Moist Carrot Cake

1. Preheat oven at 180°C/355°F.

2. Grate the carrots. Chop the pecans. Set aside.

3. In a cup, add milk and vinegar, give it a quick stir. Set aside for 10 min or until needed.

4. In a large bowl, sift all the dry ingredients. Set aside.

5. In another large bowl, add eggs and sugar. Mix until well combined, cream and fluffy.

6. Add oil and salt, mix until well combined respectively.

7. Add the sifted dry ingredients in two batches, alternate with the milk mixture which is also added in two batches. Use a whisk to mix the mixture, do not over mix. Do not add all at one go, as it will create lumps and as a result over mixing it.

8. Fold in the grated carrots and chopped pecans. Fold in just until they are incorporated.

9. Transfer the batter into a 7-inch pan, greased and lined with parchment paper.

10. Tap the pan few times to release air bubbles.

11. Bake in preheated oven at 180°C/355°F for about 35-38 min or until the inserted skewer comes out clean.

12. Remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting (No grits)

1. In a small bowl, add sugar and hot water. Mix until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to let it cool completely.

2. In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese until softened and creamy. Add in the sugar mixture. Mix until well combined.

3. Add in the butter (slightly softened). Mix until well combined, creamy, fluffy and pale. The frosting is now cream and ready to frost the cake.

Candied Carrots

1. Choose 2 largest carrots you can find. Remove the skin.

2. Use a peeler to peel the widest strips you can peel. You can use any peeler tool you have. As you peel the strips, it’s normal that some strips may go to waste (can be broken). Be careful with the peeler, don’t hurt yourself!

3. As you peel on one side of the carrot, rotate the carrot to peel some narrow strips. This is optional for narrow strips but it may be useful for this cake deco later.

4. Place all the strips on a napkin. Press on them with another napkin to remove as much moisture from the carrot.

5. In a sauce pan, add sugar and water. Bring it to a boil. Lower the heat to medium low, and cook the strips for about 10-15 min or until you noticed the strips has become translucent.

6. The water mixture volume will eventually reduce by half. Turn off the heat. Remove the strips from the pan quickly. Do not cook the strips until the water is drying up as the strips will get stuck to each other.

7. Let the strips cool down completely.

8. Pick some narrow strips to use for the curls. I used chopsticks, you may use anything you find equivalent. Roll and make the strips curled around the chopsticks. Place the sticks on a pan. Place the curled up strips in the freezer for about 15-20min.

Assemble the cake

1. After frosting the cake.

2. Remove the carrot curls from the freezer.

3. Put all the deco in order. Pick the widest strips to go to the sides of the cake. You will need 8 wide strips. Pick the wide strips to make round ribbons on top. I made 3 of those. Place some curls randomly on the top.