Carrot Cake Bread

Yesterday, at 5:40 a.m., our phone rang with a message that Dominic's school was going to be closed because of ice on the roads. That meant three things for the day - he could sleep in (which he did), go sledding on the driveway,

and do some baking with me!!!

Dominic loves carrots. I give them to him in his lunch and as a snack.  He won't eat them cooked, but that's okay. I'm just glad he loves carrots so much! Anyways, when I was starting to assemble all the ingredients (and there are a lot) to make this yesterday, "Chef " Dominic came over to investigate what I was up to. I told him that it would be at least a few minutes, because I needed to shred 1 1/2 cups of carrots. Once I was ready, I had him come back over to assist me.  Dominic has gotten so good at cracking eggs, that I don't need to have him crack them into a separate bowl anymore! Once the bread was baked and cooled, I decided a little frosting would make this bread even more yummy. Dominic "sampled" the two ends of the bread (hey, those are my favorite pieces!!), and proclaimed it to be "good." This morning, when Dominic's bus driver (Mr. E), came to pick him up, I had Dominic hand him a slice of this bread. Mr. E looked right at me and said, "I'm going to have this with my coffee!" It takes a special person to drive a special needs bus and Mr. E is definitely that person :)

Ingredients

Carrot Cake Bread:

1 1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 large egg
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups carrots,
  peeled and finely shredded
1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (if desired)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 1 1/2 quart loaf pan with non-stick spray and set aside. Peel and then shred the carrots into a medium bowl. Set aside. In large bowl, put the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, egg, water, canola oil and vanilla. Mix well with a large spoon - the batter will be stiff. Add the shredded carrots and oatmeal and "fold" in gently until combined. Pour into loaf pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for at least 15 minutes before removing from pan to continue cooling. To make the frosting - in small bowl, put all the ingredients in the order given (except the pecans) and mix well by hand with large spoon, or to make it even creamier, use an electric mixer. Spread the frosting on top of the cooled carrot bread with a small knife and then sprinkle with the chopped pecans. Store covered in the fridge. Note: this recipe can also be made into 12 muffins - bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean!