My Favourite Cakes
Happy Halloween everybody! How many of you are going to a party tonight? I have just finished packing the candy for “trick or treating” I hate having candy around me, coz you’ve guessed right. I keep on eating them, one after the other, without stopping, without thinking, without care and then later, all those feelings of guilt emerge and for a whole week I shall be thinking how silly it was to ingest such a huge amount of candy. Maybe candy will be my calorie filled dinner tonight.
It’s been raining here, the whole day. It now seems to have stopped so probably the kids don’t have to lug huge umbrellas alongside their sacks of candy. Do your kids come back home with something like 20kg of candy at the end of the evening? Then for the next three weeks or so there is candy wrapping everywhere including the bathroom? Enough of the petty Halloween talk. Back to business: the cake I’m sharing today is one of my most favourite, with pumpkin puree and carrots. Seriously, I love the carrot-pumpkin combo with the crunch of walnuts and the chewy sultanas.
Enjoy the Halloween party, dinner or whatever you’re up to tonight!!!!
- Ingredients
- 200g (7oz, 1½ cups) all-purpose (plain) flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice (or pumpkin pie spice)
- 160g (5.6oz; ⅔ cup fully packed) dark brown sugar (the cake is not very sugary, you can add more if you wish)
- 120ml (½ cup, 4 floz) vegetable oil
- 120ml (3½oz) pure pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons golden syrup
- 3 large eggs
- 225g (2 cups) peeled and grated carrots
- 50g (½ cup, 2oz) chopped walnuts
- 50g (⅓ cup, 2oz) currants (Zante Currants)
Please always remember to assemble all ingredients before you start. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Lightly oil and line the base of an 8” (20.5cm) round tin (pan) with parchment (greaseproof paper).
Sift the flour baking powder, baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and mixed spice into a large bowl.
Stir in the brown sugar and form a well in the centre.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, pumpkin puree, golden syrup and eggs
until thoroughly combined.
Add the mixture into the well and mix until just combined.
Fold in the carrots, walnuts and currants
then pour the mixture into the prepared tin (pan). Bake in the centre of the oven for 1-1¼ hours or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Remove the cake from oven and let rest for 5 minutes then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Ingredients
- 175g (6oz) cream cheese
- Finely grated zest (rind) of 1 lime
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence (extract)
- 125g (4½oz) icing (confectioners) sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons pure pumpkin puree to give colour
Cream Cheese Icing: Beat together the cream cheese, lime zest (rind), lime juice and vanilla essence (extract), with an electric mixer. Sift the icing (confectioners) sugar into the cream cheese mixture and stir thoroughly to combine.
Add the two tablespoons pumpkin puree and stir to combine.
Spread the mixture on top of the cake .
and serve
The best part of this cake is the frosting. Please do not omit it.
The cake was awesome. I ate one slice a day for three days.
Pumpkin Carrot Cake with Sultanas and Walnuts
Preparation Time: 30 minutes; Baking Time: 1-1¼ hours; Serves: 8 Slices
Ingredients
- 200g (7oz, 1½ cups) all-purpose (plain) flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice (or pumpkin pie spice)
- 160g (5.6oz; ⅔ cup fully packed) dark brown sugar (the cake is not very sugary, you can add more if you wish)
- 120ml (½ cup, 4 floz) vegetable oil
- 120ml (3½oz) pure pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons golden syrup
- 3 large eggs
- 225g (2 cups) peeled and grated carrots
- 50g (½ cup, 2oz) chopped walnuts
- 50g (⅓ cup, 2oz) currants (Zante Currants)
For the Cream Cheese Icing
- 175g (6oz) cream cheese
- Finely grated zest (rind) of 1 lime
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence (extract)
- 125g (4½oz) icing (confectioners) sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons pure pumpkin puree to give colour
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Lightly oil and line the base of an 8” (20.5cm) round tin (pan) with parchment (greaseproof paper). Sift the flour baking powder, baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and mixed spice into a large bowl. Stir in the brown sugar and form a well in the centre.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, pumpkin puree, golden syrup and eggs until thoroughly combined. Add the mixture into the well and mix until just combined. Fold in the carrots, walnuts and currants then pour the mixture into the prepared tin (pan). Bake in the centre of the oven for 1-1¼ hours or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from oven and let rest for 5 minutes then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cream Cheese Icing: Beat together the cream cheese, lime zest (rind), lime juice and vanilla essence (extract), with an electric mixer. Sift the icing (confectioners) sugar into the cream cheese mixture and stir thoroughly to combine. Add the two tablespoons pumpkin puree and stir to combine. Spread the mixture on top of the cake and serve.
- **I weigh the flour and butter. I do not use cup measures.The weight of a cup of flour tends to vary based on individual interpretation, publication and size of cup used (from 125g to 130g to 155g per cup)
- Cup measures based on assumption, 1 cup = 125g flour so that would be the US cup of 240ml, not the Australian Cup. The Australian cup = 155g flour so that would change cup measures.
Points to note:
- Please note that oven temperatures are given as a guideline only. You may need to add or reduce the suggested temperatures depending on your oven. I baked the cake at 300°F (150°C) for 1 hour.
