Dulce de Leche Carrot Cake

My husband loves carrot cake, so for his birthday I made Dulce de Leche Carrot Cake with Dulce de Leche Cream Cheese Frosting from Bakespace.com, and it was a hit! I did make changes, both in the cake and in the buttercream, and those changes are reflected in the recipe below.

Dulce de Leche is a wonderful addition to moist carrot cake, lending its creamy, caramelly sweetness and reducing the sugar usually found in carrot cake recipes. Adding it to the traditional cream cheese frosting took it to another level.

Dulce De Leche Carrot Cake
Adapted from the original recipe at Bakespace.com

1 (14 ounce) can Dulce de leche, 1/4 cup removed
1 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups bread flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups grated carrots, packed firmly
zest of one orange, finely minced

Dulce de Leche Cream Cheese Buttercream and Filling

1/2 cup salted butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup Dulce de Leche
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare two 8-inch cake pans with cooking spray and place circle of parchment paper in bottom of each.

In large bowl using hand whisk, blend dulce de leche, oil, applesauce, sugar, and eggs. Stir in vanilla extract and lemon juice. In smaller bowl, whisk flours, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Fold flour mixture into wet ingredients and add carrots and zest, stirring well. Spoon into prepared pans.

Bake until cake springs back when gently pressed, about 25-30 minutes. Cool about 30 minutes before removing from pans to cool on wire rack. Make sure cake is room temperature or chilled before icing.

For buttercream, cream together softened butter, cream cheese, and dulce de leche until smooth and fluffy; add 1 cup powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add cream and vanilla and mix to incorporate. Add remainder of powdered sugar gradually and beat on medium speed until smooth. Fill and frost cake layers as desired. Sprinkle with ground nuts and touch of cinnamon. Unfrosted cake freezes well.