Carrot cake with pineapple and cream cheese frosting

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

1. Cake layers

   Preheat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F). Grease three cake pans approximately 23 cm in diameter and line them with parchment paper.

   In a bowl, beat the sugar, oil and eggs until light and foamy. Pour in the vanilla and add the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, nutmeg and cloves.

2. Mix just until the ingredients come together into a smooth batter. Fold in the grated carrots, pineapple pieces and walnuts.

3. Divide the batter among the three pans, smooth the tops and bake for approximately 25 to 30 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool, remove them from the pans and let them rest a little longer on a wire rack.

4. Frosting

   Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Pour in the vanilla, add the salt and mix gently again.

5. Gradually add all the powdered sugar, mixing constantly. For a thicker frosting, add more sugar if desired.

6. Spread frosting over each cake layer and stack them. Spread the remaining frosting over the outside of the cake. Decorate with additional walnuts if desired, and refrigerate until chilled before serving.

Tip: Drain the pineapple pieces thoroughly before folding them in, as excess juice can weigh down the cake layers and leave the centers wet. If the cream cheese frosting runs as you spread it, refrigerate it briefly to firm up.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Mrkvový koláč s vlašskými orechmi, ananásom a syrovým krémom