Carrot Dates Cake
Carrots, dates and walnuts or almonds are indeed a match made in heaven. They pair simply beautifully. This is a fairly simple straight forward recipe with few basic ingredients. A slice of this mildly spiced cake and a cup of hot tea or coffee and you wouldn’t want anything else 🙂 If you guys are in mood for a richer and decadent
carrot cake, then you must surely click on this link. It’s a khoya and white chocolate laden carrot cake and every bite would make you feel as if you are digging into a bowl of gaajar ka halwa. It’s an absolute bliss 🙂
As always, I have used a 240 ml cup. Use fresh carrots to get a better flavour of the cake, preferably the red ones. Always use fresh ingredients. So, before red carrots vanish from the markets, please do try this. You can share your feedback in the comments section or mail me at pradeepa.nair0@gmail.com
It would be a pleasure to read your experiences about the blog and the recipes. That’s the only way for me to improvise 🙂 Till my next post, stay happy, stay healthy.
Ingredients:
- All purpose flour 200 gm (1.5 cups)
- Salt a pinch
- Sugar 125 gm
- Dates 50 gm
- Almonds 50 gm
- Baking powder 3/4 tsp
- Baking soda 1/4 tsp
- Oil 60 ml (1/4 cup)
- Grated carrot 125 gms
- Cinnamon powder 1/2 tsp
- Nutmeg grated a pinch
- Milk 1 cup minus 1-2 tbsp
- Curd 60 ml (1/4 cup)
Method:
- Preheat the oven at around 150-170 degree Celsius with both rods on and the fan mode on for around ten minutes.
- Grease a seven inch square pan and dust it with flour. Tap and remove the excess flour. You can also use a seven/eight inch round pan too.
- Sieve the flour, salt and rising agents 2-3 times.
- Add the grated nutmeg and cinnamon powder to it and mix well.
- Chop the dates and almonds into small bite size pieces.
- To this mixture, now add the grated carrot, chopped dates and almonds and mix well.
- In a measuring jar, add the milk, sugar (you can powder and use if the granules are too big), oil and curd.
- Whisk it thoroughly till the sugar is completely dissolved.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and fold it gently. Do not mix vigorously.
- Without wasting any further time, pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and tap it on the counter to remove the air bubbles.
- Place the cake in the lower rack of the oven and bake it for 45-50 minutes.
- You may switch only the top rod on during the last 2-3 minutes.
- Insert a toothpick or screwer into the centre of the cake and check whether it comes out clean. If not, bake for few more minutes.
- Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a cooling rack.
- Once the cake is cooled for around 7-8 minutes, transfer it onto the cooling rack and cool completely.
- Slice and serve it with your evening cuppa. Perfect for the winter evenings. Enjoy !!!
Notes:
- You may use a teaspoon of all spice powder if you desire.
- A teaspoon of fresh orange zest will increase the flavour of the cake.
- Adjust the quantity of milk depending on the flour and moisture content of the carrots.
- Grate the carrot finely or blitz it in the mixer for 2-4 seconds before you add it to the flour.
- Use fresh non sour curd.
- Always use all ingredients at room temperature.
- Make sure that your baking powder and baking soda are fresh.
- Once you mix the dry and wet ingredients, ensure that you put it into the oven soon and not leave it long on the counter.
- Always preheat the oven before you place the cake pan.
- This cake can be frosted with cream cheese frosting and I can assure you that it would pair brilliantly.
- I have used the red coloured Delhi carrots.
- You may replace the all purpose flour with whole wheat flour and adjust the liquid ingredients accordingly.
- White sugar can be replaced with brown sugar or cane sugar or coconut sugar.
- You can use any flavourless oil of your choice.
- You can very well skip the cinnamon and nutmeg and use vanilla extract instead.
- Adding few raisins or cranberries would bring lot more flavour to the cake.