This vegan carrot cake is the best ever! It’s moist and rich and topped with a tangy lemon buttercream frosting and crushed walnuts.
Carrot cake is pretty awesome! It gives you the feeling that you’re eating something pretty darn healthy. I mean you’re getting your veggies in!
And when it’s vegan carrot cake, well….. then you can feel pretty saintly about it!
Okay okay, I’ve said I’m never going to mention guilt and food in the same sentence on this blog, and I’m going to stick to it, but you know, there’s indulgence and then there’s feeling saintly about indulgence, which is not like indulgence at all really.
So go on, have your vegan carrot cake and eat it too, while feeling saintly about your good choices 🙂
And you know one of these days I’ll even make a gluten-free version (update: it’s here!) and THEN, well then, you know, you can just about ascend to heaven on a cloud while you eat it.
Jokes aside, this carrot cake is super good, it has a wholesome hearty vibe, while being moist, rich, and delicious.
Topped with a tangy lemon buttercream frosting and crushed walnuts, this cake is ideal for any special occasion. Or just for Sunday afternoon tea.
How To Make Vegan Carrot Cake
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix together.
- Add light brown sugar and grated carrot to the mixing bowl.
- Prepare your flax eggs by adding 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed meal to a bowl with 6 tablespoons of hot water. Let it sit for a minute to become gloopy.
- Add the flax eggs, oil, vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar and chopped walnuts to the mixing bowl.
- Mix everything together. If it seems like it won’t come together and the mix is too dry then step away from the bowl for a couple of minutes and then come back to it. The carrot will have released more moisture into the batter allowing it to come together into a thick batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between two cake pans (sprayed with non-stick spray and lined with parchment paper along the bottoms).
- Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
- When the cakes are cool, frost and decorate with crushed walnuts.
The Frosting
Two things: firstly, I frosted it with a lemon frosting and added apple cider vinegar. This was to try and get a slightly more ‘cheesy’ flavor to it.
Well, it didn’t really work, it was really good, but I would not say it was in any way ‘cheesy’. It was still really good though, with a perfect amount of tang, so I went with it!
Secondly, I have since made a fabulous vegan cream cheese frosting using a homemade vegan cream cheese. It is seriously delicious, so if you want to give that a try instead, then go for it. The lemon buttercream frosting recipe from our vegan lemon cake is also a winner if you want to use that instead.
Chef’s Tips
Measure your flour correctly. If you have a food scale then measure the flour out on a food scale for total accuracy. If you don’t have a food scale then use the ‘spoon and level’ method to measure your flour. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and then level it off with a knife. Don’t scoop the flour and don’t pack it into your cup.
Carrots must be freshly grated. If you buy pre-grated carrots then they will have dried out a lot by the time you use them. You need freshly grated carrots so that they are packed with moisture.
The walnuts. Walnuts are entirely optional but they are really delicious both in the cake itself and sprinkled on top for decoration. Another great option is chopped pecan nuts.
Be patient mixing the batter. When you’re mixing this batter you may start to wonder if I’ve missed out some important ingredients in the form of liquids! You may start thinking it will never come together! Don’t worry, so long as you used freshly grated carrots, it will definitely come together. Just step away from the bowl for a couple of minutes, the carrots will release more moisture into the batter. When you come back and mix again, it will form into a thick batter.
Adapting For Different Cake Pans
- 7-inch. This cake makes two thick 7-inch cake layers.
- 8-inch. It also works perfectly for 8-inch cake pans. The layers are slightly thinner, but still perfect, and 8-inch cake pans work great with the recipe exactly as is, no other changes at all.
- 6-inch. If you want to make this cake in 6-inch cake pans then I would suggest making it as a 3 layer cake. Baking time will be around 25 minutes.
- 9×9 sheet cake. You can also make it as a 9×9 square sheet cake. Baking time is 35 minutes.
- 9×13 sheet cake. It also works as a 9×13 sheet cake though it is a fairly thin cake so 9×9 is preferred. Baking time for 9×13 is 25 minutes.
