Momofuku Milk Bar's Carrot Cake

Well, I finally did it--I made a Momofuku Milk Bar cake. Ever since I first laid eyes on the cook book it has been at the top of my to-bake list. It wasn't until I made my first trip to Surfas (in which I spent over an hour perusing the store by myself) that I purchased the required materials to make this special dessert. As you can tell, it doesn't look like your usual layered cake, and it most certainly doesn't taste like it either. With the amount of time, effort, and sugar that goes into one 6" cake, I knew I had to save it for a special occasion. It just so happened to be my friend Van's birthday last week which was the perfect excuse opportunity to make something from Momofuku's Milk Bar cookbook . I asked him what his favorite types of cakes were and he said carrot and cheesecake. And what do you know, there's a carrot cake recipe that calls for liquid cheesecake. If that's not fate I don't know what is.

With four separate recipes nestled into 1, this is not something you'd whip up on a whim. Don't let that discourage you though as it was worth all the effort. I'll be honest here, the cake took me about four hours, and it didn't help that I started baking at 9 pm. By the end of the night my eyes were so tired and dry that when I blinked one of my contact lenses fell out!

Assembling the cake calls for layers of carrot cake, liquid cheesecake, graham frosting, and milk crumbs. The milk crumbs were by far my favorite component. Sure, it's comprised of only the unhealthiest of things (sugar, flour, butter, white chocolate), but it's most definitely worth the splurge of calories.

While carefully reading each step of every recipe, one of my reoccurring thoughts was, "Man, this Christina Tosi is a glutton for punishment." Read any recipe and you'll understand why.  I'm not one to talk though. In order to make the graham frosting, you first make a graham crust. And obviously, for a graham crust you need graham crackers. So I did what any senseless person would, I made my own graham crackers. I'm not quite sure if it made a considerable impact on flavor, but everyone really enjoyed the cake, which is what mattered the most.

Despite all of this, I can't wait to try out another recipe. What's next, the birthday cake? Crack pie? Compost cookies? That depends, who's birthday is coming up?