Once again, I have managed to leave quite a gap between posts – it’s been at least 5 months since I last blogged! But, I’m excited to say that the craziness of university will no longer be an excuse. After what feels like the longest semester ever, I have now graduated and scored myself a teaching job for 2020. It is so surreal to think that in a little over a month I will be walking to school to educate my own little group of kiddos.
In the meantime, I have the entire summer holidays to relax and recover before jumping into a new life chapter! Of course, this means catching up on my time in the kitchen and establishing a plan to help me be more consistent with blogging in the coming year. Suggestions are welcome – I am determined to get somewhat of a routine in place.
To ease myself back into the swing of things, I decided to choose a familiar recipe, carrot cake cookies. My mum brought the recipe home from a work morning tea years ago, and since then they have become a family favourite. The biscuits are generously spiced and filled with grated carrot, juicy sultanas, oats and A LOT of butter. This combination with the citrusy cream cheese frosting is deliciously rich. That being said, two can easily be gobbled up in one sitting if you’re in the mood!
Whilst carrot cake cookies aren’t as healthy as the name suggests, they are a perfect treat to take to a picnic or to have with a cup of tea. I’d recommend letting them get to room temperature before digging into them, as it allows the biscuits to soften a bit.
Notes:
- The cookies will keep in the the fridge for 3-5 days
- For those who aren’t fan of sultanas, they can easily be omitted
- Keep an eye on the baking time – all ovens seem to vary dramatically in temperature!
Carrot Cake Cookie Recipe
Ingredients:
Biscuits
- 250 g softened butter
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cups self-raising flour
- ½ tsp all spice
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 ½ cups grated carrot
- ½ cup sultanas
- ¼ cup roughly chopped pecans or walnuts
- ½ tsp baking powder
Filling
- 50 g softened butter
- 100 g cream cheese
- 1 tsp orange rind
- ¾ cup icing sugar
Method:
1. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and the sugar until fluffy. Then, slowly add the eggs one at a time, beating in between.
2. Add the remaining biscuit ingredients and stir until well combined.
3. Cover and refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180 ° C and line two baking trays.
4. Roll the mixture into tablespoon size balls and flatten on a lined tray. Bake in the oven for 12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly brown in colour. Leave the cookies to on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to a rack to cool completely.
5. For the filling, place all ingredients in a bowl of an electric mixer. Beat the ingredients until the mixture become light and fluffy in texture.
6. Sandwich the biscuits together with the filling and enjoy!