Carrot Orange Cake - Baking Partner's Challenge

      This month, for Baking Partner's Challenge, Tamy of "Three Sides of Crazy"  throwed this yummy challenge. Enjoyed completely with the results. The cake was yummy and moist.I have skipped the frosting. Had the cake as such. 

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 3 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 tsp spice powder
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 cups finely shredded carrots
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 - 11 ounce can mandarin orange sections, drained WELL and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup - orange juice.

Method:

* Pre heat oven +350 Degrees  Farenhiet.Grease a 6 inch cake pan and flour it, line a muffin tray with liners.. Since I have quartered the recipe, I got one 6 inch cake and 3 muffins.Soak the raisins in orange juice for atleast an hour. Sift flour, baking powder,baking soda,spice powder ,orange peel and salt. Strain the juice from the raisins.Take some flour in a bowl and toss the soaked raisins,chopped orange pieces . This will prevent the fruits from settling down in the pan.

* Take eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat it till foamy and fluffy. The more you beat it, the more fluffier the cake. Add vanilla, oil to the egg mixture. Add flour and fruit juice, which we stratined from the raisins alternatively.Add shredded carrot and mix.

* Pour the batter to the pan and tap it, for the air to escape. Bake the cake in the oven for about 25 to 30 minutes or untill the toothpick comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack , let it sit there for 5 minutes. Invert the pan and let the cake cool completely. Once cooled, run through the knife and remove from the pan. The cake was moist and fluffy. But I felt that the sugar was less, so increased the recipe to 1/4 cup.

Notes:
* I have skipped the shredded coconut in this recipe.
* I didn't use rum, instead used orange juice to soak the raisins.
* Spice powder is nothing but, little cinnamon,little cloves and dry ginger pounded in a mortar and pestel, gives a very good flavour to the cake.

Linking this to Swathi Iyer's " Baking Partner's event.