Healthy Carrot Cake with Maple Frosting
A gluten and dairy-free take on the classic carrot cake. Refined sugar-free and naturally sweet. Make as individual cakes or one large cake.
Servings: 12 serving (or 5 mini cakes)
Calories: 365kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
- 2 c gluten free flour blend
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- pinch ground clove
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 c coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- 1 c applesauce, unsweetened
- ⅓ c coconut oil, melted plus more for pan
- 2 c carrots, grated
- ½ c walnuts, chopped optional
- ½ c raisins optional
Maple Frosting
- 1 can coconut cream 14 oz approx.
- 1-2 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ c crystallized ginger, chopped optional
Instructions
Carrot Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease your baking pan with extra coconut oil.
- Add dry ingredients (GF flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and nutmeg) to a mixing bowl. Mix well to combine and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl combine eggs, vanilla, sugar, molasses and applesauce. Mix on high until creamy. While the mixer is running slowly pour in the melted coconut oil.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet slowly. Mix until the batter well combined and there are no big lumps.
- Gently fold in grated carrots, nuts, and fruit by hand.
- Bake 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely before frosting.
Maple Frosting
- Chill the can of coconut cream while prepping the cake.
- Pour the entire can into a mixing bowl. Beat on high until light and fluffy. Be patient it takes a minute.
- Whip in maple syrup and vanilla.
- Gently fold in crystallized ginger, if using.
- Ice cake quickly. If the frosting gets to warm place in fridge to chill for 15 minutes and start again.
Notes
- Hand grate carrots, using a food processor makes them too moist.
- Sub 1 cup granulated sugar or ½ c granulated sugar + ½ c brown sugar for the coconut sugar and molasses.
- We used America's Test Kitchen gluten-free flour blend for this recipe. We have had good luck with both King Arthur's and Bob's Red Mill gluten-free flour blends.
Nutrition
Calories: 365kcal | Carbs: 42g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 22g | Fiber: 5g