¾ cup natural apple juice
1 ½ cup raisins
1 ½ cups grated carrots
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. nutmeg
¼ cup applesauce
¼ cup canola oil
½ cup pure maple syrup
2 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger root
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
1 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly oil an 8×8 inch cake pan or a 9 inch round pan and dust with flour, shaking out the excess. Put the apple juice, oil, applesauce, ½ cup of the raisins, the maple syrup, and orange zest in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the carrots and ginger and pulse just to mix. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together. Add the apple juice mixture and combine, using as few strokes as possible. Fold in the remaining 1 cup of raisins and the walnuts. Pour the batter into prepared pan. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes.