Carrot Cake

I love carrot cake and fortunately for me today is Susie's birthday (she is the awesome secretary at our office) and carrot cake happens to be her favorite. I am not sure how I stumbled upon this recipe because Emeril is not typically my favorite, but found it on the Food Network a few years ago, after multiple attempts to find the perfect carrot cake recipe. This is the one. I have added coconut, pineapple, and or raisins for variations but this is my favorite basic carrot cake recipe. It's all about the carrots. The more the merrier!

Gigi's Carrot Cake

Ingredients

3 sticks, plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3-4 cups grated carrots

1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Pecan Cream Cheese Icing:

8 ounces cream cheese

1 stick unsalted butter

1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter 3 (9-inch) cake pans with 1 tablespoon of the butter and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add the sugar, and beat. In a medium bowl or on a piece of parchment, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and mix well.

Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the eggs, beating well after the addition of each. Add the vanilla extract and mix. Add the carrots and beat on medium speed until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Fold in the nuts. Divide between the 3 cake pans and bake until set and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest in the cake pans for 10 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, remove from the pans, and let cool.

For the Frosting: In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, beating constantly. Add the vanilla and pecans.

FROST AND EJOY!

Here I am in the kitchen....

I can't imagine grading all these carrots by hand...God Bless the Cuisinart.

How could you not LOVE cream cheese frosting.