Apparently it was moist, very spicy and had loads of walnuts. So when again I had a huge pile of carrots from a couple of successive vegetable boxes, I decided to try to make a rival to Aunty Ena's carrot cake.
I came upon this recipe for the Best Carrot Cake Ever. I used mixed peel instead of raisins (because it turned out we didn't have any and I couldn't be bothered to go to the shop). And I have come to the conclusion that I have a dud batch of baking powder. This is the third thing I have made with this box of baking powder that hasn't worked very well. It collapsed in the middle (cunningly hidden with frosting and chopped walnuts) and had a bit of a metallic aftertaste. And all of the mixed peel sank to the bottom and stuck to the tin.
Aunty Ena's reputation as a baker is safe. Mine continues to suffer.
16 comments:
What a shame - though if it is the baking powder then chuck it and you can reclaim your glory. Have you noticed the metalic taste in other things or just the carrot cake - as I have a feeling I have noticed a metalic taste in carrot cake before, either that or I am just tired and delusional at present and have no idea what I am talking about!!
I have been buying baking powder without aluminum ever since I read about health concerns over ingesting same, and across the pond here we have a brand, Rumford, that I use. No metallica here.
hh - yeah, the taste was very strong in some scones I made recently. It was horrible!
Rachel - I will have to seek that out. I prefer the idea of aluminium-free baking powder.
Well there you go - I had no idea it even had aliminium in it! You learn something new every day!
Oh, I had a bad batch of baking powder once & it ruined so many things before I figured it out
I actually think carrot cake is a super hard thing to make. I have yet to make a recipe I like. Auntie ena's maybe, hint hint.
HH - I didn't realise either! No wonder there can be a metallic taste!
Kat - fortunately there haven't been too many casualties this time.
MM - I wish I knew who had Aunty Ena's recipe!
Well, it still looks delicious. And I bet it taste marvelous.
Best to chuck the baking powder, because we know your baking skills are the 'best' in the world!
I am hit or miss with loaves. I find minis are a safer choice for me!
I have weird taste buds but sometimes uncooked flour bits taste metallic to me. Perhaps the band Metallica was named after a carrot cake prototype?
Ignore me: I'm coming off Codrals and my head is full of snot.
The recipe doesn't use baking powder - it uses what we know as bicarbonate of soda in the UK, because there is already plenty of acidity in the ingredients to release the carbon dioxide from the raising agent. Using baking powder instead might have meant that the CO2 was released too quickly, as you are adding extra acidity. This would cause an initial quick rise, then a collapse.
I'd still replace the baking powder though, no point risking more failures.
Me again - been thinking some more! If you used 7g baking powder instead of 7g bicarbonate of soda, you've effectively only got 1/3 of the raising agent you need for the recipe, as baking powder is a mixture of 1 part bicarbonate of soda to 2 parts acidic element (often cream of tartar). This is likely to have an impact on the final cake too.
George - too kind!
Natashya - I'm hit or miss on loaves as well!
Cranky - I never ignore you, even when you are full of snot!
Sue - I think reading the recipe to check whether it is powder or soda would be a step in the right direction!
Don't you hate that? That's what's so frustrating about baking ... once it's out of the oven, you can't really do much to fix it. Though that layer of frosting certainly couldn't have hurt :) !!
alexandra
www.alexandracooks.com
I am dubious of any recipe that describes itself as the "best", but hey, if it's good..go with it!
Ali - cream cheese frosting makes everything OK.
Esi - I agree. This wasn't even the best carrot cake I've made, let alone the best carrot cake I've tried!
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