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carrot cake

Thread Starter: HOTSPOTS23    Started: Thu 18 Mar 2004    Replies: 14

can some very clever person tell me why my carrot cake has suddenly started to go heavy and look uncooked in the middle even though i haven't changed the recipe. I'm going mad!!! Any comments appreciated.




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Mon 29 Mar 2004, 11.31PM

blondie02

HOTSPOTS23 I do so many different carrot cakes, different ingredients ect: Friday i ran out of vanilla and needed a flavour and used 1 teaspoon of almond extract mixed in with the sultannas. It is really yummy totally different from any other carrot cake I've made. I do bake a cake with carrots and ground almonds and fruit. This one is now going to the top of my cake list.

Mon 29 Mar 2004, 4.48PM

Roopa G - UKTV

Try grating the carrots by hand instead of making a puree. Maybe they get a bit watery when you blitz them in a food processor.
Let me know what happens! Do you use baking powder or bicarbonate of soda in your cake?
Roopa

Mon 29 Mar 2004, 4.03PM

HOTSPOTS23

thanks blondie will try and let you know the outcome. Thanks again for your time.

Sun 28 Mar 2004, 11.30PM

blondie02

Firstly, try a different way. Grate your carrots in a proccessor combined with the eggs untii they are finely chopped not purreed . now add your oil or change to melted butter, sugar and mix well together now fold in by hand carefully the flour. I also put sultannas in mine at this stage and vanilla extract. Bake at in a moderate oven.

Sun 28 Mar 2004, 6.59PM

UK Style user

I dont' know if this is going to help Hotpots23 but I've got a reputation for making good pastry and then went through a phase where I couldn't make it at all and my daughters had more sucess then I did!! It'll sort itself out, don't worry.

Sun 28 Mar 2004, 6.10PM

HOTSPOTS23

Thanks everyone for your comments, much appreciated. i am using sunflower oil and medium eggs and all my ingredients have been bought within the past week so they can't be old. i have tried it in two different ovens and still get the same result heavy. I have also used vegetable oil but still same results. I puree my carrots as the recipe says and fold them into the oil and sugar mixture as i said sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. It's sending me batty because i so want to make this cake again as everyone commented on how nice it was. Please help!!

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 10.12PM

Martino

Mamma chef help?

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 1.21PM

Martino

See now it is getting comments!

But to me if you are making this a lot and if it suddenly goes wrong
and if all things are equal the you must check the age of the ingredients.

But Blondie is the Carrot cake queen so If anyone knows it will be her.

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 8.58AM

blondie02

Sorry about that hotspots my hand hit the send by mistake before I had finished, can you tell me the oil you are using and size of eggs also very important how you prepare your carrots and the oven temp and will see what's happening. It's a pity I can't see it I would be able to tell straight away. If you have not changed the recipe and method atall in any way it sounds like your oven tem' is to low.

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 8.48AM

blondie02

Blondie makes loads of carrot cakes, so moist and yummy. Right heavy cakes can be caused by so many reasons even a slight drop in tempreture of your oven

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 8.25AM

yukata

Even a change in the make or type of oil you use for your carrot cake can be the fault.

I know that some supermarkets have changed their soft marg to a spread now as it has a higher water content and this is now not suitable for cake baking so think that oils can change too.

Sun 21 Mar 2004, 6.44AM

Martino

Maybe Blondie or Mammachef have some ideas on this?

Sat 20 Mar 2004, 12.39PM

Fantasia

I think Martino may have a good point about the baking powder.

But have a look on this link and see if anything else rings any bells.

[link]

Sat 20 Mar 2004, 9.04AM

Martino

Well Im not clever but it sounds as though it could be your rising agent. For example your baking powder.

Dough will often go heavy if over cooked or ingredients having the life bashed out of them.

Has it sunk or did it rise? what rising ingrients did you use? are they within date or could they be passed their shelf life?

As I said not clever as it could be a number of things. I am commneting to bring it to the top of the tree for others to see again.

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