This vegan and gluten free carrot cake is made with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free flour for a perfectly moist and decadent holiday dessert.
I’ve got a special treat today, brought to you by one of my favorite Oregon-based companies, Bob’s Red Mill.
This post contains affiliate links. For more information read my privacy policy.
What’s that, you ask?
Why, a decadent, perfectly spiced, and incredibly moist carrot cake that is going to take care of all your baking needs this Easter.
Why’s that, you ask?
Because it’s vegan and gluten-free and 100% delicious and will satisfy a table full of your family and friends with their variety of diets and food restrictions this holiday season.
It’s a tall order, but I’m here to tell you, “you CAN have your cake and eat it too!”
Holiday baking for family can be difficult.
As a 10-year vegan, I am aware that my presence brings about complications at most holiday tables. Fortunately, I have supportive family and friends who accommodate me as best as they can and I always try to provide several options to help out, but that doesn’t mean complications don’t arise.
A few years after I transitioned to a vegan diet, as my family’s holidays were just adjusting, another family member went gluten-free.
What’s a family gonna do?
Make everyone bring their own food?
Make every dish vegan and gluten-free?
Make 3 variations of everything?
It’s not easy, I tell you!
But, thanks to Bob’s Red Mill, holiday baking just got a little easier.
I’m sure many of you already know about Bob’s Red Mill – you can find there amazing flours, grains, cereals, and mixes everywhere. What you may not know is that just on the outskirts of Portland (just 20 minutes from my house!) is a literal red mill where Bob began his businesses over 40 years ago. This red mill is an amazing 320,000 square foot facility in which all the magic happens from milling, testing, packages, and distributing. But it so much more than just a flour factory. In the heart of it all is a grocery store where you can do some major bulk-binging, stop and eat a good meal, take a guided tour of the facility, and there’s even the chance you’ll run into Bob himself.
Somehow you can walk into this massive flour mill and feel right at home.
Among their products is this Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour – a blend of rice flours, tapioca flour, and potato starch that works as a 1-to-1 ratio to replace all-purpose flour in any recipe. No specialty recipes needed!
How easy is that?!
Now you can take your favorite springtime holiday dessert recipe (Easter, Mother’s Day, etc.) and make it gluten-free with the flip of a switch (or flour, in this case). And with no compromise to the taste and texture, everyone will be on board with this vegan and gluten-free cake.
This vegan and gluten free carrot cake is made with Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free flour for a perfectly moist and decadent holiday dessert.
- 2 cups Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cup apple sauce
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 1 cup walnuts chopped
- 8 ounces vegan cream cheese at room temperature
- 1/2 cup 1 stick vegan butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5 cups powdered sugar sifted
- To make the Carrot Cake, preheat the oven to 350. Line the bottom of an 8" or 9" cake pan with parchment paper and spray with bottom and sides with oil. Set aside.
In a large bowl mix together gluten-free baking flour, baking powder and soda, spices, and salt.
- In a separate bowl combine apple sauce, oil, white and brown sugars, and vanilla extract. Stir together. Mix in grated carrots and coconut.
- In 2 to 3 batches, add the dry ingredients to the wet, gently mixing to combine. Once an evenly-hydrated batter has formed, fold in the walnuts.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake and bake for about 1 hour, until a knife inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let cool completely until removing from the pan and slicing. Place it in the refrigerator and chill for easier handling.
- Once the cake is completely cool, remove from pan by flipping upside down and cut the cake it through the middle into two or three layers.
- To make the Cream Cheese Frosting, in a stand up mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together vegan cream cheese and vegan butter until well combined, scraping down the sides as necessary.
- Add vanilla extract and combine.
- With the mixer on it's lowest setting, slowly add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, stopping to scrape down the sides between cups. Once all the powdered sugar is added, turn up the speed to medium and mix until smooth and creamy.
- To assemble the cake, place about 1 1/2 cups of cream cheese frosting on the bottom layer of cake, smooth oven evenly with an offset spatula and top with a second layer of cake. Repeat with a third layer if necessary.
- Sprinkle the top layer with toasted almonds or coconut and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
For 8" cakes, cut into 3 layers. For 9" cakes, cut into 2 layers.
If you give this recipe a try, let us know what you think in the comments below. Or snap a photo and share it on Instagram. Make sure to tag @mydarlingvegan so I can see your creations!
Thanks so much forPosting the nutrition information per serving, but how many servings are there in total?
The nutrition information is calculated for 16 pieces.
Can you use more than 1 8″ cake pan.? My pan seems shallow. Could a 9″ spring form pan be used? It would be deeper.
Yeah, that would be fine.
Can I make as cupcakes?
Sure, that would work. Just adjust the bake time. I would check after 25 minutes for doneness.
Did you try as cupcakes? If so what was the cook time?
Could I leave out the coconut! Would I need to replace it with something else?
You should be able to just omit it without it affecting the texture too much.
Can I use all purpose flour if not gluten free?
Yeah, that works fine.
Made this amazing carrot ? cake today it is so moist and taste is fantastic you would not no it is it it is vegan. Thankyou for sharing
Isn’t there a better choice than vegetable oil?
Are you looking for a healthier option? You could try replacing it with apple sauce. Or you could try melted coconut oil. Both of these options will affect the texture a bit. But if healthier is what you mean by “better choice”, then I would give one of those a try. However, this cake isn’t meant to be healthy, just meet different dietary needs, so I believe the best choice for this cake for taste and texture is vegetable oil.
This cake looks AMAZING! The crumb looks so moist that I almost can’t believe this is gluten free AND vegan!