When you've got a sweet tooth, nothing quite hits the spot like a delicious slice of . Sure, you could pop to your local or cafeĢ, but there's something incredibly satisfying about one yourself.
It's also a great way to chill out after a hectic week. If you're on the hunt for a top-notch recipe, this special might just be what you need. Her carrot cake with a creamy mascarpone topping doesn't call for any fancy ingredients and it all comes together in one bowl. Plus, it only takes 15 minutes of prep before it's ready to go in the oven.
Carrot cake has always been a firm favourite at , with its spiced, fluffy sponge and creamy icing. And with Mary Berry's recipe, it's simpler to make than you'd think.
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The website description reads: "Always a popular cake, this American carrot cake needs to be stored in the fridge because of the mascarpone topping. Walnut pieces are cheaper than walnut halves and are perfect for cakes," reports .
Here's everything you need to whip it up. Before you get started, you'll need a 20cm deep round cake tin.
Ingredients - for the cake- 225g self-raising flour
- Two teaspoons baking powder
- 150g light muscovado sugar
- 50g walnut pieces, chopped
- 100g carrots, coarsely grated
- Two ripe bananas, mashed
- Two eggs
- 150 ml sunflower oil
- 250g tub mascarpone cheese
- Two to three teaspoons vanilla extract
- Two tablespoons icing sugar, sifted
- about 25g walnut pieces, chopped
Method
Lightly grease a 20 cm deep round cake tin and line the base with a circle of non-stick baking parchment. Pre-heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
To make the cake, chuck all of the ingredients into a large bowl and give it a good mix until everything is well combined. You can use an electric mixer for this, but a wooden spoon will do the job too.
Once mixed, pour the batter into your prepped cake tin and smooth out the top. Pop it in your pre-heated oven for around 50-60 minutes, or until the cake has risen nicely, turned golden, and is starting to pull away from the sides of the tin.
To check if it's done, stick a skewer into the middle - it should come out clean. Let the cake cool in the tin for a bit, then use a small palette knife or blunt knife to loosen the edges before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
For the topping, stir together the mascarpone cheese, vanilla extract and sieved icing sugar in a small bowl. Spread this evenly over the top of your cooled cake, sprinkle on the chopped walnuts, and pop it in the fridge to store.
