Friday, April 4, 2014

Tropical Carrot Cake


Servings:  10 to 12

Preparation Time:  30 minutes plus baking 1 hour for baking and cooling cakes

 
Note: this cake is best with either cream cheese frosting or the macadamia nut frosting given in the FNKWL blog: “Sometimes you Feel Like a Nut!”   
 

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup flaked, sweetened coconut
1 cup macadamia nuts
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup canola oil
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups finely grated carrots
2 (8-ounce) cans crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup flaked, sweetened coconut

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Coat 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with vegetable oil spray.  Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper.  Spray the paper with vegetable oil spray.
 
Place ½ cup of the flour, 1 cup sweetened coconut, and the macadamia nuts in the bowl of a food processor.  Pulse until the nuts are ground and the mixture resembles course crumbs.  Pour the nut mixture into a bowl.
 
Use a whisk to add the remaining 2 cups of flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda and salt to the nut mixture. Use an electric mixer to combine the granulated sugar and canola oil until smooth.
 
Stir in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the vanilla. Stir in the flour/nut mixture. Stir in the carrots and pineapple. 
Divide the batter between the 3 pans.  Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.  Cool the cakes in the pan for 15 minutes.  Run a knife around the edges of the cakes.  Invert onto a rack, and cool to room temperature.
For frosting, use the recipe for “Macadamia Nut Frosting” provided in the blog post “Sometimes You Feel like a Nut!”
Place one cake onto a cake stand.  Frost with about ¾ cups of frosting.  Repeat with the next layer.  Top with the third cake.  Frost the sides and top of the cake with the remaining frosting.  Sprinkle the top of the cake with the remaining 1 cup unsweetened coconut.
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