Vegan Carrot Cake Q&A
You can make this cake gluten-free by simply switching the regular flour for a gluten-free all purpose flour blend. You can also check out our recipe for vegan gluten free carrot cake. It’s totally divine.
Sure! This recipe adapts to 12-18 cupcakes depending on how full you make the cupcake liners. You can also check out our vegan carrot cake cupcakes.
Storing and Freezing
Keep the cake covered at room temperature where it will stay good for 3-4 days, or keep it covered in the fridge where it will stay good for up to a week.
It is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
More Vegan Cakes
- Vegan Vanilla Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Cake
- Vegan Red Velvet Cake
- Vegan Banana Cake
- Vegan Lemon Cake
- Vegan Strawberry Cake
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Carrot Cake
Ingredients
For the Carrot Cake:
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour (250g)
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1 tsp Nutmeg
- 1 ½ cups Light Brown Sugar (300g)
- 2 ⅓ cups Grated Carrot (255g)
- 2 Flax Eggs (2 Tbsp Ground Flaxseed Meal with 6 Tbsp Water)
- ½ cup Canola Oil (120ml) or Vegetable Oil
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 cup Walnuts (100g) Chopped, Optional
For the Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
- 4 cups Powdered Sugar (480g)
- ½ cup Vegan Butter (112g)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2-3 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
Decoration:
- Walnuts Chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray two 7-inch cake pans or two 8-inch cake pans (see notes*) with non-stick spray and line the bottoms with circles of parchment paper.
- Sift the all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix together.
- Add the light brown sugar and grated carrot to the mixing bowl.
- Prepare your flax eggs by adding 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed meal to a bowl with 6 tablespoons of hot water. Let it sit for a minute to become gloopy.
- Add the flax eggs, oil, vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar and chopped walnuts to the mixing bowl.
- Mix everything together. If it seems like it won't come together and the mix is too dry then step away from the bowl for a couple of minutes and then come back to it. The carrots will have released more moisture into the batter allowing it to come together into a thick batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cakes comes out clean.
- Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- While the cakes are cooling, prepare your frosting.
- Add the powdered sugar, vegan butter, vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the bowl of your stand mixer.
- Start mixing on low speed gradually increasing speed until your frosting is thick and smooth.
- If your frosting is too thick then add in the extra tablespoon of lemon juice, a drop at a time and only as much as needed to get to a spreadable consistency.
- Frost the cake and decorate the top with chopped walnuts.
Video
Notes
- Measure your flour correctly. If you have a food scale then measure the flour out on a food scale for total accuracy. If you don’t have a food scale then use the ‘spoon and level’ method to measure your flour. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and then level it off with a knife. Don’t scoop the flour and don’t pack it into your cup.
- Carrots must be freshly grated. If you buy pre-grated carrots then they will have dried out a lot by the time you use them. You need freshly grated carrots so that they are packed with moisture.
- The walnuts. Walnuts are entirely optional but they are really delicious both in the cake itself and sprinkled on top for decoration. Another great option is chopped pecan nuts.
- Be patient mixing the batter. When you’re mixing this batter you may start to wonder if I’ve missed out some important ingredients in the form of liquids! You may start thinking it will never come together! Don’t worry, so long as you used freshly grated carrots, it will definitely come together. Just step away from the bowl for a couple of minutes, the carrots will release more moisture into the batter. When you come back and mix again, it will form into a thick batter.
- Adapting for different size cake pans:
- 7-inch. This cake makes two thick 7-inch cake layers.
- 8-inch. It also works perfectly for 8-inch cake pans. The layers are slightly thinner, but still perfect, and 8-inch cake pans work great with the recipe exactly as is, no other changes at all.
- 6-inch. If you want to make this cake in 6-inch cake pans then I would suggest making it as a 3 layer cake. Baking time will be around 25 minutes.
- 9×9 sheet cake. You can also make it as a 9×9 square sheet cake. Baking time is 35 minutes.
