Carrot Cake Focaccia
Is it Bread? cake? Whatever it is, it’s delicious.
I built this recipe because I’m currently obsessed with all things carrot cake, and based on feedback this loaf turned out nothing less than spectacular.
The base dough is taken from my Overnight Focaccia mixed with bits and bobs from my Candied Caramel Carrot Cake. The resulting treat has all the best flavours of a decadent dessert tucked inside the delicious bounce of focaccia.
And now a couple of caveats. Be sure you read the recipe instructions in full— it’s fairly in-depth and requires a bit of prep work (but is totally worth it). I kept this a two-loaf recipe because it’s perfect for gifting and keeping one for yourself. I also built the recipe without crushed pineapple (because I didn’t have any at the time) or raisins (because of who I made the bread for). I’ll include an option to add in both, but suggest if you do add in pineapple, be sure to drain it very well and remove as much excess liquid as possible. I haven’t done this yet, but will update the recipe once I give it another go.
And lastly, I found this bread is best served chilled — once baked, rested, and assembled, I chilled the loaf in the fridge for 1-2hrs before cutting. You can also slice and freeze individual pieces which is great for grabbing a single serving. Like anyone could eat just one slice. —CFG
Recipe makes 2 loaves
Ingredients:
For overnight starter:
500 g of water at 80°F
500 g all-purpose flour
Scant 1/4 tsp yeast
For dough:
500g all-purpose flour
230g water water at 105°F
20g finely ground sea salt
1 rounded tbsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ginger paste
1/4 rounded tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp crushed cloves
1 medium carrot, grated
3/4 cup lightly crushed pecans, toasted
2/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup melted butter (salted)
(Optional) 2/3 cup crushed pineapple, very well drained, all excess liquid removed
(Optional) 2/3 cup raisins
Candied Nuts Ingredients
1 egg white
1/2 cup lightly crushed pecans
1/2 cup lightly crushed walnuts
1/8 cup granulated sugar
1/8 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 rounded tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp kosher salt
Caramel Drizzle Ingredients
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup cream
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt
Directions:
Bread
In a large mixing bowl, mix together 500g of water heated to 80°F with 500g of all-purpose flour, and scant 1/4 tsp of yeast together. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12-16 hours. The starter mixture will expand in size and be bubbly with a strong fruity aroma.
To make the dough, use a stand mixer with the dough hook and add the starter mixture to the bowl with 230g of water heated to 105°F and mix until fully blended.
Next, add 3/4 tsp of ginger paste and 20g of finely ground sea salt to the starter mixture and mix together.
In a separate mixing bowl, add together 1 rounded tbsp cinnamon, 1/4 rounded tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp crushed cloves and 500g of all-purpose flour. Once blended together, add the flour to the started mixture a bit at a time and mix thoroughly until the dough comes together. It may be a bit shaggy and wet in texture.
Transfer the dough back to the large mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 45 minutes then give the dough folds to complete one full turn. This is done by pulling one section of dough from the bottom of the bowl to its opposite side, then rotating the bowl and repeating the process until you’ve fully worked your way around the dough ball.
Rest the dough for another 45 minutes and complete a second set of folds and complete another turn.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and proof for 3-4 hours or until the dough approximately doubles in size.
(Optional) Prepare 2/3 cup crushed pineapple by draining very well and using paper towel to absorb all excess liquid. Set aside.
(Optional) Prepare 2/3 cup raisins by placing in very hot water and soaking until they’re fully softened. Drain the water and pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture. Set aside.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled counter top and cut into two pieces. For each dough ball, lightly stretch it into a rectangle shape, but be sure not to rip the dough. Sprinkle about half of the shredded carrot and sweetened shredded coconut (and optional pineapple and raisins) onto each portion of dough, reserving a few pinches for next steps. Next, sprinkle a handful of crushed candied nuts onto each dough portion, reserving some for next steps.
To prepare the dough for the final rise, complete a letter fold on the dough. Lift the top third portion of dough and rest it down on the middle area, then bring up the bottom third portion of dough and rest it over the folded area the same way you would fold a letter into thirds. Using both hands lift the dough from the middle and then rest it back down allowing one end to tuck under the other creating a ball.
Line two 8x8” pans (9x9” also works) with parchment paper and lightly drizzle with good olive oil, then transfer the dough balls to your baking pans.
Drizzle a little oil oil on top, then lightly cover with plastic wrap, and allow the bread to proof/rise for 45-60min.
Remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the remaining shredded carrot and another light handful of candied nuts onto the dough, then drizzle a bit more olive oil on the dough.
Spread your fingers wide and push them into the dough in a downward motion. Lift your fingers out and go forward about 1-2 inches and repeat the motion until you reach the end of the pan. Turn the pan 90° and repeat the motion across the length of the pan to create bubbles.
Drizzle each loaf with 1/8 cup of melted butter, and then sprinkle each loaf with 1/8 cup of light brown sugar.
Bake at 500°F for about 20 minutes. Check the bread after the first 5-7 minutes of baking as you’ll need to lay tinfoil on top of the bread to prevent the brown sugar from burning the bubbles. Finished bread will be ~206°F, but you can pull it out of the oven at 195°F as it will continue to cook in the pan after removing from the oven. Allow the bread to cool completely while you prepare the candied nuts, cream cheese frosting, and caramel drizzle.
Candied Nuts
Preheat oven to 315°F.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl whisk 1 egg white until it’s foamy, then add in 1/2 cup of lightly crushed pecans and 1/2 cup of lightly crushed walnuts, then toss together until the nuts are fully coated.
Next, add 1/8 cup of granulated sugar, 1/8 cup of light brown sugar, 1 rounded tsp of cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp of kosher salt to the bowl and toss all the ingredients together until fully coated.
Transfer the mixture onto the parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 40-50min, stirring every 15min and breaking up larger pieces. If the nuts are slightly tacky at the end of cook time, turn the heat off and leave the pan in the oven to cool until the nuts are fully dried. The mixture should be completely cooled before using.
Caramel Drizzle
In a medium sauce pan, whisk together 1 egg yolk,1 cup of brown sugar, and 1/2 cup of cream. Bring the mixture to a low boil over medium-low heat while stirring constantly. Let the mixture boil for 2-3 minutes until it thickens, then remove from heat and stir in 1 tbsp of butter, 1 tsp of vanilla extract, and a pinch of sea salt.
Let the mixture cool completely before using.
Cream Cheese Frosting
In a mixing bowl (or using a hand mixer), cream together 1 block of cream cheese and 1/2 cup of unsalted butter until smooth but not whipped.
Next, add in 3 cups of powdered sugar one cup at a time and blend together on medium speed until fully incorporated.
Beat in 1tsp of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt, then blend together on medium-high for about 1min.
Assembly
Once the bread is fully cooled, fill a pastry piping bag with cream cheese frosting and inject each loaf of bread with the filling in various spots. You can use the divots made by your fingers when creating the bubbles to inject the cream cheese deeper into the loaf. Fill with as much frosting as you prefer.
Frost the top of each loaf with the remaining frosting.
Drizzle caramel drizzle over the top of the loaf and then sprinkle with candy nuts.
Chill in the fridge for one to two hours before slicing and serving.
Enjoy!
