Dessert

The last time I went to make struffoli, or as some may know it, pignolata, I was a total hack.  I was chef’n on the site Fix My Recipe and was trying to recall as much about food as I could even after being out of it for a few years at that point.  I was doing the site because I loved food and loved video but I was pretty young and didn’t quite have the passion and experience I needed.  When I made the struffoli back then the little dough balls were rock solid and honestly tasted like nothing and looked even worse.  Fast forward 10 years and I am dang proud of the struffoli that made this time around.  It’s incredibly festive and really quite easy to make, just need to have some patience.

I’ve said this before but I’ll say it again, I originally went to culinary school 18 years ago to become a pastry chef.  After my first baking class I realized I didn’t quite have the patience it was going to take to be waiting on dough to rise and for meticulous decorating of cakes.  I’ve developed so much more of a joy for baking these days, most likely because I’m 36 and I’ve figured out ways to be doing other things while baked goodies need their resting time.  Struffoli doesn’t require a ton of down time, but there definitely is some.  My thought is that if you want to impress some friends and family over this holiday season then I’m not sure there is much cooler, or different for that matter, than struffoli.

Struffoli only consists of 5 ingredients, that’s it.  There are a few other things needed for the glaze on top but the dough is really simple to make and only has few ingredients.  As always, I used Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Flour.  It’s packed with protein and can literally handle the smallest of things like breading chicken, to the big things like artisan bread or a tripe layered cake.  Since I’m trying to eat a little cleaner, I’ve been using the Bob’s Red Mill organic flour.  I’ve toured their facilities and it is amazing and there isn’t a company on earth that I trust with my food more than them.  Rest assured they are the real deal when it comes to providing flours, grains, beans and cereals.

Once you whisk up the eggs, sugar, melted butter and salt you then want to incorporate the flour in and using the hook knead together the dough.  There isn’t yeast in this dough, all though that may be a good idea so that they would turn into huge delicious dough balls, but I’m a traditionalist so I’m keeping it legit with this stuffoli recipe.  You want the dough the rest for about 30 minutes before you roll it out and make the balls.  You do this so the dough doesn’t get tough and stays nice and light after you fry it up.

You want to divide the dough into 4 big chunks and then individually roll them out into long ropes that are about ½” thick or so.  Don’t worry about being perfect because the dough balls change size and shape anyways once they’re fried.  If you have a deep fryer you can use then I would say use it, but you definitely do not need to.  The deep fryer will allow you to fry more at one time making the cooking process a bit shorter.  Just a little FYI in case you were needing to save time.

Once the dough balls are fried you want to coat them in s honey simple syrup sauce.  It is literally just that.  You boil together water and sugar and once it’s combined you want to whisk in some honey.  You can also whisk in some citrus zest if you want since this can alter the flavor a bit.  I would suggest using orange or lemon if you want to go this route.  I added in some chopped pecans when folding the struffoli in with the honey simple syrup just to add a little crunch.

Lastly, I formed everything together into a wreath.  I was actually aiming to make a really tall Christmas tree out of it but it was just not cooperating, however I think the wreath turned out pretty cool.  Well that’s all I got for now, you know where to find me!!

I’ve made icebox cakes a few times and every single time I do it’s seriously gone in like 2 days.  We actually don’t eat all of it ourselves, we usually have people over to enjoy it with us but dang is it just so good!  Since we are right around the corner from thanksgiving I decided to make this icebox cake seasonally appropriate by making the cookie portion, pumpkin and it did not disappoint.  Pumpkin just goes so well with cream, honestly just as good as peaches do, and since the cookies aren’t overly sweet, it’s just a fantastic combination of flavors and something that’s different from the norm when the desserts roll out after the turkey is eaten.

This icebox cake recipe can take some time since you need to wait until the cookies are completely cool and then you need to wait again while it is freezing.  It is dang near impossible waiting for something this good because it’s so delicious, but I promise it’s worth it and you can do it!!  I’m just telling you all of this to give you a fair warning that it is going to take most of the day before it’s finished, about 8 hours.  Now, with that being said you aren’t really doing anything for about 7 hours and 15 minutes, just waiting for things to cool and then freeze so you can plan your day around it.

