Carrot cake is one of the most popular cakes here in our house. Not only because they are easy to prepare and always look good – the combination of the carrots, spices, and nuts in the cake is just super delicious! If you go for a “classic” American carrot cake you also need a cream cheese frosting on top (and maybe in between layers). Without that, it’s not a perfect carrot cake. Well… you could say this carrot cake is not perfect, because no real cream cheese is used here, but to be honest… you will not notice the difference ;P
As soon as a year ends many of us do some thinking – not only about what happened during the year but also what’s to come in the next year. Things to achieve, maybe what to do differently in the next 12 months… “New Year’s resolutions” is a big thing I guess ;) For example, eating healthier and doing some sports is on many to-do lists I assume. That’s why many enlist in a gym in January and it’s probably also the reason why “Veganuary” exists and has taken over January instead of any other month throughout the year ;P I guess many assume veganism is a very healthy diet and want to give it a try when a new year starts…
Vegan Bake Together Week with Zimtkeks & Apfeltarte
Monday: Vegan Breakfast Bowl with vegan scrambled eggs
Tuesday: Vegan Cinnamon Energy Balls
Wednesday: Vegan Stew with Coconut, Pumpkin & Legumes
Thursday: Vegan Stuffed Zucchini with Spelt and Veggie Meat
Friday: Simple Vegan Brownie Cookies
Saturday: Vegan Dessert à la Tiramisù
Sunday: Vegan Carrot Cake with “Cream Cheese” Frosting
A vegan diet actually is a healthy diet – but for this Vegan Carrot Cake here I would not recommend using the attribute “healthy” ;P Yes, it’s made without any animal products, all plant-based ingredients, but there are still a lot of fat and carbs involved. No animal fats, which is good, but still a lot of it… well and a good amount of sugar, to be honest. But… definitely healthier than a typical German Black Forrest Cake I think ;P
Leaving sugar and stuff like that aside for a moment – the cake is definitely very delicious and has a great texture. Nice and moist ;P The “cream cheese frosting” is, of course, not made with real cream cheese. I used a replacement based on cashews* but you can also find/use something based on almonds* – both work fine here. Just make sure that the vegan butter and the cream cheese substitute are both at room temperature when you mix them together. This reduces the risk of small lumps forming in the frosting – I guess you want a smooth and creamy frosting here.
Other than that, there’s not much to watch out for. If you want to reduce the amount of sugar in the cake, you can always use xylitol* or erythritol* as a replacement. Even the marzipan carrots can be made sugar-free if you use sugar-free marzipan. It’s a bit harder to find, but not impossible ;)
By the way, this cake recipe is the last recipe of the Vegan Bake Together Week. The previous years we created a little e-book with all the recipes – this will happen again here as well… just give us a little time to make it ;)
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
3.5 oz. (100g) pecans or walnuts, chopped
2 1/2 cups (325g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (250g) apple sauce
3/4 cup (180ml) plant-based milk
1/2 cup (120ml) sunflower oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
10.5 oz. (300g) grated carrots
1.8 oz. (50g) dried sour cherries
For the frosting:
1/2 cup (120g) vegan butter (at room temperature)
2 cups (250g) confectioners’ sugar
8 oz. (230g) vegan cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
For the decoration:
3.5 oz. (100g) marzipan
food color (orange & green)
some confectioners’ sugar (if needed)
some chopped pecans or walnuts
some chopped pistachios (optional)
100g Pekannüsse oder Walnüsse, gehackt
325g Mehl (Type 405)
100g Zucker
100g brauner Zucker
2 TL Backpulver
1 TL Natron
1 1/2 TL gemahlener Zimt
1/2 TL gemahlener Ingwer
1/2 TL Salz
250g Apfelmus (ohne Zuckerzusatz)
180ml Pflanzendrink (Soja, Hafer, etc.)
120ml Sonnenblumenöl
2 TL Vanille Extrakt
300g Karotten, geraspelt
50g getrocknete Sauerkirschen
Für das Frosting:
120g vegane Butter (bei Zimmertemperatur)
250g Puderzucker
230g veganer Frischkäse (bei Zimmertemperatur)
1 TL Vanille Extrakt
Für die Dekoration:
100g Marzipan
Lebensmittelfarben (orange und grün)
etwas Puderzucker (falls erforderlich)
einige gehackte Pekannüsse oder Walnüsse
einige gehackte Pistazien (optional)
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Add the flour to a large bowl together with both sugars, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt – mix until well combined. Add the apple sauce, plant-based milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until just combined. Add the grated carrots, dried sour cherries, and chopped nuts and fold in. Divide the batter between the two tins, smooth out the top and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
3. For the frosting add the butter and confectioners’ sugar to a bowl and mix for about 3-4 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add the vegan cream cheese and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
4. To assemble the cake, level the cake layers, if needed. Place the first cake layer on a serving plate and spread some of the frosting on top. Place the second cake layer on top and coat the whole cake with the remaining frosting. Place in the fridge until you start with the decorations.
