This is the best carrot cake ever. Period.
You should trust me on this one.
And if you don’t believe me, ask my cousin Dan. He swears there’s no better carrot cake in the whole wide world.
.jpg "My Favorite Carrot Cake")
But let’s take a step back.
To get a slice of this uh-mazing carrot cake, one would have needed to travel all the way to Berlin, take a cab to Jessnerstraße in Friedrichshain where a hipster café called “Aunt Benny” was quartered.
And yes, I'm using the past tense, because sadly, the café closed in January 2020.
The owners — who not only were skilled restaurateurs but apparently also had the ability of foresight — sold Aunt Benny and relocated in Canada (their home country) right before the pandemic began.
When Aunt Benny closed down, cousin Dan was devastated, to put it mildly. For starters, Aunt Benny was just around the corner from his apartment, but moreover a slice of their famous Ginger Carrot Cake with an oat cappuccino was his absolutely favorite thing.
At least once a week after a long and stressful work week he would treat himself to a slice of spongy carrot goodness topped with a thick layer of ginger-infused cream cheese frosting. Perfection.
.jpg "My Favorite Carrot Cake")
When I first visited cousin Dan in Berlin, Aunt Benny quickly became my favorite spot for breakfast. They had all the US newspapers I read and their breakfast sandwich was fantastic.
But the carrot cake was something special: rich, moist and perfectly spiced.
With just enough kick from the ginger, the right amount of sweetness, and the signature intense flavor of carrots and walnuts.
The ginger cream cheese frosting balances the richness of the cake.
All in all, pure bliss.
Do give it a try!
Ginger Carrot Cake
You can find the recipe on Aunt Benny’s blog at this link -> Carrot Cake
A couple of notes. The recipe makes a huge cake enough for a big family and some of the neighbors too. It was clearly intended for a busy café with a lot of foot traffic.
I usually halve the recipe and bake the cake in an 8-inch springform pan. Works like a charm.
Also make sure to ground the walnuts to a powder, you don’t want any chunks in the batter.
Lastly, grate the carrots finely so that they will almost melt with cake batter and you won't end up eating big pieces of carrot in the cake.
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Hello, Mike. I have been following you and your recipes for quite some years (my favorite is the chicken souvlaki!) and after a hit and miss search, tried to get on the site that I believed and hoped would finally have THE carrot cake recipe. No such luck. Is there anyway you can post it on here, please?
ReplyDeleteHere it is: Aunt Benny Carrot Cake
DeleteHope this helps! :)
THIS is the only carrot cake I make now. I'm so glad I printed out the recipe when you posted your perfect picture and the link, as it's not there anymore. If anyone needs it, let me know. There's nothing like it. Thanks for sharing when you did, Mike!
ReplyDeleteHi Sally - I sadly cannot find the recipe and would've sworn I saved it. I used to live kitty-korner from Aunt Benny's and absolutely loved it. Could you share the recipe with me?
DeleteHi Heather! I'm happy to do so. I'll comment here with the recipe later tonight.
DeleteHeather, I definitely have the recipe but actually have some plans with family I need to work on. I'll post the Monday after Mother's Day.
DeleteThanks Sally !
DeleteLuckily my husband found it in his notes ☺️
i really need the receip... can someone send it to me please? i always used the website and never wrote it down.... so stupid. pls send it to karlivo89@gmail.com
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHere's the recipe for Aunt Benny's Carrot Cake-
ReplyDeleteAunt Benny’s Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Carrot-Ginger Sponge Cake:
100 g ground walnuts
500 g grated carrots
2 cups / 430 g sugar
1 ½ cups / 300 g sunflower oil
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
½ cups / 110 g room temperature milk
30 g finely chopped ginger
3 cups / 415 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting:
750 g cold cream cheese
180 g hot melted butter
1 Tbs juiced ginger, strained to remove any pulp
1 ½ cup / 180 g icing sugar, sifted
Directions
Butter and line the bottom of 9x13 rectangular pan with baking paper and set aside.
Pre-heat oven to 175 degrees C (347 F)
Place the ground walnuts, grated carrots, sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla, milk, and chopped ginger into a large mixing bowl. Stir until evenly combined.
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a separate bowl, then add to wet and mix until evenly combined.
Pour batter into prepared pan.
Place pan in the center of pre-heated oven and bake for 55-60 minutes rotating halfway through (30-35 was right for me. It cracked and was dry at 55 min…?). The cake layers are finished baking when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting:
Mix the cream cheese in the bowl of a mixer with a paddle attachment and slowly pour the hot butter in. Quickly scrape.
Add the icing sugar and mix until smooth.
Spread over the cooled cake.
If you have lumps of solid butter, place the mixing bowl over a pot of boiling water and mix the frosting until smooth.
Your frosting will be more liquid than desired, so you will have to place the frosted cake in the refrigerator to set the frosting.
Refrigerate cake uncut for up to 5 days.
Once cut, fresh is bets, but wrapped in plastic this cake will stay moist for at least 3 days.
Remove from fridge one hour before serving.
You guys are lifesavers ❤️ I couldn't find the recipe anymore, so thankful you still had it 🥕🥕🥕
ReplyDelete