This simple one bowl carrot cake is moist and delicious! Topped with a cashew “cream cheese” frosting, it’s vegan friendly, refined sugar free, and includes a gluten-free option as well!
As soon as I got married, at the tender age of 18, I began devouring cookbooks, trying new recipes almost daily for my new hubby. I didn’t really get a lot of practice in the kitchen growing up, other than at my grandma’s house where she liked to show me how to make some of her southern dishes. She didn’t follow written recipes, everything she made was ingrained in her mind from the hundreds of times she had made them over the years. I’d try writing them down, but it was difficult as she cooked by feel and taste, adding a little of this and a little of that until she got it right.
To me, she was the best cook in the world and I wanted to be as good as her one day.
While I do enjoy cooking, I actually prefer baking. I would make treats for my hubby to take to work and kept track of all of my friend’s and family’s birthdays so I could bake them a cake on their special day.
Years ago, my mom requested a carrot cake for her birthday. I had never made a homemade carrot cake before, but I did my best to look for a promising recipe. I may be aging myself, but this was before the age of blogs and online recipes too. I pulled some of my old cookbooks off the shelf and flipped through the cake section. I finally found what seemed to be a good one in my Southern Living cookbook. It was titled “Best Carrot Cake,” which is a little presumptuous, if you ask me. Best is a matter of opinion, unique to each given person. What might be best to you is not necessarily the same for me.
But in this case “best” is the most fitting of descriptions.
The cake was amazing. It was moist and flavorful, even to someone like me who’s not usually a fan of carrot cake. But the cake was pretty labor intensive and a bit too sweet for my liking.
So, using the “best carrot cake” recipe as inspiration, I came up with my own version, which is even free of dairy, eggs, gluten, and refined sugar too!
This cake is my new go-to carrot cake! It’s delicious, moist, and would be the perfect addition to your Easter table! I love the cashew “cream cheese” frosting, but in a pinch for time, I’ve even used a version of my maple cream cheese frosting (link included in recipe notes!)
Please let me know if you give this a try! Have a wonderful Easter holiday!
- 1½ cup almond milk or other milk of choice
- 1 tablespoon white or apple cider vinegar
- 3 cups (393g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (269g) coconut sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup avocado oil
, melted coconut oil, or other oil of choice
- 2 cups grated carrot (197g)
- 8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained
- ⅓ cup (25g) finely shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional
- cashew frosting (below) or other frosting of choice*
, melted coconut oil, or other oil of choice
- 1 cup milk (a little more may be needed depending on your gf flour blend)
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 2 cups (252g) gluten-free all-purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour
, in the blue bag)
- 1 cup (124g) blanched almond flour
- 2 cups (269g) coconut sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup avocado oil
- 2 cups grated carrot (197g)
- 8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained
- ⅓ cup (25g) finely shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, optional
- cashew frosting, recipe below, or other frosting of choice*
, in the blue bag)
- 3 cups (16oz) raw cashews, pre-soaked, rinsed, and drained
- ⅓ – ½ cup maple syrup
or honey, to taste
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1½ teaspoon lemon juice
- 1–2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ – ½ teaspoon cinnamon, optional
- pinch of salt
- 1–3 tablespoons almond milk (or other milk of choice), if needed. Use less milk for a firmer frosting.
or honey, to taste- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Generously grease three 8-inch cake pans and line the bottom with a piece of parchment paper cut to size. Set aside.
- Stir together milk and vinegar in a small glass bowl. Let sour while preparing the rest of the batter.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour(s), sugar, baking powder/soda, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in sour milk and oil, mixing just until combined. Fold in grated carrots, drained pineapple, shredded coconut, and nuts, if adding. (For gluten-free cakes: depending on your gf flour you may need more or less milk to get the right consistency. Start with less and add more only if the batter is too thick. It should be thick, but pourable. It should not be thick like cookie dough.)
- Divide batter evenly between the cake pans and place into the preheated oven.
- Bake for 18–25 minutes, just until center is set and a toothpick inserted comes out mostly clean.
- Remove from the oven and let pans cool fully before inverting cakes onto a wire rack to continue to cool.
- Allow to cool completely before frosting. Can even make the cakes the night before.
- Place one of the cooled layers on your serving platter and top with a generous dollop of frosting. Spread across evenly and top with another cake layer. Repeat for remaining layers.
- For the naked cake. Frost top of cake and carry some frosting onto the sides. Use a minimal amount of frosting and leave open spaces for a rustic "naked" cake. For the little piped kisses around the border, I used a Wilton Round tip #1A
. I finished the edges with a light dusting of cinnamon.
