I'm probably the last baker on the block to try this buttermilk glazed carrot cake, but now that I have I can attest that it is very good, and I'll most likely make it again despite my initial skepticism towards a carrot cake with both a glaze and an excellent cream cheese frosting. Also, it's usually made as a layer cake but I had great success baking it in a 9x13 inch pan.
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Originally from Southern Living, this is a 9x13 inch carrot cake recipe that starts out like "the usual" carrot cake, but calls for an extra step of pouring a glaze over it that sinks in as it cools. As you can guess, this makes the cake extra moist -- though not mushy, which was my concern.
Buttermilk Glaze
The cake calls for common carrot cake measures -- 2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar etc. and only ¾ cup of oil. Then while the cake bakes, you boil a mixture of sugar, baking soda, buttermilk, corn syrup and butter until it turns a golden brown. This golden brown buttermilk glaze is poured over the cake adding extra moisture plus extra flavor from the butter and buttermilk.
Baking Soda in the Glaze
The baking soda is an interesting addition to the glaze. It makes it soft and foamy as it boils, and I suppose it helps it turn brown. Make sure to boil the syrup until it turns brown to help boil away the baking soda flavor.
Mmm, Cream Cheese Icing. I Mean Frosting
The cream cheese frosting on this cake (I will forever interchange the word icing and frosting, unfortunately) is a really good one if you like fluffy and not too cheesy tasting cream cheese frostings. The weird cream cheese measurements, young Grasshopper, are from a time when cream cheese came in 3 oz packages. It was common to use an 8 oz block and a 3 oz block.
Pan Size
Here's a photo of the finished cake. The recipe fits a 9x13 inch pan, but I've also made it in slightly smaller disposable pans which are perfect for potlucks. You can also halve the recipe and use an 8-inch square pan.
A Day of Rest
It's also important to give the cake about a day to rest before frosting. Several people who made the original recipe said the cake was a little too soft on day 1, but fabulous on day 2. I've only tried it on day 2 so I'll take their word for it.
Recipe
9x13 Inch Carrot Cake with Buttermilk Glaze
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (270 grams)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups sugar (390 grams)
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- ¾ cup buttermilk (170 grams)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups grated carrots (280 grams)
- 8 ounce can crushed pineapple, drained well
- 3 ½ ounces sweetened flaked coconut
- 1 cup chopped pecans, toast before chopping
Buttermilk Glaze
- 1 cup sugar (200 grams)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ½ cup buttermilk (114 grams)
- ½ cup butter, unsalted or salted (114 grams)
- ¼ teaspoon salt, can omit if using salted butter
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup (20 grams)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Icing
- 1 ½ sticks butter, softened (use salted or add a pinch of salt) (170 grams)
- 11 ounces cream cheese, softened (308 grams)
- 1 pound powdered sugar (3 ¾ cups)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
- Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar for about 2 minutes or until thick and yellow. Drizzle in the vegetable oil, then add the vanilla.
- Stir in the buttermilk and flour mixture alternately until blended.
- Fold in carrots, pineapple, coconut and pecans.
- Pour batter into pan and bake at 350 degrees f for 42 minutes total, covering loosely with foil after the first 30 minutes..
- Remove from oven. Make the buttermilk glaze (you can start while the cake is baking).
Buttermilk Glaze
- Bring sugar, baking soda, buttermilk, butter and corn syrup to a boil over medium heat (I use a 3 ½ quart saucepan). Boil, stirring almost constantly, for 4 minutes or until mixture darkens to a golden brown.
- Remove from heat, let cool slightly, then stir in vanilla. Pour glaze over the cake.
- Allow the cake to cool for several hours, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- The next day, make the cream cheese frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- Beat first cream cheese and butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until light and fluffy.
- Stir in vanilla. Frost the cake and use any remaining frosting to pipe a border.
Sonya says
Sounds delicious!!!!!
Sue says
Sounds like a great make ahead recipe!