I used Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose flour as I almost always do when it comes to baking just about any cookie or cake recipe.  I really dig their artisan flour when it comes to making breads or pizza crusts, but the All-Purpose flour is high enough in protein and beyond perfect to make all of your cake and cookie needs.  You want to cream together the butter and sugars before adding in the rest of the ingredients, but It’s super important to make sure that butter-sugar mixture is really light and fluffy before adding in everything else.  This pumpkin cookie recipe is super easy and you won’t believe just how light each cookie is, honestly you could put down 10 in 1 sitting and not even realize it.   So, in other words yeah they’re dangerous!

Try not too eat too many because you need to layer up this icebox cake with cookies mascarpone whipped cream.  Because I love you this recipe is a little big leaving about 9 extra cookies for your to devour while waiting for them to cool down J.  You’re welcome!  To get the cookies cooled down quicker, remove them from the sheet tray and place them on a cooling rack.  While they are cooling this is perfect timing to make the mascarpone whipped cream.  This recipe is incredibly simple and honestly pretty versatile because you can add in liqueurs, flavorings or extracts to enhance or change.  I saw that they do make a pumpkin spice extract but after thinking it over I’m not sure I want some chem lab produced stuff into my icebox cake.  I would however be interested in how they make that stuff…  Go ahead and put the mascarpone whipped cream into the refrigerator until it’s time to use it.

Once the cookies have cooled you can begin layering up this cake.  You can keep it the same diameter around or you can kind of taper it off at the top, as I did – I think it looks cooler.  You want to lay down the cookies next to each other in a circle and then spread on a layer of the whipped cream.  At this time you can begin to add on the shaved chocolate and pumpkin spice blend or you want until it is completely layered up before adding it to the top, totally up to you.

Last but not least comes the hard part, waiting until it is frozen enough to actually eat it.  Yes, you can eat it as is and it’s still really good but dude it is so much better once it’s frozen that it’s not even close.  It’s like eating the most insane ice cream cake of all time, seriously no joke.  Just think of how good it will be once it’s ready!  Happy thanksgiving you all, hope you dig this one!

As the summer winds down, I’m doing all I can to soak in the last drop of sun and heat, and the abundance of in season fresh berries.  I never realize how much I take utilizing fresh berries in my cooking for granted until about mid-January.  There is no denying it- I’m a summer produce fan and wish I could have access to it all year long.  However, I’m a man of principle when it comes to cooking with in season produce so you’ll almost never catch me eating things that aren’t at its peak.

I am almost always a citrus first dessert kind of person.  Whether it be lemon meringue, key lime pie, or just a simple lemon sabayon and berries, I prefer citrus.  I like really strong flavors and lemon is almost always able to hit that key for me.  I’ve made quite a few lemon tart recipes over the years, but this is a tad lighter due to incorporating mascarpone cheese and cream cheese.  The flavor is still bold, but incredibly smooth without the finishing bite of a pie that only has citrus.

We are big dessert people in this family, so whatever I’m baking is guaranteed to be eaten within minutes of it being finished.  Heck, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a big slice of pie and coffee for breakfast.  To me there is nothing better than a sweet pie and a black coffee- literally my idea of heaven!  We also almost always have people over every week who we share food with, and it’s honestly one of the highlights of my week.  We love being able to entertain and host people, and ever since we rehabbed our kitchen, we can finally enjoy it to its fullest.  One of the main attractions in our kitchen is our Franke farmhouse sink with gooseneck faucet and matching pot filler faucet.  The elegant polished steel along with the classic look stands out the second you walk in, and we are constantly getting compliments on it.  I always tell everyone that the Franke pot filler is hands down my favorite thing in our newly renovated kitchen.  I was always filling up pots from the sink and carrying it over, and I’m clumsy so it was guaranteed that water would spill out on my short journey.  The pot filler really allows me to be organized when I’m cooking by keeping everything in its place.  I love it!  In addition, I’m not sure I’d be able to go about my daily cooking routine without the Franke roller mat.  I use it every day to dry dishes and wash produce in.  The slots allow me to put a colander on it when washing fresh berries. While water runs through the berries with ease, it also helps take pressure off my back as I don’t have to lean over into the sink. I’m tall, so anything I can use to help keep me aligned is huge!

I’m a huge advocate for making pie crusts in a food processor.  It’s quick, it’s easy, and a whole lot cleaner than trying to do it yourself with a pastry knife.  Once the dough is made you simply roll it out and then form it to your tart pan.  You can absolutely use a different size or shape when making this tart, so don’t feel like you need to go buy an 8” tart pan like this one.

