the carrot cake chronicles.

In recent years I have been converted to carrot cake. And by recent years I mean roughly within the past 8-10 years.

I used to despise carrot cake. I used to think that if I wanted to eat dessert, why would I want to eat something made of vegetables? (I know, I know. It's not exactly vegetable matter. I was little and dumb. Weren't we all at one point?) Why don't you add some peas and broccoli to that "cake" while you're at it? I also wasn't a fan of cream cheese, so vegetable cake smothered in a cream cheese concoction was just about the last thing I wanted to eat in any given situation. Besides mushrooms.

Sadly, carrot cake had two strikes against itself.

I remember my biggest fight with carrot cake, and it was when I turned 8 years old. In Mormon culture this is a significant age. It was time for me to be baptized. My Mom got the great idea to make a carrot cake for my baptism. FYI: This point in time falls before my conversion to carrot cake.

I didn't think it was asking too much to make a cake for my baptism that I would like.

Apparently my eight year old self didn't know any better, and it was indeed too much to ask.

"Why Mom? I hate carrot cake, it's so gross. Can't you make something else?"
"No, it's good. Now shut up and be grateful."

I am only pretending to be happy and like the carrot cake in this picture.
I didn't know what I was missing.

The last time I made...scratch that.
The last time I helped make a carrot cake was from a box mix.
Yes, it was good but nothing compares to something homemade.

I took the liberty of stealing this picture from Jacob Divett's facebook album. I'm assuming he won't mind...

Before I continue, let's rewind a few weeks. It was Sunday and the third hour block of church. My mom and I were sitting in Relief Society. A sign up sheet was being passed around for food assignments for the annual Ward Hog Roast at our old Bishop's house. I immediately signed up to bring dessert because I love to bake.

I thought I would be ambitious, and make a carrot cake from scratch to bring. I had to search the Internet for for quite some time before I found a recipe that sounded decent. So many of them had pineapple, which seemed a little weird. Maybe it's normal for carrot cake, but I didn't feel like trying it out this time.

A lot of other recipes had pureed carrot baby food instead of real shredded carrots. I'm sorry, but I have to draw the line somewhere. And baby food seemed like the perfect place.

Here are the results. I know it doesn't look like much, but I was still super excited about it.

I'm on much better terms with carrot cake these days.