Steal this Recipe: Carrot Cake with Passion fruit glaze

As seen on People Magazine—by yours truly! This recipe was featured in the July 2022 issue. Not new, but still cool, right?

A few years ago I shared this recipe with People Magazine. While I’ve been featured on People Magazine & People en Español quite a few times the feeling I get when I see my work in print never fades. I grew up reading these magazines in the salon that my mom used to visit on Saturday mornings for her roller set and blow out.. The feeling is almost out-of-body.

But why am I sharing this with you now? Well, I know that the internet is overwhelmed with so many articles and so many recipes that, sometimes it’s hard to find some of my past work.

Today, I felt inspired to look back on this cake and see how I could slightly modify this recipe with fresh eyes and all the experience I’ve gained after writing a cookbook—I talk about Bodega Bakes often, I have a book, and am a DINK… this book IS my baby. (Just don’t tell my mother-in-law I said that.)

The best part about this recipe is that it has never used eggs. From 2022 until now this is an eggless recipe.

Note: I just finished watching Zero Day on Netflix—No spoilers: there’s this part in the series where folks are frantic in front of a supermarket and all I could think while watching was that they surely saw the most recent cost of eggs and rioted. #freetheeggs

If you’re enjoying these recipes and stories, go paid. It’s the best way to support my work— you’ll get even more deep dives, and multiple recipes. Plus, schomonies makes me more creative… hehe.

Keep scrolling for your free.99 recipe… 🫣

Cake Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups (150g) shredded carrots (approx. from 2 large carrots)

• 3/4 cup (150g) packed dark-brown sugar

• 1 ripe (120g) banana, mashed

• ½ cup (120g) canola oil or neutral oil

• ½ cup (75g) golden raisins

• ¼ cup (35g) roasted sunflower seed

• ¼ cup (35g) toasted cashew pieces

• 2 cups (280 grams) all-purpose flour

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• ¾ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ teaspoon Kosher salt

Icing Ingredients:

• 1 cup (120g) powdered sugar

• 2-4 tablespoons passion fruit juice

• Edible violas, for garnish (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350°F and lightly coat a 9x5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Line it with parchment paper, leaving some overhang for easy removal later, then give the parchment a quick spritz of pan spray—because the only sticking that should be happening is the way you and I will stick together as Substack friends—through thick batter and thin batter.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the shredded carrots, brown sugar, mashed banana, oil, raisins, cashews and sunflower seeds. Let it all blend together on medium-low speed for about two minutes, until everything looks well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, so nothing gets left behind. Make sure to break apart any pieces of banana that you see, as this is the binder that will behave like eggs in this recipe. We want the banana to be almost invisible. That’s where the magic happens.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. This is your insurance policy against spice or leavening agents getting trapped in a flour pocket—so don’t skip it. (Sorry in advance for making extra dishes—but the reward is cake, ok?)

Turn the mixer to low speed and gradually add the dry ingredients to the carrot mixture. Some folks like to spoon it in, very French-style—I like it oui-oui.
Let it all mix just until combined—about 30 seconds. No overmixing. If there’s still a little flour hanging around, fold it in gently with a spatula.

Make sure you go all the way to the bottom of the bowl with your spatula. Sometimes the very bottom doesn’t incorporate fully with your flour. Give it a helping hand.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing out the top. Give the pan a little tap on the counter to pop any hidden air bubbles, then bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan for about ten to fifteen minutes before transferring it to a wire rack. Now, the hardest part—waiting an hour for it to cool completely. If you’re not using the glaze, heck, skip this part. A warm carrot cake on a winter’s day is superb. But if you’re glazing, come-on. You know better. :)

For the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar and one tablespoon of passion fruit juice (or puree)—one tablespoon at a time in a small bowl. Slowly add the rest of the juice, one by one, until the glaze is thick but pourable. Once the cake is fully cooled, drizzle the glaze all over, letting it drip dramatically down the sides. If you’re feeling extra, add some edible violas on top. Let the glaze set for 20-30 minutes, then slice and enjoy.

I hope you enjoy this free.99 eggless passion fruit carrot cake and that it makes you feel inspired to join my paid Substack community. This Wednesday 2/26 another newsletter will be launching for paid subscribers. We’re talking about B*tches who put flowers on cakes, with a super special Q&A by the Queen of floral cakes herself chef Kassie of iBakeMistakes. Toodle-LOOO.

xoxo,
Paola