Vegan Gluten Free Carrot 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.
I’ve got a special treat today, brought to you by one of my favorite Oregon-based companies, Bob’s Red Mill.
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.
Did you make this recipe? Leave a comment and rate it below.
If you made any substitutions, let us know how it turned out!
- 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 its 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.
Serving and Storing - Serve immediately or place it in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Store for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This cake can also be store in the freezer for up to 2 months. When ready to serve, simply pull out and let thaw at room temperature.
Recipe Tips
- Don’t over-mix the batter. By alternating the dries and wets into the batter, we are ensuring the batter does not get over-mixed and gummy.
- Generously spray your cake pans. We do not want any of this delicious cake sticking to its edges.
- Do not open the oven door while the cakes are baking. This causes the structure to fall leaving you with a dent in the middle of your cakes. You can check for doneness after 45 minutes.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. If the cake starts to get dark around the edges, you can cover it with tin foil to bake the last 10 minutes.
- Let the cake cool at least 60 minutes in the cake pans before turning it onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Let the lemon cake cool completely before frosting. Otherwise, the cream cheese frosting will melt off.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this recipe into muffins? If you are making this cake into carrot cake muffins, it will make about 2 dozen. Bake for 20 minutes before checking for doneness. Once the muffins are done, let it cool 10 minutes in the loaf pan before flipping it out to cool completely.
Can I omit the walnuts/coconut? Definitely. If you don’t like the flavor, feel free to omit either or both.
Can I make this recipe without oil? If you are looking for an oil-free vegan cake, swap out additional applesauce for the oil with a 1:1 ratio.
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bob’s Red Mill.
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