Thursday, April 1, 2010

A Carrot Cake for Easter

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Congratulations to Susan of Massachusetts who won the $25 gift certificate to Crumbs Bake Shop for her wacky pepperoni pizza cupcakes! And yes, we do have a new contest for you, and that’s no April Fool joke. Check below this post for details on how you can win the $25 Ultimate Grilling Rub collection from Williams-Sonoma!

It’s hard for me to believe it’s Easter again! Time for Easter dresses, egg dyeing, and a nap-inducing Easter dinner.

countrybunny3 Lots of my Easter memories revolve around bunnies, for obvious reasons. I had a large, yellow, inflatable Easter bunny when I was a little girl. And every year my parents read me The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes. I remember being amazed at the little bunny having 21 babies. And they were so well trained! “Wow!” I’d think. “Those are some good bunnies.” And, since any attempt at impressing a work ethic was lost on me, I’d just continue eating my chocolate bunny’s ears off.

My daughter was scared of even the prospect of the Easter bunny when she was little. She’d get assurances that the Easter bunny limited his egg-distribution activities to the downstairs, only.

And now we’ve got two brown little bunnies who eat grass in our backyard every evening and early morning!

Why is carrot cake the perfect Easter dessert? If it’s good enough for bunnies, it’s good enough for us!

Here is an easy carrot cake…and yes, it does use a cake mix! But I don’t think you’ll notice the difference. Well, my Mama would, but not most people.

Carrot Cake

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Ingredients
  • 1 (18.5 ounce) package carrot cake mix
  • 1/4 cup grated carrots
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts (or pecans)
  • 1 small box of raisins
  • 1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple with juice
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8 inch round pans or 1 9x13
  2. In a large mixing bowl, blend cake mix, oil, water, undrained pineapple, 007eggs, raisins, shredded carrots, and nuts. Beat for 2 minutes with a mixer at medium speed. Pour the batter into the pans.
  3. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool. Frost with cream cheese frosting.

Happy Easter, everyone!

Riley/Elizabeth
Delicious and Suspicious (July 6 2010) Riley Adams
Pretty is as Pretty Dies –Elizabeth Spann Craig

http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com

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New April Contest!!!!DELICIOUS  SUSPICIOUS cover

The first book in the Memphis Barbeque series, Delicious and Suspicious, will be released July 6. To celebrate its upcoming release, I’m throwing a giveaway! :) Are you interested in winning Williams-Sonoma’s Ultimate Grilling Rub Collection? It’s easy to be entered! Just send us an email to MysteryLoversKitchen@gmail.com with “Contest” in the subject line.

Grilling Rub Collection Really, really want to up your chances? You’ll get one extra entry if you follow us on Twitter, one extra if you subscribe to our posts (in the right hand sidebar under “Subscribe”), and one extra for becoming a follower (by clicking the “follow” button in the right hand column under our book covers and blog roll.) Just send us an extra email at MysteryLoversKitchen@gmail.com and let us know what you’ve signed up for. If you’re already a follower or subscriber, let us know that, too!

11 comments:

  1. I love carrot cake, but I'm the only one in my family that does. Guess I'll just have to drool over the photos of your cake and pick up a slice for myself at the grocery store. Hope you and your family, and all the ladies at MLK have a wonderful Easter.

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  2. I also love carrot cake. But for Easter, shouldn't chocolate be involved somehow?

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  3. I love carrot cake. And topped with cream cheese frosting... mmmmm.... Maybe next year I'll dispense with the lamb cake and make this recipe instead!

    Julie

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  4. Yum. I love carrot cake. This looks easy and good. Can't beat that. Thanks.

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  5. Mason--You could do what I do with my children...tell them it's a ginger cake. They don't know the difference! :)

    Juju--Hope you'll enter! And good luck. :)

    Alan--Yes! Chocolate should actually be included on ALL recipes. Hmm. Chocolate chips on the top of the cream cheese icing?

    Julie--Ooohhh...lamb cake, though...

    Carol--It's VERY easy. Hope you enjoy! :)

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  6. Bunnies and Easter and...Carrot Cake! A witty connection for sure. Grinning at your daughter's concern for the Easter Bunny's interloping activities in your house. "Invasion of the Easter Bunny! Ahhhh!" Also smiling at the mention of the live, brown bunnies in your yard. I miss those little cottontails of my Pennsylvania childhood. (No live bunnies in Queens, although we do have squirrels and pigeons and the occasional sneaky raccoon.) The annual Easter Parade on Fifth Avenue will surely bring out a few six-foot tall bunnies as well--or at least people with fantastic hats and bunny ears. In any event, your post has finally put me in the mood to celebrate Easter!

    Happy Easter, Riley/Elizabeth! May you and your family have a blessed weekend.

    ~Cleo
    Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Cleo Coyle on Twitter

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  7. That's my fave book for Easter! I made sure that my princess got a copy when she was little and it's her fave too. We still read it every year together, she'll be 13 next Tuesday.

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  8. I think I'll use your doctored carrot cake mix for my bunny cake this year -- it just seems
    perfect. And maybe I can use cream cheese frosting instead of buttercream. I LOVE cream
    cheese frosting -- even if it's purple!

    Your contest sounds FAB! Love the rubs.

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  9. Cleo--Thanks! And I hope you do, too. (Although I bet you DO have bunnies in Queens...they're just cleverly keeping under cover.)

    Pickle Berries (which must be the best profile name EVER)--Isn't that a great book? My son turns 13 next Saturday....it makes me a little sad.

    Jenn--Cool! It's really tasty, I have to admit. And quick!

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  10. I can't believe your daughter was afraid of the Easter Bunny! There must have been a cartoon or book that scared her.

    Bet she's not scared of your wonderful carrot cake, though! Yum.

    ~ Krista

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