Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A carrot cake is one of my all-time favorite desserts.  It's sweet, crunchy, warm topped with a creamy cream cheese frosting - what's not to love?

Every year for the last 5 years or so, a family friend has brought us a carrot cake for Christmas.  I look forward to it every year, as she makes the best one I've ever had.  This year, husband's mom asked if there was anything I wanted them to bring from home when they came for Christmas (assuming I'd request BBQ...again).  I (half-jokingly) said "Please tell Debbie to make me a carrot cake!  The clan decided to not disappoint the brand new mamma, so Debbie baked a cake and the Alfords drove it to Boston!  What love.

This Easter, I was asked to bring a carrot cake to dinner.  I knew just who to call for a recipe.  Debbie was kind enough to share her recipe with me - and agreed to let me share it with all of you!



Ingredients

Cake
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 cups self-rising flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp vanilla
1.5 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup roughly chopped pecans (toasted optional)

Icing
1 stick butter, softened to room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 box (1 lb) powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 Tbsp milk (add a little at a time to get the right consistency)
Optional: 1/4 cup roughly chopped pecans (or more if desired)

Directions

Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cut wax paper to fit bottom of 2 round cake pans.  Grease pan & place wax paper in bottom.
Mix sugar, baking soda, flour & cinnamon in large bowl or mixer.
Make a well in the dry ingredients.  Add oil.  Add eggs 1 at a time.
Add vanilla, nuts and carrots and mix well.
Pour batter evenly into pans.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, testing for doneness with toothpick.
Cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes.  Flip layers onto cooling rack.

Cream Cheese Icing
Mix wet ingredients (except milk) together until smooth.
Add powdered sugar.
Add milk a little at a time until you reach desired consistency.
Optional: Stir in pecans, or sprinkle on top

Once cake has cooled, ice between the layers, top and sides of cake.

Optional: sprinkle top or around the rim with chopped pecans or grated carrots.

Enjoy!

Goat Cheese Cheesecake Bites

This weekend we helped our friend Ben celebrate finishing his Master's degree from Brandeis.  I'm ALL about celebrating someone finishing their degree - I know how much work goes into it!  They were having a cookout, so I decided to make some cheesecake bites to bring for dessert...only with a twist.  After having Goat Cheese Cheesecake at several restaurants lately (at Audubon and 80 Thoreau), I've been wanting to give them a shot myself.

I decided to go with a chocolate graham cracker crust and blackberry topping, and they were a hit.  This recipe makes about 3 dozen mini cheesecakes, so it's perfect for a party!

Ingredients
Crust
1 sleeve (9) Chocolate Graham Crackers
1 stick unsalted butter

Cheesecake filling
16 ounces Cream Cheese
4 ounces Goat Cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar (+1/8 cup more if you'd like them sweeter)

Topping
Seedless blackberry preserves
Blackberries

Directions

Put graham crackers in food processor and pulse until fine crumbs.  Melt 1 stick of butter in the microwave, then pour into gram cracker crumbs and stir until coated.

Cream together cheesecake filling ingredients - cream cheese, goat cheese, vanilla, eggs, and sugar.  I used 1/4 cup of sugar, but if you'd like them sweeter you could add an additional 1/8 cup of sugar (but you really don't need it).

Spray 2 mini muffin tins with cooking spray.  Spoon 1/2 tablespoon of crust into each muffin hole.  Using the bottom of your measuring spoon, lightly press the crumbs into the bottom of the hole.

Then spoon 1 Tablespoon of the cheesecake filling on top of the crust.

Bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes.  The tops will puff and crack as they're cooking.  Let cool 15 minutes, then transfer to the refrigerator until completely cooled.

Once cool, remove from pan and top with a small dollop of blackberry preserves and a blackberry!  (I used a sharp knife and cut around the edge of each cheesecake to remove.)

Refrigerate until you're ready to serve...and enjoy!

Key Lime Fruit Dip

This weekend I made a huge fruit salad to take to an afternoon tea my friend Ann threw.  I made a lot more than I needed to bring, so I kept some at home for the week.  Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and grapes...so yummy!  I like eating fruit with yogurt some evenings, but decided to whip up a fruit dip on Monday to change things up a little bit.  Most fruit dips are so packed with calories it totally undoes the fact that you're eating fruit.  Cream cheese... Marshmallow Fluff...frozen lemonade...chocolate...sugar...sounds delicious, but is crazy high in calories!

What I came up with is much lower in calories, and still delicious - a Key Lime Fruit Dip!  The entire recipe is 270 calories, but you shouldn't eat the whole thing.  (Even though you'll want to.)  Share with 4 friends, and it's just 68 per serving!

Ingredients

1 cup Yogurt (Yoplait Lite 'n Fit)
1/2 cup Light Cool Whip
1/4 cup Light Cream Cheese
Zest of one lime
Squeeze of lime juice

Directions

Combine first three ingredients in a bowl and cream together until smooth.

Mix in lime zest, then give the lime a squeeze into the mixture.  Add more or less of the lime juice to your taste!

While you're here...wanna see some pictures from the tea?  I thought you might.  :)  The table was beautiful and food was fantastic!  We decided this may be the summer of tea parties - sounds like fun, doesn't it?

Ann and the table!

Allyn got up to get some water, and Amelia hopped right up into her chair - she wanted to have tea too!

Happy Day!