Get Well Card and Carrot Cake

I love double sided paper.  The paper with the look of a written letter is the back side of the black and white pattern paper covering the card front.  The pattern papers and stamp used are not available through our current catalog but Ivy Lane, one of our new papers, would work beautifully.  The sentiment here could be replaced with our Friendly Thoughts stamp or the "thinking of you" sentiment from our Casual Expressions stamp.  No bling was added since I wanted it to be more masculine.

It's always nice to find homes for these creations.  Our neighbor is sick in the hospital and might need some cheering up.  We've just moved here and have only met he and his son once or twice but, it must be very difficult.  This card and some homemade soup and bread would be good.  Maybe some carrot cake too (recipe below).

Oh, Lord, please take care of our new friend and his family.  In Jesus Name, Amen

The Carrot Cake...

I used to co-own a cafe in Everett, Washington where we made cakes, cookies, breads, pies, cinnamon rolls and more.  My business partner's mom always used baby food when making carrot cake and it was fantastic.  We found a recipe similar to her Mom's recipe only we boiled and mashed our own carrots rather than using baby food.  It just made economical sense.    

Now, I don't have the original recipe for the cakes we made at the cafe but I found one that was similar from ©Taste of Home called "Pineapple Carrot Cake."  Since A few changes have been made, it seemed fitting to rename the recipe "CC's Carrot Cake," after our cafe where we sold hundreds of pieces of this delightful cake.  Again, not the original CC's cafe recipe, but close.  Enjoy!

CC's Carrot Cake 

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 cups vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 cup boiled and mashed carrots

1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

1/2 cup Craisins (dried cranberries)

FROSTING:

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 lb confectioners' sugar

A few tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Additional chopped walnuts, toasted, optional

Directions

In a bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add the oil, eggs and mashed carrots; mix on low speed until well blended. Stir in pineapple, Craisins and toasted nuts. Pour into greased and floured 9x13 baking pan.

Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.  

For frosting, in a bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Beat in vanilla and confectioners' sugar until combined.  Add heavy whipping cream, one tablespoon at a time, until mixture reaches spreading consistency. Spread over top and sides of cake. Garnish with toasted nuts if desired. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 12 servings.