This moist vegan carrot cake along with the smothering of cashew cream cheese frosting is a match made in dessert heaven.
Ah Moist…it’s usually a cringe-worthy word. But, in this case, moist is what makes this cake so dang delectable.
Ok, I’ve said moist enough. You get the idea. You’ll get that scrumptious melt-in-your mouth texture without any hidden oils (or eggs 0r milk).
This masterpiece is moistened (one more time) with fresh orange juice, lemon juice and banana, and sweetened with coconut sugar and maple syrup. Instead of using refined wheat flour, it’s time to grind up some oats to make it even more whole-foody.
So. it’s actually pretty fricken’ good for you!
I’m alllll about having a dessert that actually tastes good yet isn’t going to break your belt or inflame your insides with processed sugars, oils and animal products.
Maybe you’re turned off when you hear the word ‘healthy’ in front of dessert…immediately a flashback of a cardboard brownie or watered down sorbet pops into your head… but when you can’t even tell a difference (or maybe the difference is even better than the usual), why wouldn’t ya!? It just means you can eat more of it and keep feelin’ fine!
This cashew cream cheese frosting is so simple it’s stupid. The tastiness and creaminess takes the cake to the next level.
This recipe creates a cake that’s about 2 inches tall. Double the recipe for a thicker cake! Just bake it for 10 more minutes (or until you can stick a toothpick in it and have it come out clean).
Benefits:
–Carrots are packed with the phytonutrient antioxidant beta-carotene (the pre-curser to Vitamin A). This does wonders for your bone health and eye sight. They’re also high in biotin, which helps metabolize fats, reduce blood sugar, prevent baldness, prevent eczema plus helps with the formation of new skin.
–Oats are a superfood! They provide a great source of insoluble fibre for your microflora and smooth digestion. Plus they’re packed with antioxidant vitamin E, essential amino acids (to help tissue regrowth), manganese, and B vitamins (for your nervous system).
–Cashews have a lower of a fat content compared to most other nuts, and the fat they do have is mostly heart healthy monounsaturated fats. They’re packed with copper to help eliminate free radicals, assimilate iron, develop bone and skin, and create the hair pigment (melanin).
Dry Ingredients:- 2 cups oats
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp cardamom
Wet ingredients:- 2 flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flax seed + 6 tbsp water)
- ¼ cup orange juice (juice from 1 orange)
- 2 tsp orange zest
- 1 tbsp lemon juice (juice from ½ lemon)
- ½ ripe banana, mashed
- ½ tbsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1½ cups finely grated carrots
- ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Vegan Cream Cheese Icing- ½ cup raw cashews soaked in water for at least 30 minutes (the longer the better)
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1½ - 2 tsp lemon juice
- pinch sea salt
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ cup almond milk
Topping:- ¼ cup walnuts, chopped
- Pre-heat your oven to 350°F.
- Create the flax egg if you haven’t already (with a fork mix flax and water together in a cup, then set aside 5 minutes)
- Line 8 x 4 inch baking dish with parchment paper (2 strips in an X).
- Blend the oats in your blender until a flour forms.
- Add the rest of dry ingredients to the oat flour and blend until combined.
- In a separate bowl, mix together all wet ingredients.
- Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until evenly combined.
- Pour the mixture into your cake pan and bake for 45-50 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the cashew cream cheese frosting by blending all frosting ingredients in your blender until smooth (add a tiny bit of water if needed). If you forgot to soak your cashews, just pour boiling water over them and let sit for 5 minutes, then strain and blend.
- Remove the cake from your oven, let cool. Use spatula to pry the sides from sticking, and flip it upside down onto a cooling rack.
- Once cooled, flip over onto your serving plate and smother with cashew cream cheese frosting, then sprinkle with walnuts.
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