Makes 12-16 slices
Ingredients
100-150g (2 cups) grated (shredded) carrots
200g (1 cup) white sugar
200g (1 cup) soft brown sugar
120g (1 cup) white flour
120g (1 cup) wholewheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 tsp cinnamon
60ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil
4 eggs (or substitute)
435g can crushed pineapple, drained (about 1 cup)
100g (1 cup) raisins
60g (1 cup) crushed walnuts (optional)
Topping:
150g (1 1/2 cups) cashews, soaked overnight
60ml lemon juice
2 tblsp coconut oil, melted
2 tblsp sugar or honey
(water if needed)
Method:
Heat the oven to 180C, without using a fan if possible. Grease a deep 23cm (9 inch) springform or loose-bottomed round cake tin with butter or coconut oil. Line the base with greasefree paper if the pan is likely to stick.
Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, until well combined. Place in the pan, and cook for about 45-50 minutes until risen and firm in the middle.
Cool in the pain for at least 20 minutes, then remove carefully to a wire rack.
To make the topping:
Drain and then rinse the cashews, which should be quite soft and larger than they were. Blend or food process with the other ingredients, stopping every thirty seconds or so to scrape down the sides. If it seems very stiff, add a little water, but it needs to be quite firm.
Eventually it should become a homogenous mixture, rather like traditional cream cheese topping, which can be spread roughly over the cake when it's cooled down.
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This was originally an American recipe, which is very easy to make with US measuring cups. So if you have a set, or indeed any cup or small jug with a 225 ml capacity, it's much quicker than weighing everything separately. Exact quantities don't matter too much in this recipe, which is very rich and moist.
It can also be made in other sizes of cake tin; a larger round one or a big rectangular pan would lead to a flatter, dryer cake; you would have to adjust the cooking times accordingly, and perhaps make more topping.
This is a good cake even without the frosting; if you want a low-fat cake, omit the walnuts and eat it without a topping. You could use all wholewheat flour to make it healthier, although it would then also be denser. Carrots, pineapple and raisins ensure that this is a surprisingly nutritious cake as well as being delicious.
However, carrot cake is traditionally topped with a cream cheese based frosting, whipped with a considerable amount of icing sugar. Since we are mostly dairy-free, I was delighted to discover this cashew-based equivalent. Raw cashews can be expensive, but if you can find them in bulk they are the basis of many dairy-free desserts, and make an excellent milk.
