Waitrose and Partners
Easter carrot patch traybake

Easter carrot patch traybake

This recipe by Martha Collison is a Peter Rabbit haven. It's a fun way to jazz up a carrot traybake, and would be a fantastic children’s birthday cake, too. Try making your own vegetables from fondant if you feel creative.

5 out of 5 stars(1) Rate this recipe
  • Serves12
  • CourseDessert
  • Prepare45 mins
  • Cook40 mins
  • Total time1 hr 25 mins

Please note, we take every care to ensure the product, allergen and recipe information displayed is correct. However, should a product be unavailable, alternatives may be displayed and/or a substitution provided. If you have an allergy or intolerance, please always check the product label before use.

Ingredients

  • 125g dark brown soft sugar
  • 175g golden caster sugar
  • 300ml sunflower oil
  • 3 British Blacktail Free Range Medium Eggs
  • 300g plain flour
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • 275g carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
  • 75g walnuts, chopped
  • 2 x 105g packs Elizabeth Shaw Cappuccino Flutes, or 2 x 114g packs chocolate fingers
  • Cooks’ Ingredients Carrot Icing Decorations (or make your own from orange and green fondant icing)
  • 100g full fat soft cheese
  • 30g unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g icing sugar
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 75g dark chocolate, chopped

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 170°C, gas mark 3. Line a 23x33cm tray with baking parchment.

  2. In a large bowl, whisk the sugars, oil and eggs together until smooth. Slowly add the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and ½ tsp salt, then beat until well mixed.

  3. Stir in the carrots and walnuts until evenly dispersed. Pour into the lined tin and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, then turn out and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

  4. To make the icing, use an electric whisk to blend the soft cheese and butter together. Add the icing sugar in a few separate stages until it is all combined, then whisk on high speed for 5 minutes, or until the mixture is thick, pale and light.

  5. For the chocolate soil, combine the caster sugar and 2 tbsp water in a small saucepan. Heat over a medium heat until the edges of the sugar syrup turn to a pale brown colour. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, then stir vigorously until a soil-like powder forms. Spread onto a baking tray and leave to cool completely.

  6. Place the cake onto a serving board and spread the top and sides with cream cheese icing. If needed, cut the chocolate sticks/fingers into lengths about the same depth as the cake, then use them to cover the outside edges to make a fence. Sprinkle the chocolate soil over the cake, then nestle in the fondant carrots. This cake will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Cook’s tip

Make extra chocolate soil and use it to decorate other Easter bakes. It looks great on cupcakes, over chocolate mousse or on my bunny tail biscuits.

Nutritional

Typical values per serving when made using specific products in recipe

Energy

3,157kJ/ 756kcals

Fat

42g

Saturated Fat

11g

Carbohydrates

86g

Sugars

66g

Fibre

4g

Protein

7.7g

Salt

0.7g

Book a slot to see product availability at your nearest Waitrose & Partners store

Rating details

Rate this recipe

Select your rating

0 out of 5 stars

Overall rating (5/5)

5 out of 5 stars1 rating