Carrot Cake with Lime Mascarpone Icing

 

It was my mom's birthday this past weekend, and I wanted to bake her a cake. And, it being fall, I've had a craving for a spicy, hearty carrot cake with mile-high icing on top. Luckily, I had just the right amount of mascarpone and cream cheese left over from making nectarine & mascarpone tarts, so it worked out perfectly. There's something about the combination of warm spices, earthy carrots, and cool, silky cream cheese icing that's so comforting. It's one of the best parts of fall.

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Nectarine, Mascarpone & Gingersnap Tartlets

It's nectarine season, and ohhhh man are they good. You think you know what nectarines taste like... and then you take a big, juicy bite out of some ripe in-season fruit and your brain explodes from the sweet, gorgeous flavour party in your mouth. You basically have to make out with one of them to keep the juices from dripping all over you, but they're so insanely good that it's totally worth looking a bit vulgar while you eat. 

Anyway, I picked up a basket of perfect nectarines from Steve & Dan's fruit stand at the 124th Street Grand Market last week, and have been gorging on them ever since. While I mostly just eat them whole, I wanted to make something special with them - a celebration of nectarines - and make sure the internet knows how inappropriately in love I am with this fruit.

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