Carrot Cake @MaddieDayAuthor #BirthdayCake

MADDIE DAY here. Today is my older son's 40th birthday! I hope you'll join me in wishing Allan a happy birthday. 

All my recent pictures of him also include his daughter, Ida Rose, whose face isn't allowed on social media, so here's one of my boy and me at his wedding eight years ago.

I happen to know Allan loves carrot cake. I'm also trying to finish a first draft of RUTHIE DREW CLEANS UP, my first Ruthie Drew mystery. 

So, I hope you'll forgive me for rerunning a recipe I posted here in March of 2020. Yes, THAT March, when like many others I was stress-baking. We'll be celebrating Allan's birthday with the whole family and family-adjacent loved ones tomorrow, so I'll be baking this again, plus candles!

Carrot Cake

I adapted this recipe from the Victory Garden Cookbook by Marian Morash.  

Ingredients

Cake Ingredients:

2 cups unbleached white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground mace

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 sticks softened butter

4 local eggs

3 cups finely grated carrots (about five-seven medium)

2 teaspoons finely minced lemon zest

Butter and flour for greasing

 

Frosting Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese

6 tablespoons softened butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

2-2 ½ cups powdered sugar

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grate carrots and set aside. Grease two cake pans and dust with flour.

In a mixer, beat sugar and oil, then beat in eggs one at a time.

In a large measuring cup, combine flour, baking powder and baking soda, salt, and spices.

Stir in dry ingredients and carrots and beat.

Pour batter into prepared pan and tab on counter to release any air bubbles.

Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for fifteen minutes. Invert and remove from pan. Cool. 

Frosting

Combine ingredients and beat until smooth and creamy. Frost lower cake layer then second set on top. Frost top and sides.

Combine frosting ingredients and beat until smooth and creamy. Frost top of one cake layer then set second on top. 

Frost top and sides.

 

Enjoy a piece!

Readers: How do you like your cake? what are you celebrating this June?

🥕🎂🥕

A Poisonous Pour is out and available wherever books are sold!

Next up is Murder at the Toy Soldier, Cozy Capers Book Group #8, which releases in late August.

My most recent releases are Murder at Cape Costumers,

Scone Cold Dead, #13 in the Country Store Mysteries,

and A Case for the Ladies.

Check out all my writing.

We hope you'll visit Maddie and her Agatha Award-winning alter ego Edith Maxwell on our web site, sign up for our monthly newsletter, visit us on social media, and check our all our books and short stories.

Maddie Day (aka Edith Maxwell) is a talented amateur chef and holds a PhD in Linguistics from Indiana University. An Agatha Award-winning and bestselling author, she is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and also writes award-winning short crime fiction. She lives with her beau and sweet cat Martin north of Boston, where she’s currently working on her next mystery when she isn’t cooking up something delectable in the kitchen.