Ingredients:

  • 1.5 cups (190g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup (200g) dark brown sugar, packed
  • 0.25 cup (50g) granulated white sugar
  • 0.75 cup (180ml) neutral oil (grapeseed or vegetable)
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 cups freshly grated carrots (approx. 3-4 medium carrots)
  • 0.75 cup (85g) chopped walnuts
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp ground ginger
  • 0.25 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1.5 tsp vanilla extract, divided
  • 8 oz (225g) full-fat cream cheese, softened
  • 0.25 cup (50g) granulated sugar (for swirl)
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 tsp cornstarch

Instructions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 175°C and line your square pan with parchment paper. Leave an inch of overhang on the sides. Note: This makes it easy to lift the bars out for clean slicing later.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, brown sugar, white sugar, 2 eggs, and 1 tsp of the vanilla. Whisk until the mixture looks glossy and smooth. You should start to smell the deep molasses from the dark brown sugar at this stage.
  3. Fold in the flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Use a spatula and stop as soon as the white streaks disappear. Note: Over mixing here will develop gluten and make the bars tough.
  4. Stir in the 2 cups of grated carrots and 0.75 cup of chopped walnuts. Stir until the carrots are evenly distributed and the batter smells earthy. The orange flecks should look vibrant against the brown batter.
  5. In a separate medium bowl, beat the 225g of softened cream cheese with 0.25 cup sugar, the egg yolk, cornstarch, and the remaining 0.5 tsp vanilla. Beat until the mixture is silky and light.
  6. Pour the carrot batter into the pan and smooth the top. Drop spoonfuls of the cream cheese mixture over the top. Use a knife to swirl the white into the brown in a figure eight motion.
  7. Bake for 35 minutes until the edges are slightly golden and the center is just barely set. You’ll know it’s close when the smell of toasted nuts fills the entire house.
  8. Let the bars cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Wait until the pan is cool to the touch before lifting the parchment sling. Chilling them for an extra hour in the fridge makes the texture even more velvety.