Mama's Famous Carrot Cake

I'll keep this short and sweet. As promised, here's my mom's famous carrot cake recipe. There's a reason the whole family begs for this cake on holidays! It is unlike any other carrot cake I've ever had. Don't get scared away by the pineapple, you actually can't taste it, and if you mix it up well enough, you can't see it either. Whatever you do, don't skip the ingredient because it's a big moisture contributor to this cake. 

Carrot Cake

4 eggs beaten

2 cups sugar

1.5 cups vegetable oil

2 cups flour

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

3 cups finely grated carrots ( I use the fine shredding blade on my food processor)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

8 ounces crushed pineapple, drained

Mix eggs, sugar, and oil. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually add dry mixture to egg mixture, while stirring. Add carrots, nuts, and drained pineapple. Make sure pineapple is not in a lump, but mixed up well in small pieces.

Bake in greased pans (either three 8" rounds or one 9"x13" pan) at 375 degrees. Set timer for 35 minutes and check by inserting a toothpick in the center. If not done, bake a few minutes longer, until the toothpick test comes out clean.

Cool on baking racks.

Cream Cheese Frosting

12 ounces cream cheese, room temp

3/4 cup butter, room temp

3 tsp. vanilla

5.5-6.5 cups powdered sugar

Beat together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating in between. Continue until all powdered sugar is mixed in well.

Frost cake and add additional chopped nuts to the sides (if using a round cake), or to the top (if using a rectangle cake). Refrigerate cake.