Carrot and Cardamom Cakes with Maple Icing

Carrot cake is always a winner... to go the extra mile why try this carrot and cardamom recipe by Anna Jones, a seasonal chef extraordinaire.

Ingredients:
 
·      80g butter or coconut oil
·      4 tablespoons maple syrup
·      seeds from 4 cardamom pods
·      finely ground in a pestle and mortar
·      1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
·      1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger
·      150g ground almonds
·      100g light spelt or chickpea flour
·      50g pumpkin seeds
·      2 teaspoons baking powder
·      2 medium carrots, grated
·      1 banana peeled and mashed
·      3 organic or free-range eggs, beaten
 
For the icing:
 
·      200g cream cheese
·      4 tablespoons maple syrup
·      a pinch of ground cinnamon
·      a pinch of ground ginger
 

Method:

1.    Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. Line a twelve-hole muffin tin with paper cases and put to one side.
2.    Put the butter or coconut oil and maple syrup into a pan with the spices and let it melt over a low heat. Set aside to cool.
3.    Now put the ground almonds, flour, pumpkin seeds and baking powder into a bowl. Add the grated carrot, mashed banana and eggs, then pour in the cooled maple mixture and mix well. Spoon into the paper cases. Bake for 25 minutes, until golden on top and a skewer poked into the cakes comes out clean.
4.    While cakes are cooking, make your icing. Put the cream cheese into a bowl with the maple syrup and spices and beat until light and fluffy. I like to do this with an electric hand whisk, but a wooden spoon works just fine too. Once the cakes are out of the oven and have cooled down, thickly spread each one with the icing and finish off with a grating of lime zest.