The Worlds Best Carrot Cake recipe

Alas, I have not found the worlds best carrot cake recipe yet, but I am on the search.

I have a thing about rabbits. Always have, probably always will. I have a toy rabbit I was given at birth. My dad used to tell me bedtime stories about him, going off to bunny school, and I we even made him a passport for a holiday. A man at immigration in Florida stamped it for me, as I was 7, and very cute. (Can't see them doing that now!) I was never allowed to watch Watership Down unattended, due to the tears (no, really. I still warn my mum if I'm planning on watching it.) I still spend a large amount of my time, if in a car or train or something near a field, looking for bunnies. So unsuprisingly, I love carrot cake. Now, I love most cake. It is a problem, that I've learnt to accept and embrace, but I'm never going to be a size 8 (UK!) again, partially due to my love of cake. I may see a size 10, but it's 50/50. But carrot cake is a real winner, on a par with a perfect Victoria sponge.

I also believe in the tradition of passing down tried and tested recipes from generation to generation, whether within families, or swapped along the way. I remember hearing about a woman on Womens Hour on Radio 4, who had one from about 4 generations back, and the little bits of family history that were intertwined - her mothers notes, her grandmothers careful writing. And i realised that my family has many recipes that my mum taught me, growing up, that she'd picked up from her mum, and these weren't recorded. Now I have a notepad, and they are getting written, as we decide what to keep. But its also being brought with me, and I shall add new recipes as I find and love them.

So I have started a venture, to find me a perfect recipe, for carrot cake. Its going to involve a lot of grating, and a lot of cream cheese icing, but I shall find it, and pass it on.

That said, I have made a start. My first one is adapted from a book I've had for a long time - The Best of American Cookery, by Lynette Baxter. It's been made, and iced, with a couple of little amendments - I added in a bit of allspice, and knocked the honey out of the icing. Am I the only person who hates the stuff? I've not tried it yet, as it's also my dad's favourite cake, and I'm taking it to my parents house later, but I will update, to see if its gonna be hard to beat, or the page torn from the book and burnt. Its looking pretty good so far, and the raw mix tasted ok, and thats usually a decent indicator of the finished thing.

After this one, I've a recipe I found on the BBC website, and one from a girl at work. She's a girl who knows her cake, as well, so I've a good feeling about that one. Theres also a recipe on offer from another woman at work, from her mum, but apparently its a rather alcohol infused version, so I may have to go slowly with that one!

So any good recipes out there, let me know, and I'll give them a try!