Carrot is probably one of my least favorite vegetables. I don’t like the smell or the crunch, and shredding them was honestly kind of gross, the smell just lingers on your hands forever. But I wanted to bake something yummy for my boyfriend, so I decided to challenge myself and make carrot cake! One thing that didn’t go as planned was the middle of the cake. It ended up being underbaked, which is why in one of the pictures it looks like someone punched the center of my cake. When I first took it out of the oven, it was super puffed up, but then it slowly deflated. I think it was either because I used too much batter for the pan so the heat didn’t spread evenly, leaving the middle gooey while the rest fully baked. As I’ve been baking more, I’ve noticed that most frostings are basically the same: cream cheese and a sweetener. For this one, I used cream cheese, sugar, and heavy cream, and it turned out delicious. I also didn’t know that carrot cake usually includes nuts! I added chopped pecans for a soft crunch and to make it look a little prettier. They paired really well with the texture of the cake. I’d give this recipe 5 out of 5 cactuses. It was easy to follow, and even with the underbaked middle, it still tasted really good. If I make it again, I’d probably bake it in two layers instead of one, or just use a bigger pan so it cooks more evenly. Overall, this was fun to bake and not bad at all for a vegetable I usually can’t stand. It was still so funny when my cake got deflated. Looks like someone punched it.