Carrot Bread with Cream Cheese Icing

"First step is always the hardest"
hhhm, sometimes I have to agree.

Some of the 'first things' were happenning this week.
First day of school and work after 2 weeks of beautiful holiday, and all of us struggled with 'wake up' time in the morning. It was hard!

First time driving again through the busy-crowded-chaos Jakarta traffic, after 2 weeks break (my husband was the driver during the holiday), not too hard. Everything went smooth, I worked hard to manage our time, took it easy and enjoyed what I have to do.

First food photo session after 2 weeks break, hmmm not hard at all, because I kept my camera with me all the time during holiday.

Next week, we'll face another 'first'. We hire a driver to drop/pick up kids to/from the school. My kids are not happy (for now), I am their favorite driver. Again, first time will not be easy for them, but I need to say goodbye for the stressful traffic especially during the busy morning and afternoon peak hours.

IMG_0012carrotbread

When I saw this recipe, under the article 'Sweet Spot' on BHG magazine (April 2011), I fell in love for the first sight! I bookmarked the page after reading the foreword; 'Whether you have just a little time to bake or a lot, bring fresh-from-the-oven goodness to any spring celebration with these luscious breads' and the simple recipes. I said to myself, I'm gonna try all of those recipes.
Actually it's not spring here right now, but almost everyday we got heavy rain.
This soft bread is really nice to accompany our hot beverage at anytime.

Making this quick bread as simple as preparing muffins. Just mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Not require mixer or food processor or other fancy machinery. The bread itself is not too sweet (it only uses 2/3 cup of brown sugar and little ground of cinnamon). But the Cream Cheese Icing, give extra sweetness to the bread. I used the remaining cream cheese after baked the stollen on Christmas Season :)
At the end, I put a handful of dried cranberries to give extra flavor on the bread. Oooh, we're still on the 'cranberry mood'.

We like this delicious bread a lot, and my son loves it so much!
carrotbread2 carrotbread1

Carrot Bread with Cream Cheese Icing
Source : Better Homes and Gardens Magazine (US), April 2011
Makes: 16 servings, Prep: 20 mins
Bake: 350°F 55 mins

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom or nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded carrot
2 beaten eggs
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 recipe Cream Cheese Icing, recipe below

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of an 8x4x2-inch loaf pan or three 4-3/4x2-1/2x2-inch loaf pan; set aside.

2. In a bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, soda and salt. In another bowl combine carrot, eggs, milk, and oil; add to dry ingredients stirring just until moistened.

3. Pour batter into prepared pan(s). Bake for 55 to 60 for the 8x4-loaf pan or 30 to 35 minutes for the large loaf pan or 30 to 35 minutes for the small loaf pans or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean (check the loaf 10 to 15 minutes before the end of baking time. If it is browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil). Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove and cool completely on a rack. Wrap in foil; store overnight before slicing. Store up to 3 days at room temperature or freeze up to 3 months.
Glaze with Cream Cheese Icing just before serving.

Makes 16 servings.
Carrot Bread
Cream Cheese Icing
Ingredients
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) cream cheese
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 - 4 teaspoons milk

Directions
Whisk together cream cheese, powdered sugar, and a little milk until smooth and glazelike. Drizzle over Carrot Bread.

Carrot Bread

Enjoy your weather, friends...
Have a nice weekend.

Comments

Your photos are simple awesome! Can't wait to try the recipe..
Vania said…
Thanks Farwin.
Yup, you should try the recipe, easy and delicious :)
Healthy Recipes said…
This is such a nice idea :) I love the combination of carrot and cheese. Keep posting Food Recipes like this.
Unknown said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Alex said…
I’ve been craving for carrot bread for the past few days and I guess your blog saved my husband for looking for one. Haha! Your photos make me crave even more! Your icing is made from my favorite dairy product. CHEESE! I hope I can bake this properly and guess what? I’m already mixing the ingredients at this moment. :)

Alex Staff