Cake has been a fundamental part of Mum’s The Boss right from the start, so much so that’s it high time it had a blog post of it’s own!
Both of us like baking and eating cake, and from our very first meeting we have always brought homemade cakes or biscuits to our meetings. Our cakes have become somewhat of a talking point – both at meetings and on Twitter, so we have decided to add a dedicated Cake section on the blog to post some of our favourite recipes. That way, if you can’t make it to a meeting, you never have to miss out on the cake!
Apart from just liking the taste, there is something intrinsically comforting and familiar about cake. Whenever I am expecting visitors I always try and bake something to offer with a cup of tea or coffee. To me it shows I’ve made an effort and that this visit is important to me. For this reason it is important at our meetings to extend this same warm welcome – as for many of our members, this is their first and only experience of the terrifying world of networking! To be welcomed with a cup of tea and a piece of cake is a far cry from most business events, but has become a popular unique selling point for us!
So, to kick off our new recipe section, I will start with the cake that I have received rave reviews about most recently – my mum’s Carrot Cake. I made this cake especially for the meeting when The Efficiency Coach, Heather Townsend, was our speaker, as she has a dairy intolerance. Generally our cakes are quite heavily biased towards butter and chocolate, so it was a relief to have this recipe up my sleeve, as it uses sunflower oil in place of butter or margarine, and is a healthier take on Carrot Cake compared to the frosting laden versions you normally see.
Sam’s Mum’s Carrot Cake (I have no idea where this originated from!)
6oz soft brown sugar
6oz self raising flour
6oz finely grated carrot
6fl oz sunflower oil
2oz chopped prunes
2oz chopped walnuts
3 eggs
3tsp mixed spice
Sift flour & spice into a large bowl – mix well.
In a separate bowl beat the oil, eggs and sugar until mixture is light.
Stir in the fruit, nuts, carrot and dry mixture and fold together.
Place in a 2lb loaf tin
Bake in a preheated oven 350F, 180C for 50-60 mins
If you do decide to give this a try, please come back and leave a comment and let us know how you rate it, out of 5.
And next time I make one, I will take a photo and replace the picture that accompanies the post 
That sounds delicious. My son’s birthday is looming in 2 weeks and I’ve been trying to decide what cake to go for.
I usually end up doing three!
Thanks for the recipe.
I love carrot cakes!! I have never baked one and I have been going on about the fact that I wanted to find a recipe. Here it is, ask and you will be given!
I will be back with comment…
Who cares where it came from! I know where it’s going though! Great recipe, really delicious and thanks Sams mom!
My mum sent this recipe to me 20yrs ago, and over the years I’ve adapted it – sorry!! I add a teaspoon of nutmeg, and replace the walnuts and prunes with roasted almonds (4oz) and crystallized ginger (up to 6oz). It’s a fantastic recipe and I’ve christened it ’24 Carat Cake’!!