The next step is to make a lemon curd, which I know may sound a little scary for you beginners, but it is super easy.  In fact, if it terrifies you a little too much, you can buy pre-made lemon curd from the store, which is just fine by me.  You make a lemon curd over a double boiler and once it gets thick, you finish it with butter and chill it until cold. Simple as that.

The last thing you want to do is whip together the mascarpone cheese and cream cheese to help lighten up this tart a bit.  Once the mixture becomes light and fluffy, you then add in the lemon curd and mix it until it’s combined.  From there keep it cool in the refrigerator until it hardens, and then finish it with some fresh berries.  This Lemon Tart Recipe with Mascarpone and Fresh Berries is beautiful, easy to make, and always a hit in my house!  Happy Baking!

This post is sponsored by the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association, all opinions are my own.

If you took a look at my freezer, you might be shocked at the amount of ice cream in there. Or, if you’re a frozen treats lover like me, maybe you wouldn’t! But seriously, if you like ice cream as much as I do, then you’re in for a real treat with this simple recipe for Baked Alaska.

The first recipe for Baked Alaska was made in New York City to commemorate Alaska becoming the 49th state in January of 1959 (Hawaii became a state seven months later). The chefs at Delmonico’s whipped up meringue and used it to “frost” a dome of ice cream sitting on top of a vanilla cake. The end result resembled an igloo, and it’s making a comeback almost 60 years later. I simplified it slightly, using a few different treats to replace the cake.

I took a trip through my grocery’s bakery and picked up chocolate chip cookies, a pan of brownies, and a couple large vanilla cupcakes. These three treats will be the base of our Baked Alaska. I took a round cookie cutter to stamp out 3 inch rounds from the brownies, and left the cookies whole. For the cupcakes, I removed the frosting and then sawed each cupcake into three slices (these were the jumbo size). You might be wondering what to do with the frosting. If I were you, I’d slather it on a graham cracker, top with another graham cracker, and stick it in the freezer. A couple hours later, you can enjoy this frozen buttercream sandwich of sorts (don’t knock it until you try it!). If you’re not too full from the Baked Alaska, of course.

Each time I grocery shop, the trip is capped off with a trip through the frozen aisle, where I make a stop in front of ALL the ice cream. At this point I think I’ve tried them all, but I usually go back to a few favorites. I grabbed a few to pair with the brownie, cookie, and cake bases. First I chose Kemps Cherry Fudge Chunk, a cherry ice cream with chocolate chunks and sweet Bordeaux cherries. Also on my list from Kemps was Moose Tracks—vanilla ice cream swirled with fudge and mini peanut butter cups.

From Ben & Jerry’s I chose Everything But The…, a mixture of chocolate and vanilla ice cream with peanut butter cups, fudge-covered toffee, white chocolate chunks, and fudge-covered almonds. Oh my. It’s as good as it sounds. I also picked up a pint of Chunky Monkey, which is banana ice cream with fudge chunks and walnuts. But you should pick your favorites, and then have fun pairing them with cookies, brownies, and cake!

I let the ice cream sit for a few minutes outside of the freezer while I laid out all of the brownie circles, cupcake rounds, and cookies, and then I laid a scoop of ice cream on each. You want a dome shape here, which I found was easiest to create using a traditional round ice cream scoop. If the ice cream isn’t cooperating, give it a few more minutes outside of the freezer to get soft before you scoop, but work quickly once you do! After you’ve topped a few, transfer them to the freezer so they keep their shape, and then repeat. After about an hour in the freezer, you’ll be ready for the final step!

To create that beautiful igloo-resembling top to this dessert, I whipped egg whites with sugar and cream of tartar to stiff peaks. A stand mixer works best for this, and it’s ready as soon as the egg whites keep their shape (and don’t fold over on themselves) when you lift the beater. Then I “frosted” the ice cream domes. Messy is ok here! The swirls that you create with your knife will toast first and make the dessert all the more appealing. The next step is the fun part. Grab a food-safe blow torch, and lightly torch each dome until it’s light brown. Then you’re ready to serve this show-stopping dessert.

If you served this for guests, I can guarantee you’d get some oohs and aahs. It’s such a fun dessert especially for the summertime, and the timing couldn’t be better to learn this recipe since it’s National Ice Cream Month! Also, the finished Baked Alaska will keep for a few hours in the freezer while you enjoy your meal. If you enjoy ice cream as much as I do, you’ll be glad to have this dessert in your repertoire.

