CHRISTMAS CARROT CAKE
Pretty proud of this one and I enjoyed tucking into the very first test cake — a success! This is a traditional Christmas cake with a Gujarati twist (more on that below). It’s lighter than the usual fruitcake, gluten-free, stuffed with carrots and high in protein thanks to a mix of lentil flours along with rice flour. If you use a vegan yoghurt then it’s also vegan to boot.
This cake recipe was approved by not one but two Christmas/wedding cake aficionados: my other half Nick and my best friend Sjaniel, both of whose mums have baked Christmas and wedding cakes for as long as they can remember. This recipe uses half the amount of dried fruits that traditional cakes do and three quarters of the sweetener. The jaggery/coconut sugar adds a caramelised flavour, compared to white sugar, as well as having more minerals. The recipe is nut-free but feel free to add in your choice of chopped nuts.
Not too heavy after dinner, the batter is borrowed from the Gujarati classic handvo — a fermented mix of lentils and rice with yoghurt that makes for a delicious protein-rich batter that doesn’t require eggs. Just remember to start the process 6-8 hours before — basically mix the batter ingredients together and leave it in a warm place to thicken up. Traditionally, handvo batter is created from a mix of three lentils along with rice, which is first soaked overnight, then blended and then fermented. That extra first step can be avoided if you buy handvo — also known as ondhwa — flour from an Asian shop or online. For those who can’t access it easily I’ll include the “from scratch” version once I’ve thoroughly tested the ratios!
INGREDIENTS
For the batter
450g handvo flour
⅓ cup organic live yogurt or non-dairy live/probiotic yogurt
1 tbsp ghee (or your favourite cooking oil e.g. coconut oil)
1½ cups warm water
For the next step
3 packed cups (350g) of coarsely grated carrots
3 cups (450g) dried mixed fruits pref. with peel
1 tbsp grated ginger (or 1/2 tsp ground ginger)
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 organic/unwaxed orange
Finely grated zest only of 1 organic/unwaxed lemon
150g jaggery (or coconut sugar)*
100ml brandy — or use 1tsp orange extract
1½ tsp ground mixed spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground allspice
Pinch of sea salt
1 tsp baking soda
METHOD
Sieve the flour into a large glass or ceramic bowl, then mix in the rest of the batter ingredients. Keep in a warm place to ferment for 6-8 hours or overnight, e.g. an airing cupboard or your oven with the light bulb on until thick and bubbled.
To make the cake, stir together the fruit, zests, juice, brandy** and spices in a large pan. Bring slowly to the boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and bubble for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until most of the liquid has evaporated (** less time if only using orange extract rather than brandy, and add it towards the end).
Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 170°C Fan oven. Prepare an 8-inch or 9-inch spring form or loose-bottomed cake tin by greasing all the sides with ghee, butter or your choice of oil.
Grate the carrots and ginger into a large bowl. Give the fermented batter a stir, then pour into the bowl of carrots, along with the mixed fruit, and mix well to combine.
When you are ready to bake, add baking soda to the batter and mix well. Pour the batter into the cake tin.
Bake between 40- 55 mins depending on your cake tin size (a smaller tin will take longer and a wider tin will be quicker), checking after the first 30 minutes or so, until the cake is dark brown on top and an inserted skewer comes out clean. Cover the top of the cake with baking paper if it starts to darken too much. I use an 8inch cake tin and cook for 50mins.
Leave to cool on a cooling rack and serve warm or room temperature. Store somewhere cool - remember that this cake has less sugar (which acts as a preservative) than normal cakes.
East by West tips:
*If you can’t find jaggery or coconut sugar, a good supermarket substitute is Billington's Molasses Sugar.
If you like this try:
Saffron Cardamom Cottage Cheesecake With a Millionaire Crust (page 212 in East by West)