A pleasingly moist and delicious cake. It’s dotted with sweet carrots and a hit of cinnamon. The fluffy, buttery frosting is scrumptious with chopped walnuts stirred in. Once piece of this cake is never enough.

Ingredients: (Yield: 12 servings)

• 4 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 to 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 cups grated carrots

Frosting:

• ½ cup butter, softened
• 1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3¾ cups confectioners’ sugar
• 2 to 3 tablespoons 2% milk
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• Orange and green food coloring, optional

Method:

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and oil. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; beat into egg mixture. Stir in carrots.

Pour into two greased and floured 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

For frosting, in another large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar. Add enough milk to achieve desired spreading consistency. Reserve ½ cup frosting for decorating if desired. Stir walnuts into remaining frosting.

Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. If decorating the cake, tint ¼ cup reserved frosting orange and ¼ cup green. Cut a small hole in the corner of pastry or plastic bag; insert #7 round pastry tip. Fill the bag with orange frosting. Pipe twelve carrots on top of cake, so that each slice will have a carrot. Using #67 leaf pastry tip and the green frosting, pipe a leaf at the top of each carrot.

Store cake in the refrigerator.