Carrot cake with cream cheese icing is universally loved, deliciously moist, moreish and pretty much fail proof. This version gets an extra gold star for also being gluten free.
Ingredients
For the dry ingredients
250g amaranth flour (or gluten free plain flour)
100g almond flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarb soda
½ teaspoon xanthan or guar gum
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
For the wet ingredients
225ml sunflower oil
225g dark brown sugar
90g raw caster sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
250g carrots, grated
240g crushed pineapple
100g pistachios, roasted (optional)
1 orange, zested (reserve the juice for the icing)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
For the cream cheese icing
125g butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon honey
150g icing sugar
250g cream cheese, cold and chopped
20ml orange juice
For the pistachio praline
80g roasted pistachios
225g sugar
40ml water
Method
1. To make the carrot cake
Whisk together the dry ingredients, whilst separately mixing the wet ingredients in a bowl, then stir in to the dry mix until fully combined. Fold in the grated carrots, pineapple, pistachios, orange zest and ginger. Transfer to an oiled and lined 23cm cake tin, bake at 180°C for 50-60 minutes (the cake is ready when springs back to a light touch and skewer comes out clean). Once baked, cool in tin for 15-20 minutes, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.
2. To make the cream cheese icing
Beat the butter until fluffy, adding the honey and icing sugar, half at a time. Add in the cream cheese, orange juice and beat on low until smooth (see note). Ice the cooled cake as desired.
3. To make the pistachio praline
Spread the pistachios into a single layer onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Add the sugar and water to a pan and heat, swirling gently from time to time as the sugar melts. When the sugar reaches a lovely clear deep gold, pour over the pistachios and move the sheet around to spread the sugar into a thin layer. Once cool, the praline can smashed with a rolling pin or pulsed in a food processor. Sprinkled over the iced cake.
Chef's notes
- Amaranth flour has a distinct flavour – earthy, a little herbal and slightly nutty
- The amaranth flour can be subbed for standard gluten free flour. Some gluten free flours already have xanthan gum in the mix – if so, it’s unnecessary to add.
- Cream cheese – avoid over mixing the cream cheese
- You can double down on the ginger notes by adding glace/candied ginger to the mix.
Featured in Winter 2025
