You will need
1 x 595 g Ina Paarman’s Carrot Cake Mix
2 t (10 ml) powdered ginger
3 extra large eggs, at room temperature
¼ cup (60 g) butter, melted
½ cup (125 ml) canola oil
½ cup (125 ml) fresh full cream milk, warmed
1 cup (250 ml) coarsely grated fresh carrot
125 g butter, at room temperature
250 g medium or low fat cream cheese or smooth cottage cheese
4 T (60 ml) full cream milk
1 x 250 g Ina Paarman’s Vanilla Icing Kit
2 t (10 ml) powdered ginger
90 g white chocolate
2 rectangles of baking paper + – 40 cm x 30 cm
1 cardboard core from an empty roll of kitchen paper towel
cinnamon powder
chocolate shards
Step-by-step chocolate shard technique:
Method
Cake
Adjust oven rack to the middle position.
Preheat oven to 180°C. Butter a 29 cm x 21 cm x 5 cm rectangular pan and line bottom with baking paper.
Add the ginger to the flour mix.
Beat eggs and melted butter together for 30 seconds on high speed until well blended. Carry on beating while adding the oil. Add warmed milk and beat briefly on high speed. Add carrot and pineapple mixture and freshly grated carrot and beat it in.
Add the flour mix with ginger. Gently fold in by hand with a spatula. Mix until combined. It is important not to overmix.
Scrape mixture into prepared pan. Level the top and make a slight hollow in the middle.
Place in the oven and bake for 40 – 45 minutes. Cake is done when a thin-bladed knife inserted into the centre comes out clean and the cake pulls away slightly from the sides of the pan. Cool cake in the pan for 10 minutes.
Turn cake out on a cooling rack. Do not ice until cake is completely cold.
Chocolate Shards
Gently melt the chocolate in a small bowl over hot water.
Spread the melted chocolate on one sheet of baking paper leaving a wide border. Lay the second sheet on top.
Using the cardboard core gently spread and level the chocolate between the sheets of baking paper. Don’t spread too thinly.
Roll the two sheets of paper (with chocolate in the middle) around the cardboard core and secure with paper clips. Leave to set hard in the freezer until ready to decorate the dessert.
To use, unroll the paper and pull the top sheet straight while unrolling, this will splinter the chocolate on the bottom sheet into slightly rounded shards. Use straight away as white chocolate melts very quickly or freeze until just before serving.
Icing the cake
Cream butter until soft.
Add cream cheese and beat until smooth. Add milk and beat in briefly.
Add powdered ginger and Icing Mix. Beat in, on slow speed, until evenly blended. Add a little more milk to soften if the icing is too firm.
Spread the icing generously over the top of the cake.
Dust lightly with cinnamon.
Top with splinters of white chocolate shards.
