At last, flavor has re-entered my life! I think this cold of mine is surrendering to the vitamin and chicken soup onslaught... I could almost taste my lunch today.Years ago, I read an interview... Stevie Nicks and food... two topics guaranteed to garner my attention...
...The miniature cheesecake sat in front of Stevie Nicks like a cruel temptation, crowned with a glaze of mandarin oranges and skirted with puddles of chocolate sauce. She took a bite, just to test it. Then she put down her fork, deciding the pleasure was not worth the penance. "I'll eat a dessert if it's really good...but I won't waste a carbohydrate." ~ excerpt from New York Times article (Frank Bruni/November 25, 1997)
Finally! ...an approach to eating a foodie like me could wholeheartedly get behind. (Let's face it people... celery stalks and apple slices are rather feeble substitutions for their bake shop big sisters). So, on those occasions when an apple slice just won't suffice... I offer up my recipe for carrot cake... which I cobbled together after months of trial and error and I think is worth EVERY single solitary carbohydrate it possesses. Give it a try and see if you agree.
Old-Fashioned Carrot Cake
2 cups flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup raisins
1 cup walnuts (chopped)
3 cups carrots (grated)
In a large bowl, and by hand, mix together dry ingredients. Stir in oil and vanilla. Add eggs. Fold in raisins, walnuts and carrots. Pour mixture into 3 ungreased 8" round cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes; cool before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
1 stick butter (softened)
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
16 ounces powdered sugar
Beat cream cheese and butter with mixer. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and mix well. Frost cooled cake between each layer, then sides and top.
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