This recipe yields 1 Eggless portion. This carrot cake with it’s amazing spice flavour, super moist crumb and velvety cream cheese frosting is the best you’ll have !!!
Cake Batter
Preheat the oven at 180 ̊C (OTG mode: upper rod + lower rod + fan). Grease and line two 6 inch round tins with oil & butterpaper.
In a bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon powder and nutmeg powder.
In another bowl, mix together buttermilk, oil and vanilla essence.
Now fold the wet ingredients into the dry ones and mix well to form a smooth batter. Lastly fold in shredded carrot.
Now divide the batter equally between both the tins and bake at 180 ̊C (OTG mode: lower rod only) for 20 – 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Cream Cheese Frosting
In a bowl, beat unsalted butter until it turns pale and fluffy.
Now add in cream cheese and mix. Do not overbeat cream cheese, as cream cheese tends to separate (loose water).
Then add in sifted icing sugar in batches, to avoid lumps.
Lastly add in vanilla essence and give it a quick mix.
Soaking Syrup
In a bowl, mix vanilla essence and water together.
Keep aside for further use.
Carrot Layer Cake Assembly
Firstly, divide both the sponges equally using a cake leveller.
Now place a tissue paper on the turning table and then place cake base over it. Then pipe some frosting on the cake base.
Now place first layer on it (use bottom layer of sponge). Soak it with soaking syrup.
Pipe frosting on the sponge starting from centre and then spread it using palette knife. Place palette knife in the centre and keep it at an angle of 45 ̊ while spreading the frosting (apply little pressure).
Place second layer (invert the top layer of sponge) and repeat the steps, followed by third layer (inverted top layer of another sponge) and lastly the fourth layer (invert the bottom layer).
Now pipe a thin layer of frosting on the the top and sides of the cake for crumb coating. Smooth the top using palette knife and sides using metal scraper (keep it at 45 ̊ angle, touching the cake completely) .
Freeze the crumb coated cake for 15 – 20 minutes or until the frosting sets.
Meanwhile take out 1/3rd part of the remaining frosting and add add lemon yellow, sunset orange color to this part.
Now for final coating ombre effect, pipe thick layer of frostings (coloured frosting at the bottom and then the white frosting) and smooth it out using scraper for sides and the top using palette knife.
To remove excess frosting from the edges at the top, keep palette knife at the level of the cake and move inwards.
For the top spiral design, use a bent palette knife, moving outwards from the centre, while rotating the turning table.
Now pipe dollops on the top using open star nozzle.
Finish off by sticking some chopped walnuts over the coloured frosting, and sprinkle some at the top of the cake, in centre.