- This cake is not very sugary if you prefer more sugar add to suit your palate.
- I always weigh ingredients, especially the flour and butter. You can use cup measures, but please note if you scoop flour directly from the bag you will end up with 150-185 g of flour instead of the recommended 125g. I suggest you spoon the flour into the cup, heaping it up over the top, then slide a knife across the top to level off the extra. Be careful not to shake or tap the cup to settle down the flour or you will have more than you need. You can also sift the flour first then scoop. My best advice: please use a weighing scale.
myfavouritepastime.com
My Favourite Pastime 
I’ve been thinking that I must buy extra carrots and make a carrot cake. They are the best! I love this idea of adding pumpkin, and I just happen to have a can of it in my cupboard. I remember at Chistmas when we would stay with our grandparents, always lots of sweet goodies and cookies, and always after turkey dinner you made sure to save room for a piece of carrot pudding with rum sauce! I can still see and taste it in my imagination. I made it for a few years but most of my family didn’t care for it or were always too full to eat it! I remember it steaming away most of the day on my grandmothers sawdust burning stove! Anyway, appreciate you posting this recipe right now because it looks wonderful and I think would be an excellently moist cake that would keep in the fridge for awhile or even freeze the left overs! (Leftover cake? Who has leftover cake huh?)
Hi again Sandy,
I’ve always loved carrot cakes and carrot.I always have a huge bag of carrots in the fridge. I eat them raw, steam them or roast them in the oven. That carrot pudding sounds very delicious. The trick to eating dessert is having a 3-4 hour dinner, taking a break and then eating the dessert later. That’s what I always do. I love this cake because it’s very moist and not very sugary. I don’t think I’ve ever frozen it. We always finish everything. I wish you a fantastic weekend!
Liz
Yum yum yum! I have made carrot pumpkin bars, this cake looks creat!
Thanks, Mama D. Have the best of November!
Liz
I love carrot cake and like your addition of pumpkin to both the cake and icing…it sounds great.
Thanks, Karen. I love carrot cake too. I wish you a fabulous week!
liz
Your cake looks so moist and delicious. I’m drooling. 🙂
Thanks for drooling. How else can I know it’s worth eating? Enjoy the week, Lignum.
Liz
sounds great Liz, I like the idea of combining carrot and pumpkin, and golden syrup is a nice touch too!
Yeah golden syrup gives it a moist finish. Have a fabulous week!
Liz
thanks Liz, you too!
Thank you!
Liz
Ohhhh, this looks and sounds spectacular!
Thank you.
Liz
Yum so tempting I wonder if I find pumpkin purée where I stay …
Hi Natasha,
I buy mine from the grocery store, but sometimes I just boil and mash too! Hope you find some!
Liz
The cake looks delicious. The same thing happens to me when I have candy around – I end up eating too much of it. I think it should come with a warning, being so highly addictive… 😉
I think even if there was a warning, I probably wouldn’t notice it. I would be too busy chewing and swallowing! Have a grew week, ahead!
Liz
Yum pumpkin! I’m going to have to try this recipe.
Good luck. Hope you love it! Best wishes!
Liz
Delicious!
Thx, Liz
I was just thinking to myself last night whether Halloween is only celebrated in the States, or if other places trick or treat too, so you answered my question with this blog 🙂 I have to hide the candy I buy for trick or treaters from my husband cause last year, he ate them all and I had nothing to give out and had to make an emergency trip to the store on Halloween. So this year I hid them and only gave him a bowl full that I told him had to last til Halloween. Now he can eat the leftovers. Really yummy looking cake, by the way!
Hi Lyn
Oh thanks so much for making me laugh beyond redemption. When it comes to sweets, I’m the sucker here. I refrain from opening the boxes in advance lest I finish them all, like your husband. As soon as they were opened I started eating without stopping. About 100 kids passed by but we still have some left overs. I’ve asked my daughter to keep them out of sight. I have eaten enough for the year. The cakes is really nice, but not too sugary but then it has frosting so…it’s sugary. Have a lovely weekend.
Liz
wowwwwwwwww!!!!!!!! very delicioussssssssssssssssss!!!! ❤
Thank you!
Liz
That looks great!
Thank you,
Liz
Liz,
That cake looks delicious! Pumpkin and carrots with cream cheese icing….Yummy! Loved reading your post about eating candy as I could relate to it so well 🙂
Thank you. I hope you’re enjoying your weekend? Have the best of November!
Liz
Now you’re talking Liz ! P-arrot cake ! Can you save me some for tomorrow as it’s coming up to 1am and I need my beauty sleep. Lots of it ! Happy Halloween my friend. xox ❤
Hi Ralph,
I sent you some P-arrot cake. I hope it arrives pronto. Happy Halloween to you too! Enjoy the weekend. We had snow today….wow! I thought it was Christmas!
Liz
Who’s a p-retty lady then ! Thank you so much. So Pronto is bringing it. Not Tonto 😉
Snow ? Wow ! It was a hot sunny 27degC here today.
Merry Christmas 😉 😀 ❤
Lucky you hot and sunny at 27C wow! I think I’ll move to that corner of the world. Have a fabulous week!
Liz
yum great photos! 🙂
Thank you!
Liz