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.
Ronda says
I made this for Mother’s Day and it was soooo yummy! Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Ronda!
Shree says
Hi – your recipe looks delish! I wanted to make this for my mom and use a pretty rose bundt pan that I have. Is that possible and do I need to alter the baking time at all? Thanks!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Shree, the baking time would increase to around 50-60 minutes. Just keep an eye on it!
Michael says
Great. I have pinned. I will try to make it when I have time. Thanks you!
Rosie Felt says
I’m having trouble with my cake baking all the way through !!
It’s been in the oven for over an hour and the cake is still wet inside
Alison Andrews says
Are you baking it the way we did as a two layer cake 7 or 8 inch cake?
Mary Stamo says
Hi! I’ve made this cake and my whole family loved it!! Just wondering what your thoughts are on making it with gluten free flour? I want to make it for my niece who is gluten free…
Thanks so much!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Mary, we’ve adapted this cake to gluten-free, check out our gluten-free carrot cake recipe. 🙂
Yuna says
The flavour is excellent, but even with a lot of creasing the cakes did not want to come out of the pans in one piece! I managed to stick them back together but it wasn’t perfect. I will try it again sometimes with some bread crumbs in the bottom of the pan as that was my mums way to prevent the sticking 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Yuna, I cut out circles of parchment paper for the bottom of my cake pans. That, along with non-stick spray or oiling the pans, works best!
Liz says
Great recipe and a lovely cake but the metric conversions are way off. Don’t trust them. I hate measuring in cups but the metric amounts are completely wrong on this one. The icing is divine
Alison Andrews says
Hi Liz! So glad you liked the recipe. The metric conversions are definitely correct though as we measure in metric as the default every time we make this cake.
Reem says
Absolutely STUNNING recipe, everyone FELL IN LOVE with this cake when they tasted it. I’ve made two of your cake recipes so far, this one and the upside down pineapple cake and they were DIVINE! Although Im not a vegan, I just hate the taste of eggs in my cakes and this recipe is a fantastic replacement. I’ve now vowed not to use any other cake recipes but yours. THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear that Reem! Thanks for sharing!
Sarah says
Best carrot cake recipe EVER. Made it into lil mini cakes (well, muffins but mini cakes sounds cuteee) and they are soooo moist and wonderful. Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Sarah!
Catalina Silva says
Hi! The recipe seems great and I would really like to try it for mother’s day, however where I am at I don’t have a possibility to access vegan butter, cheese, margarine, coconut cream, or any vegan substitute really. The most we get is almond milk! So I was wondering if you know of any substitute I could use that is relatively easy to access.
Christal says
I have the everything mixed in the bowl and wondering how thick is the batter supposed to be? My batter isn’t dry, but I have made carrot cake before vegan that more thin than this.
Alison Andrews says
It is very thick, we have photos and a video that you can compare to.
Harpreet says
Hi! So if i am increasing the recipe by a half for 9 inch cakes, do I use 3 flax eggs, because I have heard it is not recommended to use more than 2 in a recipe? Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
You can absolutely use 3 flax eggs in a recipe if you are increasing a vegan recipe that has been designed using flax eggs. The only time it is not recommended to use multiples of flax eggs is if you are adapting a non-vegan recipe that uses regular eggs.
Meshi says
Hi, Alison! I am wondering, will any kind of vegan butter work with this, or do I need a certain kind?
Alison Andrews says
Usually any kind will work! Some vegan butter spreads are very soft and runny though and those don’t work as well. So if you choices, then a firm tub style vegan butter or stick will usually work well.
Roses says
Hey Alison,
Your recipe is great. I struggled to make it take 2 hours. But the results are worth it. It’s very delicious. My son likes to eat it. Thanks you!
Alison Andrews says
So glad you enjoyed it Roses!
Andrea says
This is my first time commenting on a recipe – I just had to share that it’s SO CRAZY GOOD. I didn’t need to add any milk to the batter after mixing.
My only notes:
-Didn’t have 7″ pans, so I used 8″ pans. 30 minutes baking time was perfect. I gave the pans a little swirl before I put them in the oven to prevent doming in the middle.
-I made an easy frosting by combining vegan cream cheese, confectioner’s sugar, vegan butter, and a splash of vanilla
-I have never made a 2-layer cake before, so I didn’t put enough frosting in the middle for that beautiful look while cut. I’ll correct that for the next time baking, which will be today, because I am a monster and this cake is freaking delicious.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome Andrea! Thanks so much for sharing!