Junk food junkie: Safeway carrot cake....because it's what I do

This is what happens when your local Happy Donut closes unexpectedly. You are left grasping for somewhere to get something excessively sweet and terribly not good for you but your only option is Safeway. A which has crushed my sweet dreams in the past as they used to make my favorite cinnamon roll with cream cheese icing. Then they discontinued the two pack for a single that was the size of a baby's head. Not bad, not great, but at least it had all that cream cheese icing. Then after all that, they seem to have discontinued doing the cream cheese version and all I ever see are the circular nine pack with that thin icing made of powdered sugar and water, or maybe milk, either way, blech!!

What does that ultimately leave me with? Not much as their selection of donuts, or at least they way they make them, has also gone down hill. But really, try to get someone there to care, they don't. When options are in short supply you find yourself making exasperated sighs and giving up your dessert food credentials for something, anything, which will help me get my sweet on. No matter what it is.

Kind of how I found myself wandering aimlessly through the bakery aisle of Safeway on a random Saturday night craving for some sugar. It is what brought me to this:

Their carrot cake with cream cheese icing. And in true me fashion, I actually go through the ten or so containers to see which on fills the heaviest and which looks like it has the biggest layer of icing on it. I have no shame. I chose the above square slice which seemed to be oozing with icing. The cake itself is quite dense and dark, probably a fair amount of molasses in it. Along with generous helpings of shredded carrot (probably taken from their salad bars!) and raisins. The one thing you won't find in these cakes is nuts. Not sure why, mostly like it would be costly as the price of nuts in general has skyrocketed over the last few years. I say that as I feel I had this very thing years ago and there were walnuts in it, but no more. While I like nuts, I'm okay without them here and the raisins, while few, I'm down with too.

The cake is rather moist. Surprising considering it has most likely been sitting out all day and it is a rather thick slice. It could have something to do with the icing oils seeping into it. And yes, it is cream cheese icing, which has also been sitting out all day. I am working on the assumption with all the sugar it is pretty well preserved, though I know I'm just fooling myself since there is butter in it also. The icing here is different from the one you used to find on the cinnamon rolls. It is thicker creamier as opposed to fluffy. Since I am all about the heft in my desserts, it works for me.

This side view gives a pretty look at the height of the cake and thick layer of icing. I think they also put pieces of candied pineapple or something in here too (see lower right corner) but it isn't quite enough to fully notice. Have to say, every now and then I will actually see one of these where the cake layer and the icing layer are the exact same width. You know what I do when I see it? I buy it on the spot because that is my kind of cake slice!! It is all about the equal parts of both I tell ya'.

Granted, this isn't a cake slice for everyone. It is super duper sweet and while I can eat one in a single sitting (did you think I couldn't?) most would find it challenging between the sugar rush and the ache of your teeth. I've built up my stamina for it over the years so I'm good.

In essence, what I'm saying is, while this isn't my dear fave of a cinnamon roll or some other layered cake with icing, it works most delightfully well for my tastebuds when they want something cakey, creamy and frosted within an inch of its life. Of course I have to go to Safeway to get it. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made right?