- 9×13 sheet cake. It also works as a 9×13 sheet cake though it is a fairly thin cake so 9×9 is preferred. Baking time for 9×13 is 25 minutes.
- Gluten-free: You can make this cake gluten-free by simply switching the regular flour for a gluten-free all purpose flour blend.
- Cupcakes: This recipe adapts to 12-18 cupcakes depending on how full you make the cupcake liners.
- Storing: Keep the cake covered at room temperature where it will stay good for 3-4 days, or keep it covered in the fridge where it will stay good for up to a week.
- Freezing: It is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
- This recipe has been updated with new photos but the recipe itself is unchanged.
Toni Morgan says
I love this carrot cake!! Everyone who tries it falls in love! Actually I use your site for almost every sweet thing I make ♥️
I am thinking of using it for a slab cake. Do you think it will carve ok??
Alison Andrews says
So glad you enjoyed it! Yes, I think it would work fine as a sheet cake too!
Tiffany says
Truly amazing, a MUST to create! I’m new to baking (and cooking) and was quite nervous making this as I embark on a journey of working towards creating more vegan based meals. This was truly easy to make and an instant crowd pleaser. I’m saving the recipe to make again. Thank you for sharing goodness, God bless! 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Tiffany!
Alyssa says
I made these into cupcakes, delicious! I used 4 tbsps of lemon juice for the frosting, and found that this made the frosting too “lemony” and over-powering. I would recommend using no more than 3 tbsps of lemon juice. Also, if you make cupcakes, I think you can get away with only making half the amount of frosting-I had heaps left over!
Thanks for this recipe 😀
Alison Andrews says
Thanks for sharing Alyssa!
Sarah says
Made this for my mom and she loved it!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Sarah!
Hannah says
Hi, this worked out fab for me, thank you!
Have you tried it in a loaf tin?
I use 8 inch tins, so as you said it comes out a bit thinner – could I do 1.5x the recipe do you think to make them a bit thicker?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Hannah, you can increase the recipe if you like! I haven’t tried this in a loaf tin though. Thanks for the great review!
Rebecca says
I made this today with my 2 kids. We made them into muffins, the recipe easily would have made more than 12, I only had 12 cases so the balance of the mix I put in a mini Bundt tin and baked it too.
Omg they are delicious, easily the best vegan cake I’ve made, light and fluffy great balance of flavours and the frosting was yummy too! Thanks for such a great recipe!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! So happy to hear that Rebecca! Thanks for the great review.
Melina says
Amazing. Loved by the entire family, omnivores and me. lol.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Melina!
Angela says
Would it work in terms of density/moistness if I made the recipe x0.5 and used two 9 inch round pans? Should the temperature be increased or only the cooking time? Or neither? Thanks!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Angela, I think it would be better to double the recipe for 9-inch pans. The temperature and baking time would be the same.
Allan says
Wow! I was super skeptical about this recipe because I thought the proportions looked odd (more sugar than flour?), and also because when I made vegan carrot cake before, it came out a gluey mess. But, yet again, you’ve written a fantastic recipe!
I had no linseeds, so I subbed for the same volume in soya yoghurt, which worked delightfully. I also added some ground ginger to the spices.
My cake came out fluffy, moist, and so soft. I will definitely make this again. I think adding some soaked sultanas, and chopped walnuts would make it perfect.
Thanks for the great recipe!
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear it was a success! Thanks for the great review!
Maya says
Thank you so much Alison for this delicious recipe which I made last night and was a huge hit with me and my sister.
I’m not a cook but as my sister said this carrot cake is what you’d buy in a cafe! Super quality.
I only had 3 cups icing sugar for topping so reduced other topping ingredients slightly, ready to add more of the other topping ingredients if need be but it was perfect and delicious and still enough icing to cover the middle and top of the cake.
My cake pans are a little larger so the cakes were thinner and wider but still held after cooling and didn’t come apart upon icing plus held shape through cutting.
I didn’t have walnuts so ommited them.
