I know that Easter has just passed but in my opinion carrot cake is an all year round affair. My fingers cannot type fast enough as I am SO excited to share this recipe with you. So many of you have tried my carrot cake muffins/cupcakes and have loved them (thank YOU) but have also asked me for a carrot cake recipe. Well the wait is over and Spring is still here so let’s get to making this insanely tasty cake.
This cake almost made me cry when I dug into it. I know that sounds a tad over the top but for those of you that know me KNOW I am a sentimental softy. This cake reminds me so much of the beloved carrot cake from my last restaurant QUANTO BASTA. Maria made the most delicious, moist carrot cake ever and even after going vegan and gf I just could not resist it. Well, sorry Maria but I’ve gone and made one that is the very definition of moist and it IS vegan and gf!
I created a crazy good cream cheese frosting with a hint of blood orange juice in the frosting. You can use whatever citrus you like (I would steer clear of lime) if blood orange isn’t available. I also roasted the walnuts for the top of the cake (the walnuts in the cake are raw) as I love the warm, round, toastie flavour of them but you could opt to keep them raw if so desired.
I used gluten-free flour and almond flour for this recipe and haven’t tried any other combinations but if you feel like exploring please have at it. You may not believe me but there is only 1/4 cup of coconut sugar in the cake. The rest of the sweetener comes from applesauce, bananas and maple syrup. I wanted a true buttercream so icing sugar is the sweetener in the frosting. If you need to make it sugar free there are options out there for sugar free powdered sweetener.
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