Weekend Reflection and Carrot Cake

This weekend was the most relaxing weekend I have had in a while. I had time to deliver my cupcake order, experiment with a new cake flavor and go on a horse drawn carriage ride! I guess that is what happens when you realize you don’t have to clean your apartment perfectly from floor to ceiling and you wake up before noon! Check out these beautiful horses from Point Paradise Stables!

​I was scheduled to deliver a few batches of coffee cake cupcakes for a wedding shower on Saturday morning. After two hockey games on Friday night, I quick frosted the cupcakes that I baked the previous night. Having learned from the last weekend, I knew I needed to frost the cupcakes as soon as I got home, or I would be up until 4am again. Thankfully, the frosting process went super quick and I was done before midnight. That is an accomplishment in the baking world…especially after a full time job and hockey! As long as I am learning, I’m always improving, right?

​After delivering my cupcakes on Saturday morning, I accomplished so many things. I ran all my errands in less than an hour, so I had time to experiment with a new cake before my cousin’s hockey game. It started out so well, I found shredded carrots at Target and stuck them in my food processor and it worked perfectly. My biggest annoyance with carrot cake is cutting the carrots so they are small enough (and the fact that there are carrots in a cake). I found a super simple recipe so there aren’t any pineapples, nuts or raisins in this cake, which cuts down on the cost…a lot. 

This little Oster 2-Speed Immersion Hand Blender with Food Chopper Attachment is the best $30 I have ever spent. Actually I'm pretty sure I paid less than that because I like sale items. I chopped these carrots in about 10 seconds! However, I'm thinking shredded carrots chopped up is not the way to go. I'm still debating so if anyone has any advice on carrots in carrot cake, I am all ears!

I baked the cupcakes first to see how the cake would rise. Last time, I stuck in two cakes and they overflowed all over my oven. Another lesson learned that saved me this time! I could write a book! The cupcakes came out perfectly so I was excited to try the cake. 

The cake was great but I learned another valuable lesson: don't take the cake out of the pan while it is still hot! There is a reason the professional bakers put their cakes in the fridge before taking them out of the pan. After finding a few people at work to be my taste testers, I concluded that the cake needs a bit more flavor and maybe more stuff in it. What do you prefer? Nuts? Raisins? Pineapple? This cake is going to be a work in progress but I think I have found a great foundation for the the carrot cake recipe!