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There are few desserts I enjoy more than crisp and cobbler recipes, so in the spirit of summer and fresh berries, I thought I would create a Berry Crisp Recipe with Homemade Caramel and No Church Ice Cream.  I like crisp and cobbler recipes because they’re just so easy to make and so incredibly versatile.  For instance, the same base of this recipe, this crisp portion, would go great with whatever fruit is in season.  I often make the same recipe, but I use apples or pears during the winter months to take advantage of the seasonal fruit.  While the berry crisp portion of this recipe is wonderful by itself, the caramel and no churn ice cream take it to the next level.

Making homemade ice cream is incredibly easy to do – you just need 4-6 hours for the ice cream batter to freeze properly. You also may be thinking that you don’t have an ice cream maker, but no worries, because this no churn ice cream recipe only requires a mixer.  If you don’t have a mixer, you can still pull this off with a whisk and a lot of energy.  Start by whisking some heavy cream and sugar to stiff peaks.  Once the peaks have formed, add in a bit of fresh vanilla bean seeds and some vanilla extract.  After the vanilla is mixed in, fold in some cold mascarpone cheese.  Adding the cheese in will bring some body to the ice cream batter, as well as give it an amazing flavor.  Then, simply transfer it to a loaf pan or an ice cream tub and place it in the freezer until it’s frozen.  I know I said 4-6 hours but if you can let it sit overnight – that’s even better.

I used to despise making caramel because I would always burn the sugar before I put the fat in, which would drive me crazy!  It was something I struggled with even when I was in the restaurant industry.  It’s not that I don’t know how to make caramel, it’s because I had 8,000 other things I was trying to do and always forgot about the sugar cooking.  Well, I think I’ve figured out a fool-proof way to do it nowadays: add some brown sugar, cream and butter to a pot and bring it a boil, and boom! It’s done.  No need to worry about the sugar burning, as the fat will help keep it from burning.  After it come to a boil, you can remove it from the heat and whisk in some brandy, whisky, or whatever you would like.  Keep the caramel warm until serving.

One of the pieces in our rehabbed kitchen that we absolutely love is our Franke farmhouse sink, faucet and roller mat.  When I first received the roller mat, I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do with it, but now I feel as if I can’t live without it.  I use it to dry dishes on, as a hot pad underneath pots and pans that come right out of the oven, and I use it as a strainer to wash produce on.  The Franke gooseneck faucet and hose extender make it so easy to wash all sides of the fruit.  My wife is all about beauty, and I’m all about functionality, and we definitely got both with our Franke sink, faucets and roller mat.

After I wash the fresh berries, I like to toss them around in a bit of fresh squeezed lemon juice and sugar to help sweeten them up a bit – and to add a bit more sourness to them.  From there, simply add it to a casserole dish or skillet and prepare the streusel.  I like to use a combination of rolled oats, flour, brown sugar and butter for my streusel, and once the fat is cut in, I evenly sprinkle it all over the top of the berries. Then I send it off to the oven for baking.

Just as soon as the crisp is removed from the oven, I immediately do all I can to serve it up with the caramel and ice cream for the perfect treat!  Soooo Good!  Happy Baking!

A popsicle on a hot day. A s’more at a campfire. One of mom’s famous cookies on Christmas Eve. Sometimes food is just exactly what we’re craving. Drinks do it too. Cold lemonade after a day working outside in the yard. A glass of wine after never-ending day of work. A flute of sparkling wine to celebrate an anniversary or birthday. On Friday, these cookies were exactly what I was craving. After a long week, they absolutely hit the spot.

There’s something so therapeutic about baking cookies. Maybe it’s the nostalgia of baking with mom or grandma, or the incredible aroma that fills your kitchen. Maybe it’s the creaming and stirring and beating, or the recipe that can be adapted tons of different ways. Or maybe it’s just the anticipation of biting into a warm cookie, washed down with a cold glass of milk. Whatever it is, these cookies were the perfect end-of-the-week baking project, made all the better with a light and fluffy cream cheese filling. More on that soon!

I started with a basic cookie dough with 100% brown sugar. Some cookie recipes use half brown sugar and half white sugar, or slightly differing proportions. More white sugar will give you a crisper cookie, while brown sugar contains molasses, which makes for a moister cookie. The molasses also reacts with the protein from the egg and flour, causing the cookie to firm up faster. That’s exactly what I was after here—a soft yet slightly chewy cookie.

