for 16 pieces

Pecan nuts

40 g	sugar
1 tbsp	water
50 g	pecan nuts
a little	sea salt

Cake mixture

250 g	cane sugar
4	egg yolks
2 tbsp	olive oil
2 tbsp	plain greek yoghurt
350 g	carrots, finely grated
2 tsp	cinnamon
2 tbsp	pineapple juice
1 cm	ginger, finely grated
1 pinch	salt
a little	nutmeg
300 g	ground hazelnuts
70 g	white flour
1 tsp	baking powder
4	egg whites
1 pinch	salt

Frosting

200 g	butter, soft
100 g	icing sugar
400 g	double cream cheese (e.g. Philadelphia)
120 g	plain greek yoghurt
5 cm	ginger, finely grated
1 tbsp	pineapple juice

How it's done

Pecan nuts

Boil the sugar and water in a pan without stirring. Reduce the heat and simmer, shaking the pan occasionally until a light brown caramel has formed. Remove the pan from the heat, add the nuts, mix, add salt to taste, divide onto a sheet of baking paper, allow to cool. Roughly chop the nuts.

Cake mixture

Using the whisk on a hand mixer, beat the sugar, egg yolks, oil and yoghurt in a bowl for approx. 3 mins. until light and fluffy. Stir the carrots and all the other ingredients up to and including the nutmeg into the mixture. Combine the pecan nuts, hazelnuts, flour and baking powder, stir into the mixture. Beat the egg white with the salt until stiff, carefully fold into the mixture using a rubber spatula. Transfer the cake mixture to the prepared tin.

Bake

For approx. 50 mins. in the bottom half of an oven preheated to 180°C. Remove from the oven, allow to cool a little, remove from the tin and leave to cool on a rack. Place the cake on a sheet of baking paper along with the rack and slice open crosswise.

Frosting

Beat together the butter and icing sugar using the whisk attachment on a hand mixer until the mixture turns a paler colour. Add the remaining ingredients, mix well. Spoon 1/4 of the frosting onto the sponge base and place the lid on top. Coat the cake all around with another 1/4 of the frosting. Spoon the remaining frosting into a piping bag with a serrated nozzle (approx. 14 mm diameter). Pipe over the cake, place in the fridge for approx. 30 mins.

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