My grandmother, whom I call Memere, has style. In her youth she worked for the government in D.C. during World War II, and dated servicemen and undersecretaries. In her prime she wore furs and diamonds, and traveled the world. When I was a little girl, she brought me trolls from Norway and teddy bears from Ireland. She made pickled shrimp and pork rillettes at Christmas. And in her old age she has a story for every occasion.
Memere recently celebrated her 90th birthday, and we took the Nuni down to visit her. And because everyone deserves a homemade cake on their birthday, and 90th birthdays deserve extra special consideration, I took a homemade cake.
Memere loves moist, spicy cakes, and carrot cake is one of her favorites. I used a recipe for a carrot cake studded with pecans, one of her favorites, and frosted it with the classic cream cheese frosting. To add a little bit of pizzazz, I flavored the frosting with a little orange oil which adds a fruity orange flavor without changing the texture (flavored oils are usually much more intense than extracts, which means you can use less of them).
