Carrot cake is an all-time Autumn favourite around my house. While some consider it an Spring dessert, for me it’s all about Autumn with it’s warming spices and root veggie base. Traditional recipes rely on a lot of sugar and a ton of oil, but this version is much lighter cutting some oil for apple sauce and maple syrup for sugar. The addition of a good dose of cardamom and a hit of orange zest makes this recipe more modern and less like your mum’s carrot cake of yesteryear.
I topped mine with some maple sweetened whipped coconut but a simple glaze will work just as well. For something entirely different, but delicious, try icing yours with a chocolate ganache.
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Inspired by this cake https://www.ceres.co.nz/recipes/cake-cookies-muffins/carrot-cake/
Ingredients
- Dry:
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground ginger
- 1 tsp. ground cardamom
- 1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 3/4 tsp. sea salt
- Wet:
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1/3 cup light cooking oil
- 1 1/2 cups finely grated carrot
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Line a 23 cm (9 inch) square baking pan with parchment and pre-heat the oven to 180 C (350° F)
- Combine all the dry ingredients in one large bowl and the dry ingredients in another.
- Combine the wet ingredients into the dry, string just until combined.
- Scoop carrot cake batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top springs back when lightly touched.
- Let the cake cool a bit before transferring to a cooking rack. Let cool completely before icing
- I iced my cake with coconut whipped cream and toasted coconut, but a vegan cream cheese or glaze would also be nice.
Bryan says
this looks really good! I’ve always been a sucker for carrot cake. I’ve never actually taken the time to make it myself though. I’ll definitely be trying this recipe soon though
★★★★★
Sophie Mackenzie says
Thanks Bryan! It’s totally my fav too. Once you start making your own, it will be hard to stop :)
Chantale says
Hi! I have been making this recipe as muffins, and with different combinations of nuts or seeds with chocolate chips instead of pecans. I also substituted the flour for a gluten free type. Thanks for the good recipe! xx
★★★★★