I love baking these healthy and delicious cakes for my kids – it’s a great ‘gouter’ (tea-time snack) when they come home ‘hungry like wolves’ from school. In France, ‘l’heure du gouter’ is a sacred time for the kids – they sit at the table, talk about their day at school, and enjoy this afternoon snack before they go to play and finish their homework. I think the gouter is their favourite moment of the day!

This healthy carrot cake is easy to make and extra delicious with chopped pecan nuts.

Ingredients: (for 10-12 mimi-cakes)

150 grs plain flour
110 grs caster sugar
150 ml canola oil
50 grs chopped pecan nuts
2 eggs
3 grated carrots
1 tsp ground cinnamon
6 grs baking powder
butter for lining cake mold

Vanilla cream-cheese frosting:

60 grs unsalted butter (room temperature)
130 grs philadelphia cheese or kiri
40 grs icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Pre-heat the oven 180° celsius.

Cream the eggs and sugar and fluffy and smooth – I use and electric whisks. Add the oil and whisk for 1 more minute. Add the grated carrots, flour, baking powder and the chopped pecan nuts. Mix well and pour into your little cake mold. (I like these small cake molds – perfect child portion)

Bake approx. 20-25 minutes or until you ‘test-knife’ (dipping the blade of a knife to see of the cake is cooked) and it comes out clean.

Let the cake cool on a wire rack. You have to wait until is is completely cool before icing the cake.

For the icing:

Mix butter and cream cheese with a large spatula. You want to achieve a smooth paste. Add the vanilla essence and sifted icing sugar (it has to be sifted or the icing will have lumps).

Cream your cakes with the icing.