With Spring coming into the land and Easter just around the corner it’s time for some delicious and healthy vegan carrot cake.
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A twist on a classic carrot cake
I’ve made carrot cake a few times in my life, never following a recipe. You can imagine none of them turned out great. I’ve also never had a strong urge to create a proven recipe that I could proudly share with people. Until now.
In March I was creating a Spring/Easter recipe for Spar; we agreed I should create something seasonal and carrot cake turned out to be just that.
I didn’t want to just make carrot cake. I wanted it to be pretty and elegant, yet simple enough for anyone to make. I wanted it to be healthy, yet delicious. I wanted it to be just moist enough and just flavourful enough. I wanted it to be something you set on the table for a holiday or a regular weekend or would have as a dessert or snack on weekdays. Something for anyone and everyone and for any occasion. I believe I have succeeded.
Healthy vegan carrot cake with your touch – Ingredients Q&A
I believe any recipe can be slightly adjusted to fit your preferences and still turn out great. But I also believe that big interventions into the recipe make it so different it’s just not the same recipe anymore. You choose where the line between adjusting and changing lies.
Flour: We’re starting with the most important part of the recipe. I’m using wholemeal spelt flour because it holds moisture and adds fibre. You can try with all-purpose flour (I haven’t yet) and see what happens – I think the cake would turn out really soft and fluffy.
Dates: We’re not using any kind of sweetener in this recipe. Instead, we’re opting for dates – delicious nature’s caramel, rich with fibre and other nutrients. You can swap them for raisins that give a similar taste. Any other dried fruit would leave too much taste and change the taste of the whole cake.
Coconut oil: We’re using hardened coconut oil instead of butter. I like the taste of unrefined coconut oil and the texture it has. But I think vegan butter could easily work just as well.
Carrots: Sorry, we’re not even debating this. It’s a carrot cake, you’re using carrots.
Walnuts: I really like the taste of walnuts in this recipe and I like the harmony of carrots + walnuts. I bet hazelnuts would work super well, too. Almonds on the other hand are too gentle in taste in my opinion.
Coconut yogurt: You can easily use any other plant-based yogurt, like soy, almond, oat … But do use it, because it helps with moisture.
Spices: These are what makes the taste so rich, so please do use them. At least cinnamon. I wrote down gingerbread spices, which are essentially lots of cinnamon, quite some ginger, a bit of cloves, a bit of nutmeg, a bit of allspice, a bit of cardamom. You can make the mix yourself or buy it in the store.
If you’re looking for another Easter recipe, take a look at this walnut potica – traditional Slovenian rolled dessert (kinda like babka). If you just want another delicious cake, then definitely try this speculaas cake with caramel sauce or go for winter spice cake (it feels good any time of the year).
Are you recreating any of my recipes? Don’t forget to take a photo and tag me on Instagram @littlekitchenvibes
Healthy Vegan Carrot Cake
Ingredients
- 250 g wholewheat spelt flour
- 1 tsp gingerbread spice mix
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 pack vanilla sugar
- pinch salt
- 200 g carrots grated
- 70 g walnuts
- 70 g coconut oil hard
- 70 g coconut yogurt
- 150 g dates
- 150 ml hot water
- 100 ml oat milk
White cream
- 200 ml coconut whipping cream
- 50 g coconut yogurt
- ½ tsp spice mix
Instructions
- First, soak dates in hot 150 ml water.
- While dates are soaking, add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl - flour, spices, baking powder, vanilla sugar, salt. Mix them well using a whisk.
- Then add grated carrots and chopped walnuts. Mix them in.
- Take dates from the water after at least 10 minutes or strain them. But save the water!
- In a blender, combine coconut oil, coconut yogurt, and dates. Blend them well until you get a paste.
- Add this paste to the dry ingredients and pour in the date water (water in which you soaked dates) and oat milk. Gently combine the ingredients.
- Pour the cake batter into a greased cake pan. Even out the top and bake your cake at 170°C for 1 hour.
- When the cake is baked, let it cool down completely.
- Once cooled, cut the top off so it's straight. Then halve the cake so you get two layers.
- Prepare your white cream. Add whipping cream, yogurt, and spices to a tall bowl and whip it until you get a very thick cream. If the cream wouldn't get thick enough, use a thickener (in Slovenia we use Kremfix).
- If you're going to set the cake to a stand or a pretty plate, the time is now. Place the first layer of your sponge onto the serving dish you wish to use. Add about ⅔ of cream to the first layer of the cake and spread it out evenly. Then place the second layer of sponge cake on top of it. Spread the rest of the cream on top of the second layer.
- If you wish you can decorate the cake with walnuts, carrots, and yellow primroses.
- Before serving the cake, let it chill in the fridge for a bit so the cream hardens a bit more. If you're in a rush you can serve it right away, but it's great when cold.
This recipe is great, will surely do it again. I am also looking forward to try something else from this blog:)
I’m super happy you liked it! Thank you for your feedback. 😀 Let me know when you try something else!