Gajerala carrot cake

By Jessie Lehail,
Special to The Post

Without fail, there is always a lengthy discussion whenever carrot cake is served.
For those of you that have not eaten Gajerala or Gajar ka Halwa, it is an Indian style carrot confectionary. Gajar (carrots in Punjabi/Hindi) are finely grated and simmered in milk for hours until the carrots and milk mesh into a smooth deliciousness. They are then sweetened and spiced with almonds and cardamom.
This confectionary takes me right back to my mom and her temple friends working together to create Gajerala for weddings and religious holidays. They would grate the carrots, sauté them in homemade ghee, adding loads of milk and spices and then would stir the mixture every few minutes to ensure it did not burn.
Next they would make the Khoa, an icing of sorts that is made with milk, sugar, and a bit of lemon. This like the Gajerala was an arduous process that required time and patience. The process, I suppose, was worth the end-product. 
My Ultimate Carrot Cake with Cardamom Icing doesn’t mask the carrot with cream-cheesiness. The vegetable speaks up, which you’ll notice when you see its bright colour. It has the best flavours of Gajerala, with the subtle spice notes. Is moist and rich. The frosting mimics the flavours of Khoa. The best part, there is minimal work involved.
Here’s a few tips: When grating, make sure the carrot shreds are extra fine. You don’t want huge chunks of carrots in your soft piece of cake. I personally, use the food processor to grate my carrots. Carrot cake tastes best the next day after the flavours have settled and have gotten friendly with one another.  

Culinary Couture - Gajerala Carrot Cake with Cardamom Icing 

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 3 eggs or Egg replacer equivalent of 3 eggs, already prepared
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
• Pinch of ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 1/4 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Optional Additions:

• 1 cup raisins
• ½ cup sweetened grated coconut
• ½ cup pistachios

Directions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 8-inch round baking pans or one Bundt pan (my current favourite). Beat the sugar, oil, vanilla, and eggs/egg replacer in mixer until it is a light yellow. In a separate bowl sift together flour, spices, baking soda, and salt.
Using a mixer on low speed, slowly add in the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Fold in carrots and walnuts. If using optional ingredients, folds those in as well. Pour batter into prepared pan(s). Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely on a wire rack.

Cardamom Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1 package cream cheese (8 oz)
• 1 stick butter (8 tablespoons)
• 4 cups Confectioners icing sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon Himalayan Sea Salt
• 1 small pinch ground green Cardamom

Directions

Place room temperature butter, cream cheese, salt, cardamom and vanilla into mixer and blend for one to two minutes on medium until fully incorporated. Add powder sugar, one cup at a time, until frosting is light and creamy. Frost cooled cake liberally with frosting. Leftover frosting can be frozen.

Jessie Lehail is the author of Indian Influence, a food blog that takes global eats and reinterprets them with a South Asian influence. Visit her blog at www.indianinfluence.ca.