Carrot Cake Marmalade Is An Unexpected Twist For Breakfast Spreads

For many of us, grabbing some yogurt, a leftover muffin, or a few three-ingredient bagels all qualify as convenient breakfast options. However, the same old cream cheese and butter often applied to bread products tend to lose their appeal after the 100th time. Dessert is often considered a treat we leave for those post-dinner hours, but imagine being able to enjoy one of your favorite desserts first thing in the morning.

Carrot cake is one of those confections that can easily be transformed into other delicious foods, based on the versatility of carrots and the comfort of warming spices like cinnamon and cardamon. If you're looking for a convenient way to incorporate the flavor of this classic dessert into your morning routine, why not try carrot cake marmalade? Heading out for the day with a dry piece of toast may lack excitement, but changing out the usual strawberry jam for a spread reminiscent of your favorite dessert can level up any standard breakfast food.

All you need to create this one-of-a-kind spread at home is a bit of time, a good helping of carrots and apples, and a few other extras. Before we reveal additional ways this flavor profile can be incorporated into other tasty breakfast foods, let's uncover the process of recreating the iconic flavors of traditional carrot cake in spreadable form.

If you're looking for a way to level up your morning-meal routine with the nuanced flavors of carrot cake, you're only a few steps away from creating a delicious spread that can be added to a variety of convenient breakfast foods. In order to make carrot cake marmalade, Food & Wine's culinary director, Justin Chapple, created his own recipe inspired by a unique yogurt bowl offered at the restaurant Molly's Rise and Shine in New Orleans, Louisiana.

To recreate this one-of-a-kind spread in your home kitchen, you first need to peel and shred a bunch of carrots and one sweet apple. Add these ingredients to a saucepan with lemon juice and zest, sugar, water, and signature warming spices, such as cardamon pods, star anise, and cinnamon sticks. Once the mixture has been cooked down, remove the spices, add more water if necessary, and blend the mixture until you have a smooth union of distinctly spiced produce.

After the spread has chilled, feel free to use it on your favorite baked goods. Or, if you want a similar flavor to your homemade carrot cake and cream cheese frosting, add this spread to a bowl of vanilla yogurt with extra fruit and granola. Carrot cake spread is a great recipe to have on hand, but it's not the only breakfast food you can create with a signature carrot cake flavor.

If you're a tried-and-true carrot cake fan, there's good news on the horizon, since carrot cake marmalade spread isn't the only creative way to add this versatile flavor profile into your morning routine. Carrots are one of few vegetables that contain a moderate amount of natural sugar, giving them the unique ability to be crafted into both sweet and savory recipes. Lucky for you, carrots are extremely nutritious, making them the perfect ingredient to level up traditional, mildly flavored breakfast foods.

You can make carrot muffins, which include the unique ingredient of apple pie spice, or try leveling up your standard bowl of oatmeal by making carrot cake oats. Carrots, bananas, walnuts, and the unique inclusion of cream cheese make this a breakfast combo that will remind your taste buds of classic carrot cake. If you want something a little handier for the drive to work, you can instead make carrot cake breakfast cookies, which are basically carrot cake oats with added flour and oil.

Carrot cake is a great flavor profile to recreate in your most favored breakfast foods. You could always make muffins or oatmeal. However, if you want a versatile homemade product that can be added to an assortment of neutral foods, give carrot cake marmalade a try and see how this spread elevates your next breakfast.