Carrot Cake Success

I am happy to report that my first carrot cake turned out great thanks to Lisa's recipe. The cake was very moist and the icing was fantastic. I will definitely be making this again.

Lisa's Famous Carrot Cake

This is without a doubt the best carrot cake on the planet. I hope I can do it justice. I will be making this for the first time this afternoon. I am not much of a baker. I tend to limit my sweet tooth cooking to pies. But after Dave brought some of Lisa's carrot cake to work, I knew I was going to have to give this a try someday and today is the day. Here is the recipe. I will let you know how it turned out.

Lisa’s Famous Carrot Cake

2 cups of flour

2 tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

3 eggs

1 ¼ cups oil

2 cups white sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups coconut

1 cup crushed pineapple including juice

2 cups grated carrots

1.       Stir together flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda and set aside.

2.       Beat eggs, add oil the sugar.

3.       Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture.

4.       Blend well, add coconut, pineapple, juice and carrots

5.       Pour into buttered waxed paper 9 x 13in. pan.

6.       Bake just above centre in 350F oven for 50 minutes or until done.

7.       Let set in pan 10 minutes before removing to rack

Icing

½ cup butter

2 4oz. packages of cream cheese

3 cups icing sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1.       Cream butter and cheese together. Add vanilla then the icing sugar.

2.       Blend well, spread over cake.

Antigonish Meat Pie (Tortiere)

This is my father's recipe for tortiere. It isn't traditional but it is damn good. The crust has sort of been a family secret but I am about to print it so that is does not just disappear. I think I will make that my Christmas present to all you bloggers out there and my friends at Serious Eats.

Meat Pies

3 lbs minced pork

2 lbs lean ground beef

salt and pepper to taste (adjust as it cooks)

3 or 4 chopped fried onions

flour and water to thicken up (about 1 cup of water and 1/3 cup flower

Italian Seasoning to taste (adjust as it cooks.

Brown meat in large pot add fried onions, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Cook until meat is cooked through. Add water and flour to thicken. Add mixture to pie shells and cook in oven at 350 until crusts are golden brown. The Italian seasoning is the secret ingredient in these pies. You adjust to taste as it cooks.