Pina Colada Carrotcake

For my daughter's birthday we brought a huge bag of carrots for dipping in hummus and spinach dip. Well we had tons of carrot left and I had already plan to make a cake for my daughter's teacher to say thank you for being great. I have always love carrot cake and I usually use walnuts and do not add the optional applesauce or pineapple. Hmm, pineapple....what if we added some coconut to that pineapple? So the creation of Pina Colada Carrotcake was created. 

The cake is moist with a coconut undertone from the coconut milk that is accented with the shredded coconut. The pecan in the frosting is a delicious addition. Just watch out, a bite of this cake will result in a bigger bite.

Now, like many of my recipes, I have made this one slightly healthier. Which means, in my household I will use whole wheat flour instead of cake flour. However, for my daughter's teacher I use cake flour. Still compare to traditional carrot cake recipes, you'll find that this one is lower in oil and sugar. Now, it's not a health food by any means, but if you are wondering why the carrot cake is not as moist or sweet as you remember last time you had  one, it is because I reduced the fat and sugar. I still think it's delicious and addicting, but wanted to inform you in case you wondered why it taste "healthier". Oh, and the frosting more than makes up for the sweetness and fat reduction in the cake.

Cake Ingredients:
2 1/4 c. cake flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. canola oil
3/4 c. coconut milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. crushed pineapple
3 c. finely grated carrots
1 c. unsweetened grated coconut
1 c. pecan, toasted and coarsely chopped
1/2 c. raisins

Cake Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350F
2. In a mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients; cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
3. In another mixing bowl, mix together eggs, brown sugar, oil, coconut milk, vanilla extract, and pineapple.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until fully incorporated. Add carrots, unsweetened grated coconut, pecans, and raisin until evenly distributed throughout the batter.
5. Prepare two 9" cake pan or muffin tin with a light coat of oil.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and cake on center rack. If 9" cake pan, bake for 35-40 minutes. If muffin tin, bake for 25 minutes.
7. Cool cake in pan and frost.




Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 oz unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 c. coconut milk
3 1/2 c.confectioner's sugar
1/2 c. unsweetened grated coconut
1/2 c. pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped


Direction:
1. Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
2. Add vanilla extract, coconut milk and beat until just incorporated.
3. Add sugar in 1 cup at a time and continue beating until incorporated. More or less sugar may be added if you desire a different consistency.
4. Add unsweetened grated coconut and pecan to frosting and mix until just incorporated.