For most people, Memorial day is about BBQing, recognizing the veterans for all their hard work, and everything red white and blue themed.

For my family and I, it’s more about my uncle Jimmy’s anniversery of his passing. He passed away 9 years ago. My grandmas eldest child, my mom’s big brother, my loving, smart, and caring uncle who called me “clo-mister” and let me take all the paint color cards from his hardware shop.

On a lighter note, he also had some great taste buds. Every birthday of his, he’d request my grandma to make him this carrot cake.

Let me just say, this has got to be one of the best cakes I’ve ever eaten in my life.
It’s extremely moist with decadent cream cheese frosting tied all together with the buttery crunch of pecans. The flavors compliment eachother all so well in this craveable cake.

And yes, it’s one of those cakes. The kind I’ll only make again for my birthday or for myself and a group of large people only because if the whole cake is in my possession I will try to eat it all in one sitting. I kind of hoarded it all to myself. Then my friends took it and hid it from me. I found it in 2 minutes flat, though. It was my cake senses tingling. OH! And I got my boyfriend to eat a vegetable. Well, in the form of cake. But he usually can’t stand carrots, pumpkin, or any other vegetable inside of his sweets.

Carrot Cake with Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting:
Original Recipe from my Grandma
Ingredients: (makes two round cakes)
3 cups grated carrots (a one pound bag of carrots)
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 c canola or vegetable oil
2 cups flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
Directions:
Combine oil and sugar in a large bowl and mix well, set aside. In a medium sized bowl, sift together the remaining dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients alternately with eggs (one at a time and mixing well after each addition) into the sugar and oil mixture. Add carrots and mix well. Pour evenly into two light oiled (or lined with wax paper) cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until cake spring back at touch. Cool on cake rack and let cool before frosting.

Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting:
Ingredients:
1 cup pecans, chopped
8oz cream cheese
1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, softened
One box (I used 3 cups) of powdered sugar
Directions:
Beat together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until combined. Mix in the pecans. Spread half mixture onto first cake layer, lay other cake layer on top of frosted layer and spread the rest of the the mixture to top layer. (I do not frost the side of the cake; it makes a nice tort look.) Serve at room temperature.

In memory of my uncle Jimmy, this one’s for you.