. I finished the edges with a light dusting of cinnamon.- Place drained pre-soaked cashews into a high powered blender (like Vitamix or Blentec) or food processor, along with the lesser amount of sweetener (can add more to taste), vinegar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Add cinnamon only if you want. Begin blending, adding milk 1 tablespoon at a time, ONLY IF NECESSARY to help it blend. The less milk used, the more thick and frosting like it will be. Taste and adjust sweetness level and flavorings, to taste. Frost cake or refrigerate until needed.
You may also enjoy these similar recipes:
Rainbow Carrot Cake Muffins
Naturally Sweetened Hummingbird Cupcakes
Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
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Beelynda says
April 26, 2019 at 5:27 pmThis looks amazing , thank you fir sharing. Can I add strawberries to the frosting? Of course for a different cake. And if yes, do I need to add lemon? Thank you
Joscelyn | Wife Mama Foodie says
April 29, 2019 at 12:06 amHi Beelynda, I think a strawberry version would work well! The lemon helps give it the tangy flavor that cream cheese has more than a lemon flavor, so I would still add it. Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try! 🙂
Haley says
January 30, 2019 at 1:34 pmYou had me at carrot cake.
micayle says
October 22, 2018 at 3:49 pmI really want to ad pumpkin puree to a carrot cake to serve for thanksgiving, do you think this cake could sustain adding a cup or two of pumpkin? Maybe replace it instead of the oil?
Joscelyn | Wife Mama Foodie says
October 23, 2018 at 10:04 amHi Micayle, I wouldn’t replace all of the oil as it may change the texture of the cake, but maybe you could replace the cup of crushed pineapple with a cup of pumpkin instead? If you wanted to add even more, you might could substitute 1/2 cup of the milk with 1/2 cup more pumpkin. I can’t guarantee how it would turn out with these changes, but that’s where I would start if I was wanting to make that substitution. I would highly suggest making at least 1/2 the recipe as a tester before Thanksgiving though. I would hate for you to try these changes out on the big day and it not turn out perfectly for your guests. Please let me know how it goes!
Danielle says
September 13, 2018 at 7:10 pmAmazing! Absolutely love this recipe. So yummy, so simple, and so moist! Great texture! Thanks for the awesome recipe. The frosting was also surprisingly good. I love cashews but was skeptical about using them as a frosting base…this recipe proved my doubts wrong though. Fantastic 🙂
Joscelyn | Wife Mama Foodie says
October 23, 2018 at 10:09 amSorry Danielle, some how I missed this post! I’m so happy you enjoyed the cake! Cashews are such a versatile ingredient, aren’t they?! I was skeptical that cashews could be used in so many different ways, but I’ve used them to make dairy-free cheesecakes, sauces for pasta, frostings, etc… they’re now my favorite nut! Thanks for taking the time to leave feedback and for giving the recipe a try! Have a great week!!
Trish Pines says
April 18, 2018 at 9:40 amLooks delicious! Curious – what do you sub eggs for? Thanks!
puja says
April 3, 2018 at 12:00 amThis Carrot cake calling my name… Beautifully made recipe. Pinning !!!
Amanda says
April 1, 2018 at 10:42 pmWow! I cannot believe you got married 18! I was nowhere near marriage at 18, even though I thought I was. Your cake looks so beautiful and I love all of your images. Baking looks nothing like that with me! LOL
Asha Shivakumar says
April 1, 2018 at 5:11 pmWhat a gorgeous looking cake and the ingredients are so drool worthy. Love love it.
xo
Ana says
March 31, 2018 at 9:09 pmOMG! That cake looks so good! I’ve been looking for a recipe that is Gluten Free and uses Almond Flour and Coconut Sugar, and this is IT. I will definitely be making this in the future (I can’t wait!). Love that you included easy recipe instructions and your pictures are gorgeous. Pinning for later – Thank you so much for sharing this and all of your fabulous recipes!!!
Natalie says
March 31, 2018 at 9:07 amThis is such a stunning cake and I love the cashew frosting – sounds amazing!
Pilar says
March 31, 2018 at 7:02 amOMG this cake looks so deli!!!! And my favorite part is that you included a gluten-free option as well!!! I’m definitely cooking this tonight!! 😀
Heather Simpson-Bluhm says
March 30, 2018 at 7:08 pmYUM, I love carrot cake but can’t do the nuts. The Maple frosting sounds like a great option too!