These darling little carrot cakes look as if they’ve just fallen off the Christmas tree! They are are very simple to put together: a food processor makes short work of both the cake mixture and the icing.

Serve with a pot of your favourite Clipper brew!

Makes 18

Ingredients

• 110g softened butter
• 110g golden caster sugar
• 150g grated carrot (grated weight)
• Grated zest of 1 orange
• 110g wholemeal flour
• 50g plain flour
• 1 level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 2 level teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 medium eggs
• 50g ground almonds
• Plus: orange glace icing (see below) and pink decorating sugar

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170C (fan oven) or equivalent
2. You will need a 2 x 12 cup muffin or tart tins plus standard size paper cake cases
3. Whiz the butter and sugar together.
4. Add the grated carrot and orange zest and whiz again.
5. Add the flours, raising agents, cinnamon, eggs and ground almonds and whiz until combined and the mixture looks smooth and glossy. Remove the lid a couple of times and scrape the mixture down from the sides with a flexible spatula.
6. Divide the mixture evenly between the cake cases. Bake for around 15 minutes or until risen and springy to the touch. A skewer should come out clean when inserted.
7. Remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack.

Orange Glace Icing

This is a great way of making glace icing: no more choking clouds of icing sugar getting down your throat and landing all over the worktop!

Ingredients

• 75g icing sugar
• Approximately 1-2 tablespoons orange juice
• ½ teaspoon glycerine

Method

1. Put the icing sugar into the clean, dry bowl of your processor and give it a few turns to eliminate any lumps.
2. Add the juice and whiz until smooth.
3. Add the glycerine and whiz until smooth and glossy.
4. Spoon over the cooled cakes and sprinkle with pink sugar before the icing sets.