Adytum’s Signature Carrot Cake

We’ve fallen into a celebratory tradition at Adytum: anniversaries, birthdays, lovers escaping for the weekend to celebrate each other again... Champagne on ice, sexy little flutes on a silver tray and Adytum’s Signature Carrot Cake provide the spark that sets these private parties aflame.  After many requests for the recipe, finally the secret’s out ~ so let the celebration begin!

I don’t remember the origins of this recipe, written on an index card with the word “excellent” in parenthesis beside the simple name Carrot Cake. But everyone’s been the recipient of this delicacy at one time or another here. Over the years when our East Indian son in law came into our family, the Cardamom and often ginger and another teaspoon or two of cinnamon found its way into the mix to infuse the Adytum kitchen with all the warmth of India and the luscious warm scent of Indian spices.

Over the years, the sugar and white flour originally inscribed on the little recipe card gave way to honey and have finally elevated into a gluten free healthy gourmet indulgence we don’t feel one shred of guilt about. It is quick and easy to make. The carrots can be grated in a Cuisinart or a simple shredder or mandolin. Feel free to substitute toasted hazelnuts or pecans for the walnuts. This is one recipe that will meld into your own creation with ease to become your own family tradition for healthy celebrations.

Adytum’s Signature Carrot Cake

¾ c honey (local, raw if possible)

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup flour: either Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose or Pamela’s Bread and Pancake Blend (preferred as it makes a lighter cake)

1 tsp baking soda

½ cup coconut oil or olive oil

1 ½ c shredded organic carrots, skin on

½ tsp sea salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cardamom (optional- adds the East Indian twist)

¼ cup EACH Bob’s Red Mill Unsweetened Coconut, chopped walnuts and currants or golden raisins

Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 20-30 minutes…until the toothpick comes out clean.

Cool a bit and frost with

8 oz organic cream cheese

And either 2 ½ c powdered sugar and a half squeezed lemon for traditional frosting

or substitute maple syrup (no lemon, no powdered sugar) mixed in the Cuisanart with the organic cream cheese.

For anniversaries and birthdays…any celebration at all…we use individual heart ramekins for baking the Carrot Cake in.

Arachnid Artistry

There comes a singular morning, often preceded by mists and fogs of early autumn when Adytum wakes to the artistry of the spider world. Silken webs drape every bush and tree while gossamer strings extend to the next possible site of construction. The dance of the arachnids marks the turn from summer to Fall. Arachnid art is on display before the fame of the flaming leaves takes center stage across the nation…yet few truly see it.

Catching this art show at the break of day is the best time, when early morning light illuminates the webs to show every perfectly laid silken line shimmering heavy with dew. Everyone in the spider community participates. In the arachnid experience artists are born, not made.

Mmmm… Perhaps this is true of more advanced life forms, like us as well, who believe only some are creative geniuses. The spider would say, “Don’t you realize that everyone’s business is to create?” True, they are hunting/making a living through creative construction of their web. So too are most human artists hunting/making a living for a paycheck through creations of their own. Spiders have found a beautiful, creative way to make a living.May we all be so blessed.

It is interesting that the highly significant symbolism of the web, in light of the birth of the World Wide Web connecting the whole world, and complexity of execution of design is left to the lowly, repulsive spider. Wikipedia tells us that “the tensile strength of spider silk is greater than the same weight of steel and has much greater elasticity. Its microstructure is under investigation for potential applications in industry, including bullet-proof vests and artificial tendons. Spider webs are rich in vitamin K, which can be effective in clotting blood. Webs were used several hundred years ago as gauze pads to stop an injured person's bleeding.”

While we enjoy the interconnectedness of the World Wide Web, the spider has been literally drawing out that conclusion for us for thousands of years silently hinting at the broader application. While we have sensed that we are all connected, that we are indeed all One, the spider again has been imaging that basic truth for millennia. Rather humbling...

The art of spiders represents tremendous skill, strength and beauty in symmetry with literal healing potential inherent in its raw materials. While I still don’t want one in bed with me as I sleep, it’s hard not to have increased respect for such skilled craftsmen and healers, eight legs or not. Perhaps this autumn I’ll leave a web or two I’d normally sweep away from the kitchen window where they always work. The cobweb is abandoned and needs clearing, but the active spider web is in use. Have I been aware of the need for respect, even a certain amount of reverence and even awe?

The spider and the web will remind me of my own creativity and how the world will be uplifted and blessed when I discipline myself to create and  share my gifts. It will remind me that I am full of strength and healing power; that we all are. That we are all connected, even as One.