Mary Berry’s Carrot and Walnut Cake

Ingredients

For the cake

250 ml sunflower oil

4 large eggs, beaten

225 g light muscovado sugar

200 g carrots, peeled and coarsely grated

300 g self-raising flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground mixed spice

1 tsp ground ginger

75 g walnuts, shelled and chopped, plus 8 halves to decorate

For the icing

50 g butter (room temperature)

25 g icing (confectioners') sugar

250 g full-fat cream cheese (room temperature)

3 drops of vanilla extract

Directions

Preparation Time: 15 mins

Cooking Time: 35 mins

Serves: 8

Step-by-step

Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease two deep 20cm (8in) round sandwich tins and line the bases of the cake tins with baking parchment.

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the cake mixture. Spoon the mixture evenly between the tins.

Put the cakes in the oven and bake for about 35 minutes, or until golden brown, risen, and shrinking away from the sides of the tins. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Make the icing: measure the butter, icing sugar, cream cheese, and vanilla extract into a bowl and whisk using a hand or electric whisk until smooth and thoroughly blended.

Spread half the icing on one cake, sit the other cake on top, and spread the remaining icing on top to make a swirl pattern. Decorate the top of the cake with the halved walnuts.

This recipe is from Mary Berry's Cookery Course, published by DK.