Betty's Carrot Cake

Hello all! Today I am sharing with you another family recipe that is a classic in the Lippert household. My mother's dearest friend, Betty, passed this recipe along to my mother while they were working in real estate together in Tulsa back in the 80's. This is a timeless cake, and this recipe truly makes the best I have ever had. Be prepared though, grating carrots by hand is quite a chore - but it is imperative that you get them fine enough not to interfere with the consistency of the batter (think a little finer than the coconut that you add). Also, the homemade frosting is NECESSARY. Please do not debauch this cake by using store bought cream cheese frosting from the container. This recipe is very simple, but it goes a long way! Also, I have not added the pineapple before, but my mother usually does, so I assure you that either way - the cake turns out wonderfully. I made the one pictured below for my friend Matt's birthday, and as usual, there is extra batter left over if you make the three tiered version (which doubles the recipe), so I also made a batch of 12 cupcakes (also pictured below). Lastly, I don't add the pecans to the frosting, but rather garnish the whole cake with them instead, but it looks beautiful anyway that you do it! I hope you enjoy! :o)

Betty's Carrot Cake

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups flour

3 cups finely grated carrots

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup pecans

Mix all ingredients in order given. Pour into greased and floured pans and bake at 350 degrees until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool before removing from pans and frost with recipe below.

Bake appx. 40 minutes for 13 x 9 rectangle cake pan.

Bake appx. 50 - 55 minutes for Bundt cake pan.

For 2 round cake pans - estimate 35-40 minutes baking time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup softened margarine

8 oz. pkg. softened cream cheese

1 lb. box of Powdered sugar

1/2 cup pecans

Mix margarine and cream cheese with a mixer, then mix in powdered sugar with mixer. If you prefer frosting to be thinner, dilute with a small amount of water or canned pineapple juice. Stir in nuts with spoon and frost cake. Sprinkle with a few pecans on top for decoration.

Optional: (I have added a small can of drained crushed pineapple to the cake batter before and saved the juice for the frosting and it is a nice variation. I think the pineapple juice adds a nice complimentary taste to the cream cheese. Also, it's nice to have a little extra powdered sugar on hand to add if needed for just the right consistency, so you might get a 2 lb. bag.)