Melies Kitchen X Me Today Mānuka Honey
Super Moist Carrot & Honeycomb Crunch Cake With Gingery Cream Cheese Icing
INGREDIENTS
2 cups plain flour
½ cup ground almonds
2 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp each baking soda, cinnamon & ground ginger
3 medium carrots, grated (roughly 350g)
¼ cup each plain unsweetened yogurt & full-fat milk
4 large eggs
1 cup caster sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
1 cup canola or neutral oil
% cup roasted pecans, roughly chopped
Honeycomb Crunch:
1 % cups caster sugar
4 Tbsp Me Today Manuka Honey
1 tablespoon baking soda, sieved
Ginger Cream Cheese Icing:
1 ½ cups icing sugar
100g butter, softened
2 Tbsp Me Today Manuka Honey
2 tsp each vanilla bean paste & ground ginger
500g cream cheese
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 170*C. Grease and line two 20cm cake tins with baking paper (see tip).
Make carrot cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, ground almonds, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger and ½ tsp salt. Set aside.
Grate carrots and add to a separate bowl along with yogurt and milk. Mix together and set aside. Add eggs, both sugars and vanilla to a large bowl. Using hand-held electric beaters, beat on high speed for about 2 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Add carrot yogurt mixture and oil and beat again, until combined. Add flour mixture and pecans and beat again on low speed, until just combined.
Divide batter evenly between the two cake tins. Bake on the lower middle oven rack for about 35-40 minutes, or until golden and cooked through (see tip). A skewer inserted should come out clean with a few moist crumbs. Set aside to cool in the tins for about 15 minutes, before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make honeycomb: Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Sieve baking soda to remove any lumps. Combine sugar, Mānuka honey, and ¾ cup water in a large, heavy-based pot. Place over medium-low heat and stir, until the sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil.
Cook without stirring, occasionally swirling the pan, until sugar turns a golden amber colour. Working quickly, add the baking soda and ⅓ tsp salt and whisk quickly to just combine the baking soda. Immediately pour the mixture over the prepared baking tray (do not spread it out, it will ruin the texture).
Let it sit undisturbed, until cooled and set. Break honeycomb up into small chunks and set aside in an airtight container, until ready to use.
Remember to share your delicious creations with us at @metodayworld
Me Today x Melies Kitchen xx