Spiced Carrot Cake

You can use more orange juice instead of the orange liqueur if you prefer. The soaking time of the apricots is not included in the recipe timing.

• Ready In: 1 hr 30 mins
• Serves: 12
• Yields: 1 cake

Ingredients

• 1  medium orange
• 3⁄4 cup  finely chopped  dried apricot
• 1 1⁄2 cups plain flour
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1⁄8 teaspoon allspice
• 1⁄8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1  teaspoon baking soda
• 1  cup brown sugar
• 1  cup  grated carrot
• 3⁄4 cup  chopped pecans
• 3  large eggs
• 1⁄2 cup  sunflower oil (or canola)
• 2  tablespoons Grand Marnier
• 7  ounces cream cheese
• 1⁄3 cup confectioners' sugar
• 5 -6  pecan halves, to decorate (optional)

Directions

1. Zest the orange, cover and set aside for the frosting.
2. Juice the orange, add the chopped apricots and mix with the orange juice, leave to soak for at least 3 hours.
3. When ready to make the cake, preheat the oven to 300F and line the base of a 2lb loaf tin with parchment paper.
4. Sift the flour together with the cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves and the baking soda into a mixing bowl.
5. Add the brown sugar, chopped pecans, carrots and the apricots with the juice, (reserve 2 tablespoons of the orange juice), mix well.
6. Beat together the eggs with the oil, add to the mix and mix again.
7. Spoon into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 50-60 minutes.
8. Test with a wooden skewer whether the cake is done, (it should come out clean and dry), otherwise cook a bit longer.
9. Turn the cake out of the tin and let it cool until slightly warm.
10. Mix the two tablespoons of Grand Marnier and the two tablespoons of the reserved orange juice, return the cake to the tin, poke holes in the top and drizzle the liquid over to soak up the juices.
11. Beat together the cream cheese, confectioners sugar and the orange zest, taste if you find it sweet enough, if not, add more sugar.
12. Take the cake out of the tin, remove parchment paper and spread the frosting on the top.
13. Decorate with the halved pecans.