Any raisin haters out there? I know you exist. This is the oatmeal cookie for you. I added a full three cups of Bob’s Red Mill extra thick oatmeal, which seems like a lot, but it adds an incredible nuttiness and additional chewiness to the cookies. The oats are true to their name—I don’t think I’ve ever seen oatmeal so thick! If you want your oatmeal or oatmeal cookies on the hearty side, these are just the ticket. Imagine a steaming bowl of extra thick oats topped with maple syrup! Or butter and a sprinkle of sea salt! I’m off topic, but these oats have my gears turning into what I’ll make next.

Raisin haters, are you still with me? Instead of adding grapes and sunshine, I added peanut butter and chocolate chips. Because how could you go wrong with the combination of peanut butter and chocolate? It’s a match made in heaven. I would give a hearty high five (and maybe a bear hug) to whoever came up with the combination, because it’s amazing here and basically everywhere else.

Any thick and chewy cookie lovers out there? This one’s for you too. These are not those thin, crispy cookies, though they have their place in this world. Thanks to the baking powder, these cookies are almost an inch high with soft centers and just-crisped edges. Once we add the filling, it creates a whoopie pie-esque sky-high sandwich treat that you won’t want to share.

Onto the filling! It’s whipped cream + cream cheese + sugar + vanilla. That’s it! Super simple and incredibly tasty. And I highly recommend swiping a spoonful once you make it, just for quality control purposes of course. If you’re making these toward the end of the week like I did, it’s absolutely time to treat yourself since you have to wait for the cookies to bake anyway.

Once the cookies cool, it’s time to make some sandwiches! Layer a hearty portion of the whipped cream cheese filling onto a cookie, add a cookie on top, and then choose your topping. I used rainbow sprinkles and chocolate chips, but get creative! Crushed peanuts, finely chopped pecans, or more peanut butter chips would be excellent too. Dare I suggest those miniature peanut butter cups? Sure wouldn’t hurt!

The final step is a quick flash freeze for the filling to set up. This also happens to be what makes this cookie sandwich so refreshing on a hot day. It’s just on the chilly side, and when you bite into it, prepare for a swoon-worthy moment. This combination of peanut butter, chocolate, and oatmeal with a whipped cream cheese filling is completely off the hook. Make the whole batch. You won’t want to share.

I’m not going to lie, every time I saw a pineapple upside down cake as a kid it terrified me.  It’s a weird concept right?  You’ve got this tasty cake and then you put this pineapple ring on it and then bake it until its mush.  Sorry dude, it’s weird!  So fast forward about 25 years and I’ve finally gotten the courage to whip up one myself in this Mini Pineapple Upside Cake Recipe with Homemade Whipped Cream.  Super tasty, not soggy and a nice change up from the norm; Hope you dig it too!

Any good cake starts with the batter.  I always use Bob’s Red Mill flour when making cakes since they have such an amazing assortment of products, but because I want this cake to be a bit denser I used Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Flour.  This four is seriously so versatile that it would work perfect in just about anything you may need flour in, so it was a no brainer what I’d use when making this Mini Pineapple Upside Cake Recipe with Homemade Whipped Cream.  The batter is a simple cake batter but you fold in some finely minced pineapple to help give it more pineapple flavor.  I always thought growing up that the mushy pineapple shoved into the cake was what gave it all the flavor, well not true.  Most recipes call for canned pineapple but I’m a bit of a purist so I added some fresh to the blender and blended it up until it was smooth but slightly chunky.

Pineapple goes really well with walnuts and pistachios so ummmm, I used both!  I added them to a food processor and processed them on high speed until they were small bite size pieces, like the size of rice.  Instead of that weird pineapple thing in the cake I’m going to use this as the top when I flip over the bundt pan.  Add a bout1 tablespoon of the nut mixture to the bottom of a mini bundt pan and then evenly pour the batter over top.  Just a warning that this recipe makes 24 mini pineapple upside down cakes so if you don’t want that much then cut this recipe in half.

While the cakes are in the oven for about 35 minutes we need to caramelize some pineapple rings and make a caramel sauce.  Once you have rings sliced up you want to sear them in a large sauté pan on high heat with butter.  They will only cook for a few minutes on each side and then you want to remove them from the pan and set them aside.  The point is to caramelize the outside so all of the natural sugar flavors come out and then immediately remove them from the pan.  Remember I’m not down with mushy pineapple so in case you don’t like that either you best keep an eye on it :-).