I had coconut sugar so used that.
My batter was perfect and moist when mixing carrot with all other ingredients, I didn’t need to add more liquid.
Probably the only recipe I’ve ever made that is so good it could be sold in a cafe!
Plus it’s vegan and dairy eaters will still love it I’m sure!!!
Thank you so much again Alison, Maya
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear that Maya! Thanks for the great review!
Otilia says
Made this yesterday. Fantastic!
I added one cup non dairy milk and baked it about one hour.
Cake was fluffy and delicious. As frosting I used half package vegan cream cheese (store bought)
mixed with sugar, lemon juice and lemon peel.
Oh! And the nuts!…. I forgot to add in the batter so I sprinkled one layer of nuts on the top of the cake. They roasted during baking making the whole combination delicious!
The cake was a big success! I added it to my collection Thank you for sharing!!!!
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing Otilia!
Alison says
This is SO good!! What you said about the dry batter and carrots was spot-on. I just let it sit for about 5 minutes and it was plenty wet enough to mix.
YUM!!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome Alison thank you so much! 🙂
lily says
I was on a search for a perfect carrot cake recipe for my boyfriends mom birthday, and this recipe is absolutely divine. I’ve had not-so-great experiences with vegan cake recipes being either too dry, or too dense, but this one was out of the ballpark. Now, I made two different versions to test the waters. The first one, I used flaxseed meal as the egg replacement, and olive oil rather than butter. For the second one, I used apple sauce instead of flaxseed meal and vegan butter rather than oil. Don’t get me wrong, they both turned out absolutely perfect. But I was more so a fan of the second cake with applesauce and vegan butter. (with the applesauce, i reduced the amount of sugar by 40gram, but it’s really up to you! just remember youre also adding a frosting!)
I did have to use a tiny bit if plant based milk (I used oat) to moisten the batter up enough to stir it and it somehow, it turned out lighter and fluffier as an end result. I topped with crushed walnuts and toasted a little bit of coconut shreds. *queue the chefs kiss* Amazing. Rich in flavor, perfect amount of sweetness and key notes of nutmeg and cinnamon. I couldn’t think of a recipe better than this! Thank you!
Frosting: I decided to go for a simpler vegan cream cheese recipe, I would hardly be able to tell that it was vegan at all had I not been the one making it. No food processor or soaked cashews required, if you’re limited on supplies, and here’s what I used.
One 8oz container of Daiya Cream Cheese
1/2 plant based butter (mix well with an electric hand mixer)
4 cups of powdered sugar (add in one cup at a time)
1 tsp (more or less) Vanilla Extract
lastly, add in 1 tsp 1/2 teaspoon at a time of plant based milk if you feel like it’s too thick. otherwise, you could totally just leave it as it is 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Sounds awesome Lily! Thanks for sharing!
Denise says
Can this be made oil free? And if so what would you use as a substitute and how much?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Denise, you could try using applesauce in the same quantity. I haven’t tried it but I think it would work. 🙂
Denise says
The applesauce worked perfect!! I have made the cake twice now. Thank you!!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks for updating us Denise!
Alexa says
Hi! So I loved this recipe! My boyfriend and I were so excited to find an alternative for our favorite carrot cake. I would say though the Apple cider vinegar in the icing threw off my tastebuds a bit. I made a different icing with just almond milk, powdered sugar, and some cinnamon. Definitely gonna make this again though! Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Thanks for sharing Alexa! 🙂
Nick says
So the taste of this recipe is amazing but this is the second time I’ve made it and I’m not sure if it’s me but the structural integrity just seems really low, both times the cake has fallen apart when icing. I waited about 5hrs to ice them too to make sure they were completely cooled off. Any suggestions?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Nick, did you make any substitutions on the flour? Because the structural integrity is really strong when we make this. We have even made a gluten-free version (using a gluten-free all purpose blend) that holds together fantastically well. But the flour needs to be all purpose flour or gluten-free all purpose flour, any other flour will not work.