s h i n s h i n e: April 2012

Of all my blog posts, the one that gets a consistent flow of visits regardless of time and day is my rice cooker carrot cake from early 2010, soon after I started this blog. I'm happy to learn that other people are also interested in making carrot cake in a rice cooker, but it also made me wonder if it's time to revisit the recipe. Surely, there is always a better way, or at least a different way, of doing things.

So I'm back with another rice cooker carrot cake recipe. It's a lot of carrot, so you can keep believing that it's good for you like I do when I finish a whole cake in the name of 'tasting' in a couple of days. This carrot cake is simpler to make, but fuller in size - I made it in a 10-portion sized rice cooker, and I assume the same recipe will work in 6 or 8-portion sized rice cooker. Plus, it's still light and moist in the mouth, now with refreshing orange scent in the bite that's good for breakfast as well as dessert after any meal.

And if you find yourself extra-motivated today, turn this humble cake into a feature item fit for a special day. Mix Greek yogurt and cream cheese to spread some love on the cake. Peel one more carrot to the core and make candied carrot ribbon garnish. Just sayin' that a cake out of a rice cooker can be dressed up pretty once in a while, even without any help of butter.

Ingredients for Carrot-Orange Cake)
4 eggs, whites and yolks separated
1/2 C sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 t vanilla extract
1/3 C vegetable oil
1 T orange zest (from 1 orange)
1 C carrot, peeled & grated (about 3-4 thin carrots)
1/3 C pecans or walnuts, toasted & finely chopped

1 C all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder

Start the cake by greasing the rice cooker bowl with vegetable oil (you can also use butter). You can do this by squirting a few drops of oil in the rice cooker bowl then wiping it with a piece of paper towel.

Sift together flour and baking powder. Set aside.

Whisk egg whites. When egg whites turn white and foamy, add 1/2 of the sugar and continue to whisk. When sugar has been incorporated and the meringue starts turning glossy, add the rest of the sugar and continue to whisk. Stop when the meringue is firm and silky-glossy. When you lift the whisk, the tip should gently fall, which is about soft-medium peak (see picture above).

Add and mix to completely incorporate the ingredients, one group at a time in the order of the following.

- egg yolks and salt

- oil and vanilla extract

- orange zest and shredded carrots

- chopped nuts

Then add flour into the egg mix. With a wooden spoon, gently incorporate 1/2 of the flour mix first. Add the rest and fold in gently just until there are no lumps of flour. Do not overmix.

Pour the batter into the greased rice cooker bowl. Tap the side of the bowl to release big air bubbles. Place the bowl in the rice cooker.

Press 'Steam' (a.k.a. 'Multi-Cook') for 40 minutes if your rice cooker has the option. Alternatively, 'Cook' twice, i.e., press 'Cook' and when it's done, press 'Cook' again. You might have to wait for the rice cooker to cool a bit before starting the second run in case of some older/simpler rice cookers.

When it's done, flip gently on a plate. Let it cool to room temperature. If you can gather enough patience, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight to allow some time to moisten and its flavors to settle before serving.

What about the icing and candied carrot garnish? Follow me to the next steps...

Ingredients for carrot ribbons)
1 carrot, peeled
1/3 C sugar
1/3 C corn syrup
1/2 C water

Ingredients for cream cheese - yogurt frosting)
8 oz. low-fat cream cheese in block (not in a tub), a.k.a., American neufchatel cheese, at room temperature, softened
1/2 C Greek yogurt (I use 2% Fage)
1/2 C confectioners sugar

For cream cheese - yogurt icing, whisk together softened cream cheese, Greek yogurt and confectioners' sugar. Cover and refrigerate.

For candied carrot ribbons, peel a carrot with a peeler to the core. In a small pot, add sugar, corn syrup and water and heat it until sugar is dissolved. Add carrot ribbons and bring it up to a simmer over low heat, uncovered. After about 20 minutes, carrot ribbons should turn transluscent and shiny. Keep reducing the syrup over low heat until the syrup starts bubbling up. Stir to keep bubbles down. When carrot ribbons have turned sticky with no crunchy bite, remove from heat. Let it rest, covered with a lid, for 30 minutes. Strain the carrot syrup and let the carrot ribbons dry slightly by laying them out separated on a parchment paper-lined pan.

For assembly, slice the carrot cake horizontally with a serrated knife to make two layers. Spread the cream cheese - yogurt icing on the bottom layer of the cake, starting from the middle. Gently place the top layer over the bottom layer of the cake. Spread the rest of the icing on the top layer of the cake. Garnish with the carrot ribbons as you wish.