Nearly No Fruit Carrot Cake

It's no secret that I have a sweet tooth, and I have something of a long term affair going on with Carrot Cake.  From my childhood curiosity of this apparently strange creation to conversations with fellow bakers about whether it should contain fruit or nuts, or both; I'll always find myself deeply satisfied when I'm enjoying a slice of it.

There are many variations of Carrot Cake, and mine doesn't feature any Dates or Figs as I've never liked them.  Instead, I load up on good old walnuts and of course plenty of carrot.  I also bake mine with added mashed banana because there's nothing more depressing than a dry Carrot Cake; it has to be soft and moist IMO.

Ingredients:-
- 225g self-raising flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 150g soft light brown sugar
- 100g chopped walnuts (plus a handful for the top)
- 2 large carrots, grated
- 2 small very ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 eggs
- 125ml sunflower oil
- 175g soft cream cheese
- 175g icing sugar, sifted

How to:-
1.  Lightly grease an 18cm round cake tin, ideally with a loose, springform bottom.  Cut out a circle of baking or greaseproof paper and place it inside.  Preheat the oven to 180C / Gas 4.
2.  Mix together the flour, baking powder, chopped walnuts and brown sugar in a large bowl.
3.  Squeeze out as much water from the grated carrots as possible (using your hands is easiest) and add them to bowl, then mix in the mashed bananas.
4.  Beat the eggs and oil together and then pour them into the mixture, beating well with a wooden spoon.
5.  Spoon the mixture into the cake tin, making sure to level it out.  Cook for around 1-1/4 hours, until a skewer pushed in the middle comes out clean.  Carefully remove cake from the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack.
6.  Beat the cream cheese and icing sugar together, and spread evenly over the top of the cake.  Sprinkle on the extra chopped walnuts and pop into the fridge for about an hour to allow the topping to set before serving.

Austrian Croissants / Monica's Breakfast Bread (Godkipferl)

I made these for brunch today and they were delicious!  They're lovely with a hot mug of chocolate or coffee, a great way to treat yourself on a cold day.

Makes 6

Ingredients:-
- 1kg strong white plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1tsp salt
- 2 x 7g sachets of fast-action dried yeast
- 500ml milk, lukewarm
- 15g caster sugar, plus extra for dredging
- 125ml vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 egg yolk, beaten

How to:-
1.  Tip the flour into a mixing bowl with the salt and yeast.  Pour the lukewarm milk into a separate bowl and mix with the sugar and oil, then beat in the 2 large eggs.
2. Pour the milk mixture over the flour mix to form a soft dough with your hands.  Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes until smooth.  Return the dough to the bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave for 15 minutes.  Dust 2 non-stick baking sheets with flour.
3. Knock back the dough and divide into 6 pieces.  Take a piece of dough and cut it into 3.  Roll or stretch each of the 3 pieces into sausage shapes about 20-25cm long.  Pinch the 3 together at one end, then plait the strands and pinch together at the other end.  Repeat with the remaining 5 pieces of dough.
4. Shape each plait into a crescent shape, place them on the floured baking sheets and leave to rest for 5 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 180C / Gas Mark 4.
5. Brush the crescents with the beaten egg yolk and dredge them with caster sugar, then bake for 25 minutes until they are well risen and golden.  Take them out of the oven and check that the crescents are cooked by tapping the base - it should sound hollow.  Leave to cool on a wire rack before serving.

[Recipe: The Hairy Bikers' Big Book Of Baking by Si King and Dave Myers]