Carrot Cake - Banana Cake Receipes Please

[yellowrose]

I would like to start baking (haven't done it for years) and ds loves carrot and banana cakes which cost quite a lot in the shops. I buy the organic ones and they are quite expensive.

I thought of googling, but would rather have tried and tested, happy with results kind of receipes please.

Many thanks !

Here is a carrot cake recipe I use all the time. I use wholemeal self-raising flour, but you can use normal self-raising. It is easy peasy and lovely!

6oz light muscovado sugar
6fl oz sunflower oil
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
5oz grated carrot (about 3 med. carrots)
4oz chopped dates/raisins/nuts - whatever you fancy!
grated zest of 1 large orange
6oz self-raising wholemeal flour
1tsp bicarb of soda
1.5 tsp mixed spice (or cinnamon and nutmeg)

1. Lightly mix sugar, oil and eggs in large bowl. Then stir in the carrots, orange rind and dates/raisins/nuts.

1. Preheat oven to 180'C/Gas 4/Fan 160'C and oil & line a 7inch square cake tin.

1. Mix flour, soda and spice, then sift into the bowl. Lightly mix all the ingredients.

1. Pour mixture into tin and bake for 40-45 mins, cool in tin 5mins, then turn out onto wire rack.

This is a lovely sugar free banana cake:

4 oz self raising wholemeal flour
half tsp mixed spice
2 oz butter
3 oz raisins
8 oz banana
1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 180 / gm 4.

Mix flour and spice, rub in butter and stir in raisins. In a separate bowl, mash the banana and egg. Stir into the flour mixture and put into a well-greased tin (fills a small loaf tin I think or I usually double up the quantities and put it in an 8" circular cake tin). Turn oven down to GM 3 / 160 C and cook on the middle shelf for 1 hour or until cooked.

I usually cover it with a mixture of philadelphia cream cheese and fruit spread (about 2 parts cream cheese to one part fruit spread / jam). I blend them together in the liquidiser. However it is good just by itself as well. This recipe is pretty healthy as well as easy to make, but actually tastes very good. I've used it as a birthday cake before - it's lovely and sweet.

never fails

and makes the house smell lovely as it cooks.

AC - love the name - so do you hover on these food threads often making sure children are given healthy food ?

thanks everyone for your receipes. will try a few and see how it goes.

they all sound yummy

ooh I make this one all the time. It's fabulous and goes in the children's lunchboxes!

Banana and Honey Teabread (a Mary Berry recipe)

8oz self raising flour
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
4oz marg or soft butter
8oz bananas
4oz caster sugar
grated rind of 1 lemon
2 extra large eggs
6 tbsp of thick honey

(it has a topping of honey and sugar but I never use that)

Pre heat oven to 180C. Grease a 2lb loaf tin with greased greaseproof paper.

Put flour and nutmeg in a bowl and rub in the butter/marg. Peel and mash the bananas and stir in the flour with the sugar, lemon rind, eggs and honey. Beat well until mixed then turn into the tin and level the surface.

Bake for 1 and a quarter hours (never takes that long in my oven - I would say nearer 45 mins to an hour but we have a super hot oven) until a skewer/fork goes in and comes out clean. Leave it to cool and then turn out. If it starts burning on top in the oven (it probably only does this in ours because it is too hot), put some foil over it.

thanks fox !