From the Taste Test article in the March 2017 issue.

Burgers, Brownies & Beer Oh My! Carrot Cake
Makes one 10-inch cake

  • 3 packed cups grated carrot
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup raisins or currants
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 pinch coriander, ground
  • 4 eggs, well beaten
  • 1 cup canola oil
  • Frosting (recipe follows) 
  1. Oil a 10-inch cake pan with pan spray, then dust with flour.
  2. Thoroughly mix dry ingredients in a bowl.
  3. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and oil together. Add to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly, by hand.
  4. Pour into cake pan. Put pan on a cookie sheet and bake for approximately 1 hour at 350°.
  5. Spin cake front to back and bake approximately 15 minutes more. A toothpick will come out clean, and the sides of the cake will have begun to pull away from the pan.
  6. Let cool on a wire rack. Run a knife around the pan’s edge when the cake is cool enough to handle. Put a plate large enough to cover the pan upside down on top of cake. Turn plate and pan over, holding them tightly together. Lightly tap them both on a counter or table, all around the edges. Cake will detach from the pan to sit on the plate. Refrigerate until ready to frost.

For the Frosting

  • 2/3 cup butter, unsalted, softened
  • 15 ounces cream cheese or Neufchâtel, softened
  • 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons 2 percent milk
  • 4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 pinches nutmeg
  1. Beat cream cheese and butter with a hand mixer or stand mixer.
  2. Add all other ingredients and beat until smooth. Refrigerate if you are not immediately icing the cake.
  3. Cut the cake in half with a long serrated knife to make 2 layers. Place bottom layer on the plate or stand you will be serving it on. If you refrigerated the icing, beat it for a minute or longer to make it easier to spread.
  4. Spread a nice, but not too thick, layer of icing on the bottom layer. Put the second layer on the first. Ice the top of the cake and the sides with the rest of the icing.
  5. Refrigerate leftovers (if any!).