Recipe Carrot cake is more American than mother, flag and apple pie. After all, you can find mothers and flags pretty much anywhere. And even apple pie is available here and there abroad. But carrot cake is purely American.

California Cafe Carrot Cake

• 1  1/2 cup FLOUR
• 1  1/2 teaspoon BAKING POWDER
• 1 scant teaspoon BAKING SODA
• 1/2  teaspoon  SALT
• 1 teaspoon CINNAMON
• 2 teaspoons COCOA POWDER
• 3 WHOLE EGGS
• 1 teaspoon  VANILLA
• 3/4 cup BROWN SUGAR
• 3/4 cup GRANULATED SUGAR
• 1 cup OIL
• 3 cups LIGHTLY PRESSED, FINELY GRATED CARROTS
• 3/4 cup  RAISINS, UNSTUCK
• 1 cup WALNUTS, COARSELY CHOPPED

Preheat your oven to between 350F and 375F, with the rack 1/3 from the bottom.

Foil and butter two 9" round layer pans.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cocoa.

With beaters, or a stand mixer, combine both sugars, eggs, oil and vanilla.

Add sifted ingredients and combine well, to get a stiff but smooth batter.

Mix in the carrots, raisins and walnuts.

Pour into the prepared pans.

Bake 25 minutes. Switch the pans around and give the cakes 5 to 12 minutes more.

The layers are done when puffed up, nicely colored, firm to a gentle touch, and starting to shrink away from the sides of the pans. If you're not quite sure, give them 5 more minutes with the oven OFF.

Let the cakes cool  in the pans. They will deflate some. That is to be expected.

During this time, let the frosting ingredients come to room temperature.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick)
• 12 oz cream cheese
• 1  1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• a little bit of finely grated orange peel, or more, to taste

Whip all the ingredients together until pleasantly spreadable and smooth.

Frost the cakes and refrigerate. Keeps well a day or two.