Easter Chocolatey Carrot Cakes
These little cakes have a mild spiciness reminiscent of hot cross buns and also contain chocolate, hence the ‘Easter' part of their name. They are delicious warm from the oven while the chocolate chips are still slightly molten but not hot, and served with fresh, hot coffee. I know they're chocolatey, but I'm convinced that the veggie content must count towards our five-a-day!
If you don't have the exact ingredients, refer to the substitutes list.
Ingredients: Substitute ingredients:
175ml vegetable oil sunflower or groundnut oil
100g golden caster sugar light soft brown sugar or white caster sugar
2 large free range eggs 3 medium eggs
225g Marriage's finest plain flour
pinch salt
1tspn bicarbonate of soda
100g bag of milk chocolate chips chopped milk chocolate
*150g peeled and finely grated carrot
50g walnuts, chopped pecans, or no nuts at all
1 heaped tspn ground cinnamon ground mixed spice
Zest of half an orange Satsuma
Zest of half a lemon The rest of the orange zest or another Satsuma
You'll also need 12 paper muffin cases in a muffin tin
Preheat electric and solid fuel ovens to 200C, and gas to mark 6. (I'm a solid fuel Rayburn cook, so Aga cooks will need to refer to their manuals).
Using either a wooden spoon or a hand held electric mixer, beat together the oil and sugar until slightly thickened, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Mix in all the other ingredients except the carrots until evenly combined. Fold in the carrots last. Divide the mixture equally in to the paper cases and bake towards the top of the oven for 15 - 20 minutes, until golden and well risen. Solid fuel cooks should check after 10-12 minutes that the cakes are not getting too ‘done' on the firebox side of the oven and if they are, turn the cake tin round.
(*As well as carrots, parsnips and beetroot were also widely used as sweeteners in 18th century English baking).