This vegan carrot cake is bursting with flavor from fresh carrots and an orange buttercream frosting. It's the perfect springtime dessert, or year round sweet treat.
Who doesn’t love carrot cake? I could certainly eat it every day. It’s incredibly delicious with a thick zesty frosting, accompanied by a steaming cup of chai tea.
So today I’m sharing this vegan carrot cake, which I just can’t get enough of lately. If you need a weekend baking project, I would definitely recommend you give this a try. Trust me, you won’t regret it.
This vegan carrot cake is:
- Undetectably plant based
- Moist
- Perfectly flavored.
- Fudgy and indulgent
- Gluten-free
- Easy and beginner-friendly
It’s also super easy to make. Even if you’re not an experienced baker, it’s very difficult to go wrong with this vegan carrot cake recipe.
Step by Step Directions
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 degrees F and lightly grease 3 8-inch cake tins with vegan butter.
To a large mixing bowl, add the rice flour, buckwheat flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon, chickpea flour, baking powder, xanthan gum, and ground ginger. Stir together well.
To a different bowl, add plant based milk, olive oil, apple cider vinegar and grated carrots, and mix together.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry together with a flax egg. Mix together until well-combined. The batter should be on the thicker side, but still easy to pour.
Pour an equal amount of batter into the cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean from the centre. When the cakes are ready, transfer them to a cooling rack and allow to cool fully either in the fridge or on the counter before adding the frosting.
To make the frosting, add the vegan butter, icing sugar, orange juice and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl. Use a handheld or stand mixer to whisk until very smooth. I would recommend leaving the frosting in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.
Add a thick layer of the frosting to one of the cake sponges, then place the second cake sponge on top. Repeat the process once more, finishing with a layer of frosting on top of the cake.
Tips & Tricks
Make sure that the cake layers cool down fully before adding the frosting. I would recommend allowing them to chill in the fridge for best results. If they are too warm - the frosting will melt!
If you want to, you can add chopped nuts of your choice for garnish, such as walnuts or pecans.
For a more fluffy texture, reduce the amount of carrots used by half.
I would recommend weighing the ingredients for the best results. See the recipe card for an automatic conversion to metric amounts of each ingredient.
To store, wrap the cakes in cling film and keep on the counter for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5-6 days. You can also freeze them for up to 2 months and allow to thaw normally in the fridge.
The frosting can be kept in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Don't waste the carrot tops - they are edible! Check out these creative ways to use carrot tops.
More Vegan Desserts
If you love this vegan carrot cake, be sure to check out these other delicious vegan desserts:
Recipe
Equipment
- Conventional oven
- 3 8-inch cake tins
- Mixing bowls x 3
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 ½ cups rice flour (1 ¾ cups)
- ½ cup buckwheat flour
- 2 cups coconut sugar
- ½ tbsp cinnamon
- 1 cup chickpea flour
- 2 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp xanthan gum
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 3 cups plant based milk
- ¾ cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup grated carrot
- 6 flax eggs (6 tbsp ground flaxseed soaked in ¾ cup water for 5 minutes)
For the frosting
- ½ cup vegan butter room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- ¼ tsp vanilla essence
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 degrees F and lightly grease 3 8-inch cake tins with vegan butter.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the rice flour, buckwheat flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon, chickpea flour, baking powder, xanthan gum, and ground ginger. Stir together well.
- To a different bowl, add plant based milk, olive oil, apple cider vinegar and grated carrots, and mix together.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry together with a flax egg. Mix together until well-combined. The batter should be on the thicker side, but still easy to pour.
- Pour an equal amount of batter into the cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean from the centre.
- When the cakes are ready, transfer them to a cooling rack and allow to cool fully either in the fridge or on the counter before adding the frosting.
- To make the frosting, add the vegan butter, icing sugar, orange juice and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl. Use a handheld or stand mixer to whisk until very smooth. I would recommend leaving the frosting in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.
- Add a thick layer of the frosting to one of the cake sponges, then place the second cake sponge on top. Repeat the process once more, finishing with a layer of frosting on top of the cake.
Notes
- Make sure that the cake sponges cool down fully before adding the frosting. I would recommend allowing them to chill in the fridge for best results.
- If you want to, you can add chopped nuts of your choice, such as walnuts or pecans.
- For a more fluffy texture, reduce the amount of carrots used by half.
- I would recommend weighing the ingredients for the best results. See the recipe card for an automatic conversion to metric amounts of each ingredient.
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