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Y’all KNOW how much I adore a good carrot cake! I posted THIS recipe a couple of years ago which is a slight modification from my mother-in-law’s famous carrot cake. But today, we’re veganizing it and making it dairy + egg free! It’s still so GOOD, promise!
Don’t forget that I have a few other amazing VEGAN cake recipes on the blog such as my Vegan Chocolate Cake and my Vegan King Cake.
Happy FRIYAY! Lets celebrate with a good ole Vegan Carrot Cake! My stipulation in sharing this recipe with you is that when you make it, you HAVE to invite me over for a slice, mkay!? I expect many invitations to come through this weekend :D
This is yet another delicious vegan baked good that my friend Courtney helped me develop! She’s a professional baker in the Nashville area and has been helping me create vegan baked deliciousness like these BOMB Vegan Sugar Cookies (seriously the best EVER!), these peanut butter cookies, and these Vegan Thick & Chewy Vegan Oatmeal Cookies. Needless to say, she’s pretty amazing and every recipe that she’s helped me with has turned out SO SO GOOD!
And this carrot cake is absolutely no different! When Courtney first tested this, she made it as a sheet cake and took it to a gathering of all NON vegans. She said it was a huge hit and I couldn’t agree MORE.
The way that the recipe is written, you can make this as a sheet cake in a 9×13 inch pan OR as a round, double layered cake using either 8 or 9 inch pans. I’ve found that the 9 inch pans work better for the round version but 8 is totally doable as well.
Ingredients in this Vegan Carrot Cake:
As with most of my veganized baked goods, we kept things simple and classic meaning that this is a classic flour and sugar recipe. I’ve never tried making it gluten free but recommend trying a simple gluten free 1-1 flour if you need/ want it!
So, here are the main ingredients we’re working with:
- Sugar, brown and white
- flour
- apple sauce to act as a minding agent
- plant based milk of choice
- orange juice and zest
- Carrots, of course
- optional but highly recommended: chopped nuts and/or shredded coconut
For the frosting, we’re keeping things simple with a classic buttercream frosting (using vegan butter of course) and a splash of maple syrup to give it a maple-y flavor with is a nice little touch :D
To make the cake, you’ll simply need to mix together the wet ingredients in one bowl, the dry in another and then combine them. Then just pour the batter into your desired pan and BAKE. That’s literally it.
SO EASY and SO GOOD!
More delicious dessert recipes to try:
See how to make the Vegan Carrot Cake here:
Vegan Carrot Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- Zest + juice of half an orange, ¼ cup of juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup plant based milk
- 2.5 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon cloves
- 2 cups shredded carrots
Optional add ins:
- 1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped
- 1 cup shredded coconut
Vegan Maple Buttercream:
- 1 cup 2 sticks vegan butter, room temp*
- ¼ cup plant based milk
- 2 cups vegan powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract OR maple extract for extra maple flavor
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Grease a 9x13 sheet cake pan or 2 8 inch cake pans and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugars with oil, applesauce, vanilla, orange juice and zest, and milk and set aside.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and add to the wet.
- Stir together until incorporated.
- Fold in the carrots and other add ins. Batter will be relatively thick.
- Transfer to the sheet cake pan (or divide evenly between the two pans). Place in middle rack of oven and bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove and allow to cool fully before adding frosting.
To make the frosting:
- Beat the butter in a stand mixer until fluffy (about 30-45 seconds).
- Add the plant based milk and turn mixer on to low.
- Begin adding the powdered sugar in, ½ cup at a time. Once it is all added, scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add in the maple and extract and turn mixer on medium-high. Beat for 1-2 minutes, until mixture is light, fluffy, and a nice frosting consistency. Add a little more powdered sugar (to thicken) or milk (to thin) as needed or desired.
- Ice the cake as desired and sprinkle on a few extra nuts to make it pretty! :D
