you can frost the cake with dairy or non dairy (tofu) cream cheese frosting (recipe below) and sprinkle with dried coconut shreds - optional

  Cream Cheese Icing or Dairy Free Tofu Cream Cheese
  8 ounces softened cream cheese or tofu cream cheese
  1/4 cup butter or earth balance (dairy free)
  2 tsp vanilla
  3 1/2 cups sifted icing sugar
  dried coconut shred to sprinkle

• blend the cream cheese with butter or earth balance, vanilla, and icing sugar until smooth

• spread the cream cheese icing over the cake with a knife

• sprinkle with dried coconut
  

  Genia’s Spoon Me Tips
  Pink Salt - aka Himalayan salt is the tastiest salt around. I highly recommend you switch over from your white salt for pink salt. Pretty aggressive of me to suggest, but there’s good healthy reason. For one and there’s many, there’s over 84 minerals in Himalayan salt, it comes from the mountains not the ocean, or at least the polluted oceans and it’s pink - a sweet, organically grown, and appetizing color.

  You’ll. notice there’s a few magical spices included in this recipe. Reminds me of Fall and aromatically so pleasing. Aromatherapy from oils and spices are an art and science. Spices are medicinal; as they fight inflammation. Spices are healthy plant chemicals - aka phytochemical. So think of. this carrot cake as a health treat especially on the holidays.
  

  Wishing you a sweet and blessed New Year,
  Love, Genia