Primal Cream Cheese Frosting (and Carrot Cake review)

Every year our friends host an Easter get together complete with an adult Easter egg hunt. On a side note, I have won every year... except for that one year I wasn't there. I take egg hunts pretty seriously ;) Moving on... Normally, my traditional cake for Easter is my Lemon Cake (80/20!). This year, though, every one attending was either paleo or primal, which I was really excited about. I wanted to make carrot cake, but could not decide which recipe to try: Elana's Pantry or Primal Palate. I ended up making both and using it as an opportunity for a taste test. I don't make a lot of desserts, so I knew if I made one cake for Easter and another 6 months down the road, I wouldn't be able to decide which I liked better. What better way to decide than just making two cakes at once, right? Right.

Ultimately, 80% of us preferred Primal Palate's recipe over Elana's. Elana's was fantastic - lots of spice, and plenty of texture from the raisins and nuts. The spices, though, were a bit overpowering for a traditional carrot cake flavor, and almond flour, of course, has a distinctive flavor that most people did not prefer for a carrot cake. Primal Palate's coconut flour version, though, despite lacking nuts or raisins, was more reminiscent of a traditional carrot cake. The fibrous texture of coconut flour lends itself very well to the texture of a carrot cake. I do think, in the future, I would add raisins and walnuts, because carrot cake isn't complete without them in my opinion!

To keep the playing field even, I made the same frosting for both cakes. I ended up doing Elana's in cake form, and Primal Palate's in cupcake form. I did attempt a dairy free "cream cheese" frosting, but ended up over the sink gagging, so let's just not talk about that... This frosting, though, is fantastic. It complemented both cakes perfectly, is rich and perfectly tart, and has just a hint of sweetness.

Primal Cream Cheese Frosting
primal / grain-free / gluten-free / egg-free

Yield: Enough for a two-layer 9in cake, or 24 cupcakes

16oz, or 2 blocks, cream cheese, room temperature

1/2c, or 1 stick, butter, room temperature

1/3c maple syrup

1T vanilla extract

1/2t ground ginger, optional

Cream the butter and cream cheese together in a stand mixer, or with a handheld mixer, until fully incorporated.

While mixing, drizzle in the maple syrup and vanilla. Add the ginger. 

Whip until it reaches the desired fluffiness.

Use immediately, or store in the refrigerator (bring to room temperature before frosting).

What did you make for Easter this year?