After you set aside the caramelized pineapple rings, it’s time to make some caramel.  The recipe I have is so ridiculously easy it’s not even funny, it’s 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 stick of butter and a ¼ cup of heavy whipping cream.  You want to whisk that deliciousness together over low heat in a small sauce pan until it’s smooth and thick.  Remove it from the heat and then whisk in a bit of brandy.  Brandy also goes really good with pineapple in case you were wondering why I did that.  Now it’s just about time to plate this sucker up, just make sure the cakes have cooled to room temperature before flipping over the bundt pan.

Place the caramelize pineapple ring in the center of a plate and then spoon on some caramel.  This part is up to you, you can put on as much or as little as you’d like.  Next add the mini pineapple upside down cake to the top of the pineapple and caramel nut side facing upwards.  You then want to add some homemade whipped cream right to the center of the upside cake where that hole is and a cherry to the top.

I know it seems like there are a quite a few steps in this recipe but I promise it is really easy to make!  Happy Baking!

Hands down my favorite dessert recipe of all time is carrot cake.  The wonderful combination of slightly sweet and savory with the delicious butter and cream cheese frosting is the most magnificent flavors of all time.  I know you may think I’m crazy for thinking carrot cake is the best, but to me it’s the cream of the crop in the dessert world.  The carrot cake I remember was when I was a line cook at a country club back in St. Louis where it was cooked in a deep sheet tray, iced and then served as a square.  Now there is certainly nothing wrong with that at all, but I like carrot cake and I like a lot of it so a triple layer carrot cake will only do for my sweet tooth.  Also, not-too-mention, the layered cake looks beautiful on a cake stand in our kitchen for all to see.

The first part of making carrot cake is shredding carrots.  If you read my blog posts, you’ll know I’m a bit of a purist when it comes to preparing food, even carrots.  I like to wash my carrots instead of peeling them because there are so many important nutrients in the peel.  So the next time you want to peel your carrots, think twice and then give them a little wash.  Using the Franke roller mat makes washing vegetables so easy as it lays right over our sink.  I just spread the carrots, or other vegetables over the mat and rinse them with the faucet or the faucet hose extender.  In-addition our large Franke farmhouse sink makes it easy to wash a ton of vegetables at the same time.  Once the carrots are washed then you want to grate them and then set them aside.  From there it’s all about assembling the batter, which is first mixing the dry ingredients with the carrots and then whisking in the wet ingredients.  It really is an incredibly easy to make recipe, with only time as your biggest challenge since it will be so hard to resist the smells :-).

I always say the hardest part about making dessert is the time it takes to make them.  It’s never hard to mix together ingredients, pop them into a pan and bake them.  The tough part always comes during the cooking process and then the cooling portion.  It’s not only difficult because of the time commitment, but as I stated earlier it’s trying to keep your hands off of it.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught my daughter’s little fingers creeping up towards something that needed to cool down.  I always tell her that it’s hard for me too because it just smells so dang good!  One of the coolest things about the Franke roller mat is its versatile uses.  We not only use it as a colander or dish drier, but also as a cooling rack for desserts and hot pans.  I simply fold over the Franke roller mat to make it taller and create more air in between the hot pan and the counter top the roller mat is on to create more cooling surface. It’s literally a kitchen tool we use every day and for so many practical applications.  Everyone that sees it and tries it out is obsessed with it!

Once the cake cools to room temperature, which takes about 3 or so hours, it’s then time to ice it.  I use a combination of soft whipped butter and cream cheese to make the most insanely delicious cream cheese frosting for the carrot cake.  It has such a tasty flavor that compliments the savoriness of the cake so well.  Icing cakes is still something that is hard to do for me, but using a cake turntable definitely makes things easier.  It’s also beneficial to slice off the top of the cake to make it more flat for icing and stacking.  If you have a rounded cake on top, it’s most likely going to fall over.

Once the cake is finally iced and decorated with the carrot icing, which is just decorative icing you can buy in the baking aisle of the grocery department, then it’s time to eat!  There is nothing like carrot cake and coffee in the morning or as an after dinner treat.  If you are looking for a tasty dessert this Spring holiday season, then be sure to make this Easy Carrot Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting.