Recipe: Carrot Cake Lamington

I’m not going to settle the argument over who invented the lamington. I just think there’s room for one made with carrot cake. I love both cakes, and once I started putting them together, pineapple jam felt like the right thing to spread through the middle. It brings a little sharpness to the soft, spiced cake, while the lemony cream cheese icing makes it unmistakably carrot cake. The squares are coated in white chocolate icing and coconut, as a lamington should be. There are a few stages involved, and cutting and coating nine neat pieces takes some care, but I think the first bite makes the effort worthwhile.

Pineapple jam
500g pineapple, cut into 5 mm pieces
250g caster sugar
2 whole star anise
1 cinnamon quill
½ tsp vanilla paste
1 tsp lemon juice
Pinch of sea salt

Cream cheese icing
250g spreadable cream cheese
¼ cup icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest

 White chocolate icing and coating
½ cup full cream milk
1 cup white chocolate, chopped (I use Cuvée chocolate)
3 cups icing sugar, sifted
3 cups desiccated coconut, to coat

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C for at least 20 minutes. Grease a 20 cm square cake tin and line the base and sides with baking paper as carefully as you can.

2. Place the flour, caster sugar, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, walnuts and salt in a large bowl. Whisk well to combine, breaking up any lumps of flour or sugar.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, water, oil, eggs, vinegar and vanilla paste. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until no dry flour remains. Fold through the grated carrot.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Bake for approximately 1 hour and 5 minutes. Avoid opening the oven door during the first 50 minutes. After that, test the centre with a skewer. The cake is ready when it comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool completely in the tin, then refrigerate until firm.

5. To make the pineapple jam, place the pineapple, sugar, star anise and cinnamon in a large saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring regularly so the sugar dissolves and the fruit does not catch on the bottom of the pan.

6. Continue cooking for approximately 30 minutes, stirring more often as the jam thickens. If using a thermometer, cook it to 111°C. Remove the pan from the heat and stir through the vanilla paste, lemon juice and salt. Allow the jam to cool, then remove the star anise and cinnamon quill. Refrigerate until cold.

7. To make the cream cheese icing, place the cream cheese, sifted icing sugar and lemon zest in a bowl. Mix until smooth, then refrigerate until firm enough to spread.

8. To make the white chocolate icing, heat the milk in a saucepan until hot, then remove it from the heat. Add the white chocolate and whisk until melted. Add the sifted icing sugar one cup at a time, whisking until the icing is smooth. Pour the coconut into a shallow bowl.

9. Remove the cold cake from the tin. Using a long serrated knife, carefully cut the whole cake in half horizontally to make two even layers. Lift off the top layer and set it aside.

10.  Spread the pineapple jam evenly over the bottom layer, then spread the cream cheese icing over the jam. Carefully place the top layer of cake back on and press down gently. Refrigerate until the filling is firm, then cut the assembled cake into a 3 x 3 grid to make nine even squares.

11. Working with one piece at a time, dip each square into the white chocolate icing, turning to coat all sides. Allow the excess to drip off, then roll in the coconut. Place on a lined tray and refrigerate until the coating is set.