Ingredient Notes
The Basics – You’ll need your typical cake-making ingredients: flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk.The Additions – Then you’ll need cinnamon, carrots, crushed pineapple, pecans (if desired), and coconut.Buttermilk Glaze – This cake is drizzled with a sweet buttermilk glaze before it’s frosted, producing a rich, tender texture. The glaze recipe makes just under 1 1/2 cups of glaze. As it is written, the recipe calls for this to be split amongst the cakes. It is quite rich and decadent, so feel free to put a little less, or save some for drizzling over the top of the finished cake. Can you leave it out completely and still have a delicious carrot cake? Yes, but it really is what makes this recipe unique. Both full fat and low fat buttermilk will work. Cream Cheese Frosting – It wouldn’t be carrot cake without the cream cheese frosting! Don’t cut corners here- full fat cream cheese and real butter are a must!
How to Make Carrot Cake Supreme
Preheat your oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 9″ round pans and set aside. For best results, cut two circles of parchment paper and place at the bottom of your pans. 2. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until combined. Fold in the carrots, crushed pineapple, coconut, and pecans (if using). 3. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and then bake for 25-30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the middle comes out clean. 4. Now this is where things get crazy. You know our buttermilk syrup? Yeah, we’re pretty much going to drizzle a version of that all over the cakes. While the cakes are baking, combine the sugar, baking soda, buttermilk, butter, and corn syrup in a large pot (think soup pot or Dutch oven- it will expand!) and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until the syrup is caramelly and golden. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla, and set aside. 5. When the cakes are done baking, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. With cakes still in the pan, drizzle the warm buttermilk glaze over the cakes. If the full amount of glaze feels like too much for you, feel free to do a little less. Allow the cakes to cool completely (I actually recommend popping these in the fridge and letting them chill after they’ve cooled so the cake is easier to frost). 6. To make the frosting, you’ll need butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla. You can also add a little almond extract if you like it. Which I do.
Beat together the softened cream cheese, butter, and extracts. Add 3/4 lb. of powdered sugar and then test the frosting–if you like it sweeter and softer, add a little more, but I really like a pronounced cream cheese flavor, so I go easy on the sugar. 7. Tear four thin strips of wax paper or aluminum foil and form a square on the plate that you’ll be serving the cake on. Carefully remove one of the cakes from the pan and place it on top of the strips. Gently ice the top of the cake layer and then top with the second layer. Ice the cake completely with remaining frosting. Decorate with extra coconut and pecans if desired. I desire it because I’m a horrible cake decorator and it hides all my mistakes. For best presentation, it’s better to refrigerate the cake overnight and then let it return to room temperature before serving. Can I make this ahead of time? Yes! This cake has many steps and can be overwhelming to make all at once. The cake layers can be made in advance and refrigerated or frozen (in the pan, with the buttermilk glaze) before icing the cake. This seems really rich. Is the cake still good without the glaze? Yes, it is, but the glaze gives it a unique caramelly flavor that’s hard to beat. Feel free to cut the glaze down or save some to drizzle on top if you prefer.
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