Blue Ribbon Carrot Cake Cookies
Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon rum extract
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
  • 3/4 cup shredded carrots
  • 3/4 cup raisins
FILLING
  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1-1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
  • 2 tablespoons crushed pineapple
  • Additional confectioners’ sugar

Preparation

  1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
  2. Beat in the eggs and extracts.
  3. Combine the flour, oats, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, ginger and nutmeg; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.
  4. Stir in the pecans, carrots and raisins.
  5. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets.
  6. Flatten with a glass dipped in sugar.
  7. Bake at 350° for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned.
  8. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
  9. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar
    and vanilla until light and fluffy.
  10. Stir in pecans and pineapple.
  11. Spread over the bottoms of half of the cookies; top with remaining
    cookies.
  12. Sprinkle both sides with additional confectioners’ sugar.
  13. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 4 dozen.

 To Make Ahead

Package cookies in an airtight container, separating layers with waxed paper and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw in a single layer before filling.


Apple-Pecan-Carrot-Cake
Top a showstopping crown of Mascarpone Frosting with swirls of Apple Cider Caramel Sauce and a scattering of salty-sweet Spiced Pecans (minus the ground red pepper). Caramel sauce, rather than frosting, sandwiches together the moist cake layers.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/3 cups finely chopped lightly toasted pecans, divided
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons apple pie spice
  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt
  • 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups peeled and grated Granny Smith apples
  • 1 1/2 cups grated carrots
  • 2/3 cup plus 2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Caramel Sauce<,
  • Mascarpone Frosting,

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Sprinkle 1 1/3 cups toasted pecans into 2 well-buttered shiny 9-inch round cake pans; shake to coat bottom and sides of pans.
  2. Stir together flour and next 3 ingredients.
  3. Stir together eggs and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl until blended. Add flour mixture, stirring just until blended. Fold in apples, carrots, and remaining 1 cup pecans. Pour batter into prepared pans.
  4. Bake at 350° for 30 to 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely (about 1 hour).
  5. Place 1 cake layer, pecan side down, on a serving plate. Spread top of cake layer with 2/3 cup Apple Cider Caramel Sauce; top with remaining cake layer, pecan side down. Spread Mascarpone Frosting over top of cake. Drizzle 2 Tbsp. Apple Cider Caramel Sauce over frosting, and swirl sauce into frosting. Serve immediately.

Apple Cider Caramel Sauce

Apple-Cider-Caramel-Sauce
For straight-up apple flavor, start with fresh-pressed cider from a farm stand.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup apple cider
  • 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/4 cup whipping cream

Preparation

  1. Cook cider in a 3-qt. saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, 10 minutes or until reduced to 1/4 cup.
  2. Stir in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly; boil, stirring constantly, 2 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat, and cool completely.
  4. Refrigerate up to 1 week.
  5. To reheat, microwave at HIGH 10 to 15 seconds or just until warm; stir until smooth.

Mascarpone Frosting

Mascarpone-Frosting
Luscious Mascarpone Frosting crowns the top of Apple-Pecan Carrot Cake.

Ingredients

  • 1 (8-oz.) container mascarpone cheese
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup whipping cream

Preparation

  1. Whisk together first 3 ingredients in a large bowl just until blended.
  2. Beat whipping cream at medium speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gently fold into mascarpone mixture.

Carrot-Cake-Cheesecake
Two of our favorite cakes come together to make the ultimate spring dessert, this decadent carrot cake cheesecake. If you like carrot cake or cheesecake, you have to try this one! It’s an elegant dessert that is certain to impress. It would be perfect to make for Easter or an upcoming birthday. Really, who wouldn’t love this?

The ingredients and directions do look rather lengthy, but this is easier to make than the recipe makes it appear. Besides, even if it took hours to make, it’s worth it, this is carrot cake cheesecake! The hard part of this is the wait. Yes, cheesecake requires that long cooling and refrigeration period but the patience pays off once you get to sink your fork into a piece of this utterly divine cheesecake, through each of those irresistible layers, and you get to slowly savor each and every bite… Enjoy!

Ingredients

Cheesecake Mixture
  • 2 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened well (but not melted)
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
Carrot Cake
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoons ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/3 cups finely grated carrots
Topping
  • 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 Tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons sour cream
  • 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Directions

For the cheesecake mixture:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and set aside.
  2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons flour until well combined. Add cream cheese and using an electric hand mixer set on low speed, blend together cream cheese and granulated sugar mixture until smooth.
  3. Mix in eggs one at a time, mixing just until combined after each addition and adding in vanilla with second egg.
  4. Blend in sour cream. Forcefully tap bowl against countertop about 30 times to release air bubbles.
  5. Set mixture aside.
  6. Rinse beaters clean. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg for 30 seconds.
  7. To a separate large mixing bowl, add canola oil, applesauce, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract and blend mixture using electric hand mixer set on low speed for 1 minute.
  8. With mixer running on low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix until well blended.
  9. Add carrots and mix until evenly distributed. Tap bowl forcefully against counter, about 3 times, just to release large air pockets.
To assemble cheesecake:
  1. Pour 1 1/2 cups carrot cake mixture into buttered springform pan and spread into an even layer. Dollop about 1/3 of the cream cheese mixture by the spoonfuls over carrot cake layer (don’t spread or swirl).
  2. Spoon remaining carrot cake mixture over cream cheese layer, then finish by drizzling by the remaining cheesecake mixture over carrot cake layer, working to cover all of the carrot cake mixture (I found this easiest to do this was by slowly drizzling over with the spoon).
  3. Bake in preheated oven 60 – 65 minutes, until center portion only jiggles slightly and tenting with aluminum foil at 40 minutes to prevent excessive browning (tent in a way that the foil doesn’t touch cheesecake or it will stick).
  4. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack 1 hour, then cover with foil and chill in refrigerator 6 hours or overnight.
For the topping:
  1. In a mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, whip together cream cheese and butter until smooth.
  2. Add remaining topping ingredients and mix until pale and fluffy, about 4 – 5 minutes.
  3. Spread evenly over cheesecake then chill cheesecake in freezer for 20 – 30 minutes. Sprinkle edges with chopped pecans.
  4. Cut into slices.
  5. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container.