ROSETTA’S CARROT CAKE

3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking soda
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon baking soda
1-1/2 cups Canola oil
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups shelled walnuts, chopped
1 cup shredded coconut
1-1/2 cups pureed cooked carrots
1 small 8 oz. can of crushed pineapple, drained

Cream Cheese Icing (recipe below)
½ cup walnuts for the top (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease two 9 inch cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper. Peel and cook carrots until a fork easily can be poked in to them. One small bag of full size carrots should yield about the right amount of pureed; cooked carrots. Drain the carrots and puree while still warm in a blender or food processor until they are smooth. Measure out 1-1/2 cups of the carrot puree and set aside.

Sift dry ingredients into a bowl. Stir dry ingredients together with a whisk to combine well. Add in sugar and mix well with the wire whisk. Slowly add Canola oil, eggs and vanilla. Beat well for about 2 minutes. Fold in the walnuts, coconut, carrots and pineapple. Pour equal amounts of cake batter into each pan. Set in the middle of the oven and bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until the edges have pulled away from the sides and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let sit in pans 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack and remove the parchment paper and let cake cool completely. When the cakes are cool, level with a serrated knife to take humps off. Spread cream cheese frosting between the layers and on top. Some people leave the icing off the sides, it’s your preference.

Cream Cheese Icing

2-8 ounce packages of cream cheese (softened)
2 sticks unsalted butter (softened)
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups sifted confectioner sugar

Mix cream cheese and butter well, add vanilla and slowly add powdered sugar…Beat well.

Optional to put nuts around edges of cake…but chop them much smaller.