Carrot Cake – Gluten Free, Vegan

This gluten free and vegan Carrot Cake recipe is so easy to make and tastes wonderful! It’s the perfect Easter dessert that everyone will enjoy.

This gluten free and vegan Carrot cake is one of my favorite types of cake! There is just something so nice about having warm spices in a cake and the carrots make the cake super moist.

Traditionally carrot cake has a cream cheese frosting, but even a dairy free version of that is too sweet for my family’s tastes.

So instead of an overly sweet frosting, this carrot cake is topped with one of our favorite cake toppings, coconut whipped cream.

It’s the perfect level of sweetness and adds an almost cool and refreshing element to the cake.

I just made this again last weekend for my son’s 2nd birthday and didn’t want it to have too much sugar so I left the coconut sugar out. It was still amazing with just the maple syrup so if you are looking for a lower sugar option you can definitely just do that.

If you prefer a traditionally sweet carrot cake you can also use brown sugar instead of the coconut sugar. You can use a vegan cream cheese substitute in any cream cheese frosting recipe as well if you prefer that type of icing.

So let’s talk about how you make this delicious gluten free and vegan carrot cake recipe!

GLUTEN FREE AND VEGAN CARROT CAKE RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

Dry Ingredients:

• 1 cup (158g) all purpose gluten free flour (I use “Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour”).
• 1 cup (111g) gluten free oat flour (or sorghum flour)
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar 
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves 
• 1 tsp xanthan gum (omit if your gluten free flour already contains xanthan gum)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• 1 cup raisins (optional) 

Wet Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup shredded carrots 
• 1 cup dairy free milk (I use “So Delicious unsweetened Coconut Milk”)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup avocado oil (coconut oil works as well)
• 1 tsp vanilla

Coconut Whipped Cream Topping:

• 2 cans full fat coconut milk (refrigerated overnight)
• 6 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

HOW TO MAKE GLUTEN FREE AND VEGAN CARROT CAKE:

To Make the Carrot Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease two 6” round cake pans. Note: This recipe will make two 6″ round cakes or one 9″ round cake.  If you want to have more layers or make it in a bigger pan, you can double the recipe.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients except the walnuts and raisins. Note: I recommend weighing the flour for the best result.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl and stir until combined.
5. Fold in walnuts and raisins 
6. Divide batter into two greased 6” round cake pans 
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean 
8. Allow the cake  to cool completely before decorating.  Once the cake has cooled completely, use a knife or cake leveler to level off the top of the cakes.

To Make the Coconut Whipped Topping:

1. Refrigerate the can of coconut milk overnight.  This will allow the liquid to separate from the cream.  We only want to use the thick cream for this recipe.
2. Open the can of coconut milk and scoop the thick cream that has risen to the top of the can and put it in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer.
3. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, whip the coconut cream until you can form soft peaks with the cream (2-3 minutes).
4. Mix in the remaining ingredients until well incorporated.
5. Chill the coconut whipped cream for 15-20 minutes to firm up.  

To Decorate the Cake:

1. Place one of the leveled 6″ cakes on a cake stand. 
2. Spread coconut whipped cream evenly over the layer. 
3. Add the second layer on top of the coconut whipped cream and cover the rest of the cake with coconut whipped cream.
4. Optionally sprinkle shredded carrots and walnuts on top.

♥ Don’t forget to leave a comment below if you give this recipe a try! ♥

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LOOKING FOR MORE DELICIOUS GLUTEN FREE AND VEGAN DESSERT RECIPES? CHECK OUT SOME OF MY FAVORITES BELOW!

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