Yield: 1 Cake, 12 servings
Ingredients for the Carrot Cake
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cups (180 ml) vegetable oil
- 14 ounces (398 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) salt
- 9 ounces (255 g) bread flour
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (8 g) ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoons (3 g) baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon (1 g) baking powder
- 1 pounds (455 g) peeled carrots, grated finely
- 2 1/2 ounces (70 g) walnuts, chopped
Ingredients for the Cream Cheese Filling
- 7 ounces (200 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 ounces (58 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon (3 ml) vanilla extract
- 4 ounces (113 g) powdered sugar, sifted
Ingredients for Decorating
- 4 ounces (113 g) vanilla buttercream
- 7 1/2 ounces (213 g) Marzipan
- Green, red and yellow food coloring
- Powder sugar
- Dark coating chocolate, melted
- Hazelnuts, toasted and finely copped
Instructions
Make the cake
- In a mixing bowl with the whisk attachment whip the eggs on high until a light and frothy consistency. Reduce the speed to medium and gradually add the oil. Turn the speed to low and mix in the sugar and salt.
- Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to the egg mixture until incorporated. Fold in the carrots and walnuts, evenly distributing them into the batter. Pour batter into a 10 inch (25 cm) prepared cake pan.
- Bake at 375°F (190°C) for about 30 minutes or until the cakes spring back when pressed lightly in the center. Allow the cake to cool completely.
Make the cream cheese filling
- Soften the cream cheese, using the paddle attachment of an electric mixer. Add the butter gradually, blending until the mixture is smooth. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar. Mix until smooth and spreadable.
Decorate the cake
- Cut the top off the carrot cake to make it level. Evenly cut the cake in half horizontally.
- Evenly spread the cream cheese filling over the top of the bottom half of the cake. Place the top portion on top of the filling.
- Frost the top of sides of the cake with the buttercream. Cover the sides of the cake with the crushed hazelnuts.
- Roll out 5 ounces of the marzipan, using powdered sugar to prevent it from sticking, to 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. Cut out a circle the same size as the top of the cake and place it on top of the cake.
- Invert the cake on a cardboard round and refrigerate upside down for two hours.
- Color 1/2 ounce (15 g) of the marzipan green. Combine the red and yellow food coloring to tint the remaining 2 ounces of marzipan orange. Cover and reserve.
- Roll the orange marzipan into a 9-inch (22.5 cm) rope and the green into a 4 1/2-inch ( cm) rope. Cut the orange and the green ropes into 12 equal pieces. Cover with plastic wrap.
- Roll the orange pieces into round balls. Roll each ball into a cone shape about 1 inch long by rolling them back and forth against the table.
- With a toothpick make horizontal lines around the carrot. Dip toothpick in oil if sticking to marzipan.
- With toothpick make a slight indentation in top for stem.
- For each green piece of marzipan roll into a 1/2 inch (1.2 cm) string. Tapper the string on both sides. Insert the end of the stem into the hole of the carrot. Cut and fan the green end to resemble a carrot top.
- Remove the cake from the refrigerator. Turn the cake right side up, brush off excess powdered sugar and cut it into the desired number of servings. Pipe a dime-sized dot of the melted coating chocolate on each slice, 1/2 inch (1.2 cm) away from the edge. Place a marzipan carrot on top of each of the chocolate spots.