I had some family over for a late lunch and I was left with a half-eaten veggie tray. Looking at the pile of baby carrots, I thought, “I should make carrot cake.” But I only had 1-1/2 cups of carrots, so I started looking around to see what else I could use. I had some celery and a friend had dropped off a bunch of fresh rhubarb, so I thought, “why the hell not?” I am a firm believer in the idea that most genius happens from the need to improvise and make-do. I also believe that if you slather a baked good with enough cream cheese frosting, you cannot go wrong. This was by far my favorite let’s make do recipe to date. So moist, delicious, with a slight rhubarb zing. What does Emeril say? Bam?! Well, Bam and hot damn!
Ingredients:
For the cake batter
- 2 cups all purpose four
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp fine salt
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1-3/4 cups light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1-1/2 cups finely grated carrots
- ¾ cup finely grated celery
- ¾ cup rhubarb
- ¾ cup jumbo raisins
- ¾ cup finely diced blanched almonds
For the cream cheese
- 1 (8 ounce) package brick style cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350’. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans well with non stick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, brown sugar, granulated sugar, applesauce, and vanilla until fully combined. Add the carrots, celery, and rhubarb and mix until well combined.
- Combine the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk and rubber spatula until just combined. Fold in the raisins and almonds.
- Pour the batter evenly between both prepared cake pans. Bake at 350’ for 40 minutes or until the tops of the cakes are set and a fork inserted in the center of each one comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes.
To make the frosting:
- Use a hand mixer to beat the butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Blend well using a spatula to scrape the sides and create an even consistency.
To assemble the cake:
- Level the top of each cake with a long bread knife. Frost bottom cake, then top cake. Top with extra almonds if desired. Enjoy!