Word is out that I’m a bit of a rebel behind the wheel. Unfortunately I’m also married to, as my father puts it, a ‘repressed traffic warden’. He does have a point — how many people do you know that tell their guests to go and repark their cars within the confines of meticulously-placed traffic cones? (I blush to admit that we own traffic cones.) After our trip to San Sebastian, where I received more than one dressing-down for my mutinous driving, in particular U-turning, I’m now getting reflections from Léo’s friends. I drove one of them to his music lesson the other day and, in the time it took to drive about half a kilometre, he gleefully pointed out that I had entered the car park ‘the wrong way’, driven too close to the pavement and stopped in a disabled parking space. What can I say?
This carrot cake, although healthy and no-doubt sickeningly law-abiding, is deliciously moist and fragrant.
Ingredients
3 eggs
100g coconut sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
200g ground almonds
100g dessicated coconut
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
100g walnuts, roughly chopped
100g raisins
2 tablespoons rum
70g coconut butter, melted
70g butter, melted
200g carrots, grated
Preheat the oven to 140°C and prepare a 24cm cake tin. Place the raisins in a small saucepan and cook in the rum for about five minutes. Break the eggs into a mixing bowl, add the coconut sugar and vanilla extract and beat well. Add the ground almonds, coconut and spices, combining well. Stir in the melted butter and coconut oil, the walnuts and the raisin/rum mixture. Finally add the carrots and mix until everything is well combined. Transfer the mixture to the cake tin and cook for between 50 and 60 minutes (a fork should come out clean once cooked).
The Healthy Epicurean 
That looks and sounds amazing!! I love the coconut butter in it. I love that stuff and use it all the time. 🙂
Thank you! I love using coconut butter in baking – it adds moisture as well as a lovely taste…
You own traffic cones, wow!!! You are a rebel aren’t you, and you happily co exist with a wannabe traffic warden. LOL! Your carrot cake is lovely and only using almond flour. The coconut in it’s different forms will really make this cake special. Does Hugo like your driving?
It’s one thing that Hugo’s not fussy about – he loves anyone’s driving – he’s passionate about cars and will jump in to anybody’s car at absolutely any opportunity!
rum raisin carrot cake = yum! Curious as to why it’s called a Persian cake! And oh boy, backseat drivers drive one to distraction and make things worse. Boroom boom!
Sorry I had a bit of a ‘blonde’ moment ( happens a lot ) – it couldn’t possibly be Persian when it contains rum. The rum was one of my ‘tweaks’ and I suppose I should then have changed the name of the cake! Oh well, it’s still yum and I do love that it’s made with no flour other than ground almonds 🙂
Ha ha, blondes have more fun and if they wear glasses they are smarter than brunettes. 😉 So the original recipe really is called a Persian carrot cake? Interesting!
Well I don’t know whether we have more fun but in my case we certainly do lots of absent-minded things 😉 The original recipe (ie the version without the rum) was in a special Persian food section of a food magazine. Obviously I don’t know how authentic it is, but I suppose the fact that it uses ground almonds and lots of fruit and nuts was probably enough for them to brag about the ‘Persianess’ of it !
oooh, how interesting. May I ask which magazine and would it be available online by any chance? And you’re right, adding fruits and nuts is a good way to Persianize something, ha ha!
I’ll try and find it when I get home (we’re skiing this weekend).
Sorry, don’t mean to hijack your comment section but can’t resist adding the following :thank you in advance re magazine info; have lots of FUN shusshing down the slopes, and finally can’t wait to see pix of Hugo on skis. ;D ha ha
😀 The mind boggles at the havoc he’d create !!! We left him at home sulking.
I can’t find the magazine online (it was BBC Good Food magazine November 2013), but I’ve found the original recipe on the Persian chef’s blog here: http://sabrinaghayour.com/2011/03/19/recipe-flourless-carrot-pistachio-and-coconut-cake/
In fact, I should probably credit her, although as I say I did change the recipe somewhat…
Thank you!
nice and comfort!
great sweet bites…..
Thank you Dedy! 🙂
I love a good carrot cake. Yum!
Yum indeed! 🙂
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My husband frequently complains about how I park the car in parking lots. It not only needs to be within the lines, but it offends his aesthetic sense if I’m at all crooked within the space. Sigh. But I bet if I made this cake for him, all would be forgiven. And I think I have all the ingredients!
Lol! If you’re anything like me then, you’ll be making lots of cake! I hope he enjoys it enough to forgive you your parking faux pas 😉
I love that this carrot cake uses ginger.., sounds like a really healthy cake! Thank you for the recipe. 🙂
Thank you for visiting – I hope you enjoy it if you make it… 🙂