Masala-Chai Carrot Cake ~ TheCakeSliceBakers

"Take the broken pieces of your life, bake a master cake out of it.

Don't stand still like a lake; keep flowing like a stream!" Israelmore Ayivor

These are trying times, no doubt about that.  Since I have always loved baking, and do it regularly, I can't actually say that I am #quarantinebaking, but maybe you have.  There is just something about baking - whether it be cake, cookies, or bread - that is very soothing to the soul. And you get something delicious to eat at the end. As we make our way through this pandemic stay safe everyone!

The Cake Slice Bakers continue to bake from The New Way To Cake by Benjamina Ebuehi.  You may remember Benjamina from The Great British Bake Off, where she constantly wowed the judges with her amazing bakes.  She certainly has a way with spices, and I am really enjoying the recipes in her book.

Our choices for April 2020 were Lemon, Ricotta & Thyme Mini-Loaves, Jasmine Green Tea Cake, Masala Chai Carrot Cake.  I don't think you could go wrong with picking any of these cakes to bake, but since I am big fan of chai I decided to make the Masala-Chai Carrot Cake.

This cake is actually quite easy to make once you have everything prepped (Mise en place is your best friend in baking). To make it even easier I baked the cakes on one day, then made the cream cheese frosting and assembled it the following day. You could even bake the cakes and then wrap each layer well and freeze them, letting them come to room temperature when you are ready to complete the cake.

Wow, is this cake ever fragrant as it is baking - all of those spices really zing. It is equally delicious when assembled and sampled.  Since I just love the flavor of chai I decided to add both chai spice and chai centrate to the cream cheese frosting, and it really enhanced the flavors on the cake.  This one is definitely going on repeat.

Masala-Chai Carrot Cake

Printer Friendly Recipe

Cake ~

• 2 English Breakfast tea bags
• 60 ml (¼ cup) boiling water
• 350g (2¼ cups) all-purpose flour
• 8g (1¼ teaspoon) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 4g (1½ teaspoons) ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• 350g (3-3¼ cups) grated carrots
• 375g (1¾ cups) light muscovado sugar
• 4 eggs
• 350 ml (1½ cups) vegetable oil

Cream Cheese Frosting ~

• 150g (⅔ cup) butter, softened
• 130g (1 cup) powdered sugar
• 340g (1½ cups) cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup chopped candied roasted pistachios, for garnish (optional)

Garnish ~

• 8-12 walnut halves, to decorate

Preparation

Cake ~

1. Preheat the oven to 180℃ (350℉).
2. Line 2 20-cm (8-inch) cake pans with parchment and spray with baking spray.
3. Place the tea bags in a cup and add the boiling water; allow to steep for at least 5 minutes.
4. Remove the teabags from the water, making sure that you squeeze all of the liquid out of them into the cup and then discard them.
5. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, pepper, cardamom; set aside
6. In a separate bowl, add the sugar, eggs, and tea, mixing until combined, before stirring in the oil.
7. Add the carrots to the egg mixture and fold them in so that they are evenly distributed.
8. Fold in the flour mixture until just incorporated, making sure there are no pockets of flour near the bottom.
9. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans, place in oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until the cakes are nicely browned and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean.
10. Let the cakes cool completely in the pans before turning them out onto a wire rack.

Cream Cheese Frosting ~

1. Place the butter and powdered sugar in a medium bowl, and using a hand-held mixer, beat the mixture for 3-5 minutes, or until pale and smooth.
2. Add the cream cheese and beat until just combined.

Assembling the Cake ~

1. Place one cake layer on a cake stand.
2. Spoon one-third of the cream cheese on top and push the frosting right to the edges.
3. Place the second cake topside down in order to give you a flat top.
4. Add the rest of the cream cheese frosting, spreading it out evenly with an offset spatula.
5. Place walnuts on top of the cake.

Each month The Cake Slice Bakers are offered a selection of cakes from the current book we are baking through. This year it is The New Way To Cake by Benjamina Ebuehi. We each choose one cake to bake, and then on the 20th - never before - we all post about our cake on our blogs. There are a few rules that we follow, but the most important ones are to have fun and enjoy baking & eating cakes!

Follow our Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest pages where you can find all of our cakes, as well as inspiration for many other cakes. You can also click on the thumbnail pictures below to take you to each of our cakes. If you have a blog and are interested in joining The Cake Slice Bakers and baking along with us, please send an email to thecakeslicebakers at gmail dot com for more details.

The Cake Slice Bakers also have a new Facebook group called The Cake Slice Bakers and Friends. This group is perfect for those who do not have a blog but want to join in the fun and bake through this book.

It is a new year and a new book - The New Way To Cake - and our choices for April 2020 were ~


Masala-Chai Carrot Cake

• All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Making Miracles
• Oven Delights
• Amandie Bakes

Lemon, Ricotta and Thyme Mini-Loaves 

• A Little Bit of All Right
• Karen's Kitchen Stories
• My Recipe Reviews
• A Day in the Life on the Farm

Jasmine Green Tea Cake

• Camille Cooks
• Culinary Adventures with Camilla