Yummy Carrot Cake

My carrot cake recipe is the first cake recipe that I made from scratch and everyone LOVED! My dad's favorite kind of cake is carrot cake so I decided to try and make him a carrot cake for his birthday a couple years ago- it was a big hit! I have made it multiple times since then.

Carrot Cake Recipe
1 cup pecans toasted, coarsley chopped
3/4 lb raw carrots (2 1/2 cups finely grated)
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup veg. oil
2 tsp vanilla
*1/2 cup apple sauce- to make more moist add the 1/2 cup apple sauce with the oil and vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Butter or spray 2 9x9 in cake pans
Toast the pecans for about 8 minutes or until lightly brown. Let cool, then chop coarsley.
Peel and finely grate carrots, set aside.
In a seperate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt & ground cinnamon. Set aside.
In a bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the eggs until frothy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until the batter is thick and light colored. Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add in the apple sauce (this is what makes it so moist!). Add the flour mixture and beat until just incorporated. With a large rubber spatula, fold in carrots and pecans. Evenly divide the batter between the 2 pans and bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let cool 5-10 minutes


Cream Cheese Icing
1/2 cup melted butter
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 lb powdered sugar

Combine the butter, cream cheese, and vanilla, mixing well.
Gradually add the powdered sugar, beating well until smooth.
Ice the cake and enjoy!

Sorry, I don't have any pictures of a carrot cake I have made :(... I'll take one next time!!

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