My kids enjoy fresh carrots from the garden, but carrot cake?
They like this one! Sweet and delicious, it’s the perfect finish to any spring meal. Unlike most dark and dense carrot cakes, this recipe whips up a light and fluffy yet oh-so-flavorful-batter earning the approval of even the fussiest of kids.
With a basket of fresh carrots in hand a sweet tooth aching for satisfaction, we scoured through recipes in search of the perfect carrot cake. Most are too heavy and rich for our liking, so we devised this version that showcases our garden produce AND pleases our discriminating palates. It’s also a dessert where we can all pitch in to help; a good thing.
First, my daughter harvested a basket of fresh carrots. My son then peeled and grated them.
While he was busy at work, I asked my daughter if she would make some carrots as decorations for our cake, to which she replied a resounding yes! Then quickly got down to the business of decorating–with fondant, of course. She’s a budding cake artist and decided our carrot cake needed some bunnies, too.
Have at it, girl–let’s make it a party!
Pouring her creative juices into the assignment, she rolled and formed, squished and scrapped until everything was precisely the way she wanted (I had no idea artists were such perfectionists).
After due diligence, she settled carrots and greens and her sweet little fella (I use the term “little” lightly, mind you) square in the center of the cake, among an egg-littered meadow.
Cute, isn’t he?
Upon seeing the creation, my husband remarked, “What’s he doing?”
“What do you think he’s doing? He’s sitting.”
He raised a brow. “I’ve never seen a bunny situated quite like that before. Looks like he’s about to take the car for a drive.”
I shook my head. Hmph. (You can see who isn’t the creative one in the family.) “Well I think he’s adorable.” And proceeded to take pictures to share.
Afterward, we used the carrot tops for a bit of floral decoration. We’re thrifty. Why not use every part of our produce? And when they pass their peak, we’ll continue to utilize them–on the compost pile.
Baking is fun, getting creative is fun…tying them all together with a bounty of garden harvest makes them even more fun.
And delicious. Care for some carrot cake? Check my recipe section and make some today. You’ll be glad you did!
Yummy! It looks as if it is dripping with sweetness and flavor. I have a recipe that we use and it turns out very nicely, but I am always open to try new recipes. The photos made my mouth water…