Gooey Cinnamon Carrot Cake

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I CAN'T EVEN TELL YOU HOW EXCITED I AM RIGHT NOW!  WELL, ^ EXCITED!!

And do you want to know why?  Not only am I sharing one of the BEST cakes I have ever tasted in my life but...drummmmmmmmmmm rolllllllllllllllll please! 

LSM WAS FEATURED ON FOODBUZZ'S TOP 9!!

Excuse my French, but can you freakin' believe it?!  BECAUSE I CAN'T!!  I got a comment from Amanda at At the Red Table congratulating me on my Top 9 feature and I was like wha, wha, wha?!  I honestly had no clue.  I hadn't checked my e-mail yet but lo' and behold, there was LSM's very own Baked Carrot Cake Donuts sitting smack dab in the Foodbuzz daily e-mail at the number two spot!  Woop, woop!  So thank you, thank you, thank you to anyone and everyone who clicked on my picture.  I honestly am so very excited about this and it's all because of YOU!

Okay, sorry.  I've calmed myself down a bit.  Now on to the other star of this post ☺

If you follow LSM on Twitter [and if you don't, you should, so click on that little 'T' to the right to get LSM Twitter updates and sneak peeks!] you may have noticed a sneak peek picture of the cake I'm presenting today.  And let me tell you, it really only was a sneak peek of all the deliciousness this [out-of-this-world] cake has to offer.  Seriously, words can barely describe how indulgent and...see, I can't even think of another worthy word!

I came across this sinfully wonderful cake over at Simply So Good.  Ha, hmmm?  Guess this cake will be so good, huh?!  Wrong.  This cake is too, too good!  Quite honestly, easily one of the best cakes I've had in a looOoooOoOng time.  Too long, actually.  Looks I may need to make this cake again...say Easter weekend?!  You're welcome, family ☺

So what makes this cake so rave-worthy?  Well let's see.  It could be the cinnamony-pineapple-pecans-coconut-carrot cake or the unique caramely-like buttermilk glaze that seeps into the cake or the overly thick, rich, cinnamon cream cheese frosting sitting atop every other layer.  I mean, maybe one of those elements will get ya.

Total sarcasm people!  And all of those described elements are in one stinkin' cake!  Whewie!

So long post short [see what I did there?], you do not want to pass up this recipe.  So do everyone at your Easter dinner a favor and make this cake.  Do it  .

My Notes:

• To poke holes in the cake, I used the handle end of a wooden spoon.
• Make sure the cake is thoroughly cooled before frosting.  You know me and my lack of patience, so I frosted the cake a bit too early and it ended up seeping into the cake making it a bit more soft than probably it should have been.  I popped the cake in the fridge to remedy, but I just suggest holding out on frosting if time permits until the cake is cooled.

From Simply So Good

Ingredients:

Cake:

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

3 large eggs

3/4 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract
1-1/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. sugar

2 c. peeled and grated carrots (about 2 to 3 large carrots)

1-1/2 c. sweetened flaked coconut

1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple (do not drain)

1 c. chopped pecans

Buttermilk Glaze:
 1 c. sugar
1/2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. unsalted butter
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1-1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:
12 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 c. powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Spray 13x9-inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.
2. For cake, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.  Set aside.
3. Place eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and sugar in a large bowl and mix until smooth.  Slowly add in dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  Gently fold in carrots, coconut, pineapple, and pecans.  Pour batter evenly into prepared pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes or until cake springs back when pressed.
4. While the cake is baking, to prepare the glaze, add sugar, buttermilk, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda to medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.  Vigorously stir mixture (adding the baking soda will make the mixture foam, stirring will subside the rising foam!) for about 8 minutes.  The glaze will begin to turn an amber color.  When the mixture is a light amber color, remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.  Set aside until ready to use.
5. When the cake comes out of the oven, immediately poke holes in cake.  Pour the buttermilk glaze over the top of the hot cake and spread evenly.  Let cake cool completely.
6. While the cake cools, for frosting, add cream cheese and butter in large bowl and beat until fluffy.  Add brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla extract and mix until combined.  Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  
7. Once the cake is cooled, evenly spread frosting over cake.  

Yield: 24 servings