Healthy Carrot Cake Recipe
My easy gluten-free carrot cake recipe is perfect, and once you bake it, you’ll agree! With loads of freshly grated carrots, depth from vanilla and pure maple syrup, and velvety vegan cream cheese frosting, this subtly spiced cake is bound to be your new favorite too!
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Servings: 12 servings
Equipment
- 3 6-inch round baking pans or, 2 8-inch round baking pans
- 1 large bowl and whisk
- 1 high-speed blender or hand held electric mixer
Jacqui's Prep TipWeigh ingredients with a food scale for best results!
Ingredients
Wet ingredients:
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup (161 grams) pure maple syrup room temperature
- ⅓ cup (83 grams) tahini (slightly runny) or nut butter room temperature
- ⅓ cup (73 grams) coconut oil melted and cooled
- ¼ cup (62 grams) unsweetened almond milk room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups (300 grams) grated carrots medium grate
Dry ingredients:
- 2 cups (224 grams) fine blanched almond flour
- ½ cup (60 grams) coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup (47 grams) unsweetened shredded coconut
Optional:
- ⅓ cup (33 grams) chopped nuts pecans or walnuts
- ⅓ cup (48 grams) dried fruit raisins or currents
Frosting:
- 2 cups (258 grams) raw cashews soaked in water for one hour or more, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup (113 grams) full-fat coconut milk
- ⅓ cup (107 grams) pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottoms of three 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Grease the bottom and sides of the pan and parchment with coconut oil.
- Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. In a large bowl, whisk eggs until fluffy. Add maple syrup, tahini, melted coconut oil, almond milk, and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth.4 large eggs, ½ cup pure maple syrup, ⅓ cup tahini (slightly runny) or nut butter, ⅓ cup coconut oil, ¼ cup unsweetened almond milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Sift almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, spices, and salt into the large mixing bowl with wet mixture. Add shredded coconut and stir until combined, then fold in grated carrots and optional add-ins like chopped nuts or raisins.3 cups grated carrots, 2 cups fine blanched almond flour, ½ cup coconut flour, 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut, ⅓ cup chopped nuts, ⅓ cup dried fruit
- Divide cake batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 26-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake layers completely on a wire rack.
- As the cake cools, blend soaked and drained cashews, coconut milk, maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla, ginger, and sea salt in a high-speed blender, electric mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth. Chill in the fridge if not using immediately.2 cups raw cashews, ½ cup full-fat coconut milk, ⅓ cup pure maple syrup, 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Frost each layer of the cooled cake, then frost the sides and top. Garnish with chopped nuts, shredded coconut, or freshly grated carrots if desired.
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Notes
- Use Fresh Carrots: Freshly grated carrots provide the best flavor and texture. Pre-shredded carrots can be thick and dry and will not give you the moist crumb that carrot cake is known for.
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients: Ensure the eggs, maple syrup, tahini and almond milk are at room temperature when you begin baking. This will help the ingredients incorporate better when mixing.
- Store: Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. For longer storage wrap individual layers in plastic wrap, then foil, and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before frosting.
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