Vegan Carrot Cake (Gluten-Free)
Delicious and moist vegan carrot cake. This simple recipe is plant-based (dairy-free, eggless), gluten-free, and easy to make! It has a sugar-free icing which is furthermore keto-friendly. A healthy carrot cake is perfect for Easter but can be enjoyed on any other day.
Servings 10
Equipment
- Kitchen scale*
- Electric coffee/spice grinder*
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
- 1 cup (160 g) white rice flour (see notes)
- 1/2 scant cup (50 g) tapioca flour (see notes)
- 1/4 cup (33 g) coconut flour (see notes)
- 1/2 cup (45 g) ground almonds (see notes)
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- spices to taste (see notes)
Wet ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups (375 g) finely grated carrots
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) coconut milk canned (lite or full-fat) (see notes)
- 1/3 cup (110 g) maple syrup or agave syrup
- 2 tbsp (28 g) coconut oil melted (*see notes)
- 2 chia eggs (2 tbsp ground chia seeds + 6 tbsp water) (see notes)
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Frosting
- 1/3 cup (70 g) Erythritol or icing sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp (21 g) plant-based milk canned (use less if you use icing sugar)
- 2 1/2 tsp lime juice or lemon juice
Instructions
- I recommend measuring the ingredients in grams on a kitchen scale. Also, watch the video in the blog post for easy visual instructions.
- Line a loaf pan (or use an 8-inch springform) with parchment paper or grease it with a little oil/vegan butter. My loaf pan measures 8x4x3 inches (20x10x7.5 cm). Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- To make the chia "eggs", simply mix the ground chia seeds and water with a whisk in a small bowl, set aside for 5 minutes. Also, finely grate the carrots. If they release a lot of liquid, lightly squeeze them out.
- Meanwhile, add all dry ingredients to a large mixing big bowl and stir until there are no lumps. Then add the wet ingredients (except the grated carrots) to the dry ingredients and stir with a whisk.
- Next, add the grated carrots to the bowl and stir with a spatula until the mixture is combined. Transfer the batter to the lined loaf pan.
- Bake in the oven for about 45-60 minutes. It can take longer (e.g. if using a small loaf pan) or shorter, depending on the size/depth of the baking pan. The cake is ready when a toothpick, inserted into the center of the cake, comes out clean (some attached crumbs are fine). Let it cool.
- To make the icing, process the Erythritol in an electric spice/coffee grinder until it's very fine like icing sugar. Mix all icing ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk. If the icing is too thick, add more milk. If it's too thin, add more powdered Erythritol (or icing sugar). Smooth the icing on the cake, decorate with chopped nuts or seeds of choice. Enjoy! Read the recipe notes below.
Notes
The recipe was originally posted in February 2017 and the blog post has been updated in April 2020 with new photos and helpful information. The recipe has not been changed.
- Coconut flour: I wouldn't recommend subbing, however, if you want to use a different flour then you need to use more. Coconut flour is very absorbent, therefore, you would need to use at least 1/2 a cup of a different flour instead of coconut flour.
- White rice flour: You can use brown rice flour instead. Sorghum flour might work as well. Also, regular flour or spelt flour should be fine.
- Tapioca flour: You could use cornstarch or arrowroot flour.
- Ground almonds (almond flour): You can use any other ground nuts (e.g. hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts, etc.) instead of ground almonds. Use desiccated coconut for a nut-free version.
- Canned coconut milk: If you don't like the taste of coconut, I would suggest using your favorite plant-based milk with the addition of 3 tablespoons oil.
- Maple syrup: Any other liquid sweetener like brown rice syrup, agave syrup, etc. is fine.
- Coconut oil: Can be replaced with canola oil.
- Chia eggs: Flax eggs should be fine too.
- Check the step-by-step photos above in the blog post.
- 2 tsp of cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp of ground ginger
- Optional spices: Nutmeg, cloves to taste
Nutrition Facts
Vegan Carrot Cake (Gluten-Free)
Amount per Serving
Calories
201
% Daily Value*
Fat
7
g
11
%
Saturated Fat
3.8
g
19
%
Carbohydrates
35.9
g
12
%
Fiber
3.6
g
14
%
Sugar
9.3
g
10
%
Protein
2.9
g
6
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.