This past week, my great grandmother (I called her Grandma Grape) passed away. She was 97 and lived a beautiful life- one marked by kindness and joy, wisdom and love. Since her passing, I’ve found myself quietly inspired, desperately wanting a similar kind of grace on my life. Somehow, knowing that it’s possible to live and die as beautifully as she did fills me with so much hope.

I’m sure you know people like this- the ones that make it count. People who use up their lives and time and every last bit of air in their lungs to make the world around them a better place. People that love their families fiercely and spur on their neighbors towards goodness. People that change the atmosphere. These are the ones who leave a legacy worth remembering.

My Sweet Grandma

My sweet Grandma Grape was one of them. Though I won’t see her earthy body any longer, I know I will catch glimpses of her life in the lives of the women who came after her. I see her warmth and benevolence in my beautiful Nana. Her faith and grace in the peacefulness of my Mother. I see her spunk and playfulness in the laughter of my own daughter. The lasting effect of the beauty she created on this earth will continue to make waves throughout generations to come, and it’s a concept so lovely and full of possibility that my heart can’t help but be encouraged.

If you know somebody who is making this kind of a difference, I would challenge you to rise to the occassion and tell them. Give them a call, a hug, or even use this free letter template to write it out with pen. Don’t let the opportunity to be intentional with the people you love pass you by.

I, for one, have a renewed resolve to make it count. I want to be a human worth remembering and to be a person that spends their life on the cause in their heart for the people around them. The glimmer of hope from great grandmother’s legacy tells me that it’s possible… So that’s the new goal.

Carrot Bundt Cake

This carrot bundt cake is right for the times. It feels comforting and familiar- like a cake my grandmother and the women who came before her might have made. And with Easter just around the corner, a cake like this needs no excuse for making.

The recipe for this carrot bundt cake was adapted from Paula Deen, the queen of Southern heirloom recipes herself. This cake has a dense but tender crumb, kept extra moist from the addition of several eggs, oil, and finely grated carrots. Though the warmly flavored cake ordinarily steals the show in similar recipes, here, the brown butter glaze is the star. Nutty, buttery, and just barely sweet enough to make the carrot bundt cake worthy of the title “dessert”, this brown butter glaze is delicious and dangerously tempting to eat straight from a bowl with a spoon. (Update: for help on browning butter, see my post here!)

Making the Cake

The preparation for this bundt cake is rather simple. You’ll need some muscle to peel and grate the carrots, but from there, it’s a one bowl situation that requires nothing more than a mixer and a finger to lick the bowl with. This recipe will prepare enough batter to fill a 10-cup bundt pan, but you can use a larger 15-cup pan like I did with no problem. If you lack a bundt pan large enough, just fill the pans you have no more than 3/4 of the way full and pour remaining batter into additional pans. This recipe will produce enough batter to fill approximately 3-8″ round cake pans, so if you’d prefer to make the cake that way, you certainly can, however, keep in mind that baking time will change.

If you need a soul-comforting recipe to share with people you love, this carrot bundt cake is just the thing. There’s a number of other Easter-worthy recipes in the blog archives, so be sure to check out a few that I’ve bookmarked below. I hope your week is filled with lots of joy, and if you need encouragement to make it through, please contact me via the comments section below or by email on the “About Me” page of this blog. This Sunday is the most hopeful day of my year and I’d love to share it with you. Happy baking and cheers to you!

If you like this carrot bundt cake, you may also like:

Easter Cake

Blood Orange Bundt Cake

White Chocolate Cake

Hummingbird Muffins

Strawberry Pretzel Tart

Lemon Almond Poppyseed Cake

Ginger Molasses Bunt Cake

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Carrot Bundt Cake with Brown Butter Glaze

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★★

2 from 1 reviews

This carrot bundt cake is a moist and tender cake topped with brown butter glaze and toasted pecans. Serves a crowd and perfect for breakfast, brunch, or dessert.

• Author: Kate Wood
• Prep Time: 30
• Cook Time: 60
• Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Yield: 10
• Category: Dessert

Ingredients

For the cake

• 2 cups sugar (400 gm)
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup oil (240 mL)
• 1–1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (240 gm)
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3 cups finely grated carrots (340 gm, about 1 pound unpeeled)

For the brown butter frosting

• 6 tablespoons (80 gm) unsalted butter, cubed
• 1–1/2 cups (190 gm) powdered sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1–4 tablespoons milk
• 1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Instructions

To prepare the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a bundt pan with at least 10 cup capacity.
2. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed (I use number 4 setting on my stand mixer) for 2 minutes. Add the flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon and stir just until barely combined. Fold in the carrots. Pour the mixture into the bundt pan. Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes in the pan and then invert on to a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely if you want the frosting to drizzle evenly.

To prepare the brown butter frosting

1. Add the cubed butter to a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the butter is melted to ensure that it melts evenly. Once the butter has melted, it will begin to bubble.Continue to stir regularly. Small golden flecks will begin to form on the bottom of the pan. Stir or whisk gently continuously at this point as the butter is beginning to brown. The bubbling should subside at this point and you should notice the butter takes on a golden tint and begins to smell nutty. Do not let it burn, but stir until golden brown and then whisk the mixture into a medium sized bowl to cool slightly.
2. Once slightly cooled, about 5 minutes, add the sugar and salt, whisking to slightly combine. Add a tablespoon of milk, and continue to add small amounts until the mixture is the right consistency. I like my glaze a bit thicker so that it drizzles nicely on the sides of the cake. To test for this viscosity, drag your whisk through the mixture- the line in the mixture should come back together almost completely in about ten seconds. Pour the glaze over the cake.

Notes

• I like to use a finely grated carrot so that it evenly disperses in the cake and stays extra moist. Do not use store-bought pre-shredded carrots.
• You can also bake this cake in round cake pans (3). Baking time will differ.
• If your brown butter frosting sets out for too long it will start to crust over. Heat for 5-10 seconds in the microwave and whisk to prepare it for the cake again.
• If you burn your butter, pour out and start again! There are great videos on Youtube on browning butter.
• For help on browning butter, see my post here: http://thewoodandspoon.com/you-need-to-know-how-to-brown-butter/

Recipe Adapted From: Paula Deen