5. To create small carrots divide the marzipan into two portions – a big portion for the carrots and a small portion for the green leaves. Color the marzipan orange and green (if it gets too sticky, add some confectioners’ sugar), then shape into carrots and leaves and attach the leaves to the carrots.
6. Take the cake out of the fridge, press chopped nuts to the side of the cake, sprinkle some on top, and decorate with the marzipan carrots. Leftover cake should stay fine for up to 3 days in the fridge.
2. Das Mehl zusammen mit den beiden Zuckersorten, Backpulver, Natron, Zimt, Ingwer und Salz in eine große Schüssel geben und gut vermischen. Apfelmus, Pflanzendrink, Öl und Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und alles nur kurz vermengen. Die geriebenen Karotten, die getrockneten Sauerkirschen und die gehackten Nüsse dazugeben und unterheben. Den Teig auf die beiden Formen aufteilen, glatt streichen und etwa 35-40 Minuten backen – mit einem Zahnstocher testen, ob noch Teig kleben bleibt und die Kuchen erst herausholen, wenn dieser sauber herauskommt. Aus dem Ofen nehmen und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett abkühlen lassen.
3. Für das Frosting die vegane Butter und den Puderzucker in eine Schüssel geben und etwa 3-4 Minuten hell und luftig aufschlagen. Den veganen Frischkäse und Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und alles gut verrühren. Für etwa 30 Minuten in den Kühlschrank stellen.
4. Für den Zusammenbau der Torte die Tortenböden ggf. etwas begradigen. Den ersten Kuchenboden auf eine Servierplatte setzen und etwas Frosting darauf verteilen. Den zweiten Kuchen auflegen und dann den gesamten Kuchen mit dem verbliebenen Frosting einstreichen. Kuchen in den Kühlschrank stellen, bis er dekoriert werden kann.
5. Für die kleinen Karotten das Marzipan in zwei Portionen aufteilen, eine große Portion für die Karotten und eine kleinere Portion für das Grün der Karotten. Das Marzipan orange und grün einfärben (ggf. etwas Puderzucker dazugeben, wenn die Masse zu klebrig wird), zu Möhren und Blättern formen und die Blätter dann an den Möhren befestigen.
6. Den Kuchen aus dem Kühlschrank nehmen, gehackte Nüsse an den Rand des Kuchens drücken, ggf. auch etwas auf den Kuchen streuen und dann mit den Marzipankarotten dekorieren. Kuchenreste halten sich bis zu 3 Tage im Kühlschrank.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Vegan Carrot Cake with “Cream Cheese” Frosting
- Prep Time: 00:45
- Cook Time: 00:40
- Total Time: 04:00
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Cuisine: America
- Diet: Vegan
Description
One of my favorite cakes goes vegan: Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – or let’s say something similar to cream cheese frosting. Equally delicious ;)
Ingredients
For the cake:
3.5 oz. (100g) pecans or walnuts, chopped
2 1/2 cups (325g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (250g) apple sauce
3/4 cup (180ml) plant-based milk
1/2 cup (120ml) sunflower oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
10.5 oz. (300g) grated carrots
1.8 oz. (50g) dried sour cherries
For the frosting:
1/2 cup (120g) vegan butter (at room temperature)
2 cups (250g) confectioners’ sugar
8 oz. (230g) vegan cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
For the decoration:
3.5 oz. (100g) marzipan
food color (orange & green)
some confectioners’ sugar (if needed)
some chopped pecans or walnuts
some chopped pistachios (optional)
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place the pecans or walnuts on a baking sheet and toast for 5-8 minutes until fragrant. Take out of the oven, let cool down a bit, then chop. Do not turn off the oven. Line two 8 inches (20cm) springform tins with baking parchment and grease with some oil. Set aside
2. Add the flour to a large bowl together with both sugars, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt – mix until well combined. Add the apple sauce, plant-based milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix until just combined. Add the grated carrots, dried sour cherries, and chopped nuts and fold in. Divide the batter between the two tins, smooth out the top and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
3. For the frosting add the butter and confectioners’ sugar to a bowl and mix for about 3-4 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add the vegan cream cheese and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
4. To assemble the cake, level the cake layers, if needed. Place the first cake layer on a serving plate and spread some of the frosting on top. Place the second cake layer on top and coat the whole cake with the remaining frosting. Place in the fridge until you start with the decorations.
5. To create small carrots divide the marzipan into two portions – a big portion for the carrots and a small portion for the green leaves. Color the marzipan orange and green (if it gets too sticky, add some confectioners’ sugar), then shape into carrots and leaves and attach the leaves to the carrots.
6. Take the cake out of the fridge, press chopped nuts to the side of the cake, sprinkle some on top, and decorate with the marzipan carrots. Leftover cake should stay fine for up to 3 days in the fridge.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
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