This fun twist on carrot cake comes to us from Suzanna Stapler, a local Nashville artist, digital illustrator, and self-proclaimed enthusiastic foodie. Check her out on Instagram @bysuzannaquinn or on her website www.squillustrate.com. To see the full illustration, grab Issue #34.
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly coat 2 – 9” cake pans with vegetable oil.
2. To prepare cake, peel carrots and grate on large holes of grater until it yields 2 ½ loosely packed cups. Set aside.
3. Cut butter into pieces and place in medium saucepan over medium heat. Heat until foaming, about 2 minutes. Add pistachios and cook, stirring often, until butter turns brown and smells toasty, about 5 minutes. Pour mixture through fine-mesh sieve, scraping in all browned bits, and set butter and nuts aside separately.
4. In medium bowl, combine sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon. Set aside.
5. Crack eggs into bowl of a stand mixer. Add sugar mixture and beat on high speed 3 minutes until thick, pale, and increased in volume. Reduce speed to medium-high and gradually stream in reserved brown butter, beating until combined. Remove bowl from mixer and gently fold in flour with spatula until almost completely combined.
6. Coarsely chop reserved pistachios. Add nuts and carrots to batter and continue to fold until all is incorporated.
7. Scrape batter into prepared pans and smooth the surface. Bake 35 minutes, or until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan.
8. To prepare frosting, add butter and cream cheese to medium bowl and beat on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Reduce speed to medium and add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Add salt, vanilla, and half and half and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Fold in coconut.
9. To assemble, top one cooled layer of cake with prepared icing. Place second cooled cake layer on top. Cover top and sides with remaining icing.
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