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.
Paula says
Amazing! At the beginning (even after letting it sit for a while) I thought the batter was way too dry but I still didn’t add any liquids and shaved it in the oven (the whole batter in one pan)
It turned out perfectly moist. I served it with a cashew frosting and it tasted delicious!
Thank you so much!
Hena Anson says
This recipe is amazing! It is my goto cake recipe. I made this for my boyfriend and he was shocked by how good a vegan cake tasted.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks so much Hena!
Holly says
I made this recipe as muffins and they came out great! Super soft and moist without any gummyness. I omitted flax eggs, subbed half the oil for applesauce and baked for 25 mins. But when I baked it in a loaf pan, I baked for 50 minutes and it was quite underdone and gummy, whereas the top was getting burned and deflated. I made the batter the same both times, does anyone know why it didn’t turn out well in a loaf pan? Anyway, thank you very much for this recipe 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Holly, so happy to hear they came out great as muffins. I think the issue with a loaf pan is that it would be a long bake time, and then it can burn on top before the middle is cooked through. I haven’t tested this cake as a loaf cake so I’m not sure what the exact bake time would be, but generally speaking tenting with foil is a good option at around the 40 minute mark. Bring it out, tent with foil and then place it back into the oven for another 30 minutes or so and then see if it’s done.
Antionette Bezuidenhout says
My favourite vegan carrot cake recipe, have made it 3 times now and comes out perfect each time!
The last time around I only used half the amount of sugar (150g) as we find the 300g too sweet. It did not change the texture at all, and the cake was even yummier.
Chelsea says
Do you think you could add pineapple to this recipe?
Alison Andrews says
You could, but it would need to replace something else. I’m thinking you could use 1/3 cup crushed pineapple in place of the two flax eggs.
Emily says
I absolutely love this recipe!! It’s so delicious and with the lemon frosting I think it’s my favourite cake to make since I went vegan. I was wondering if you use a particular type of sugar? Last time I used soft light brown sugar but I was curious if you prefer to use demerara or something else?
Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Emily, you can really use any brown sugar, but we usually use light brown sugar. So glad you love the recipe! 🙂
Jack says
Tasted great but couldn’t get the cake to cook through despite allowing double the time in the oven. Think the batter may need to be drier next time around.
Any tips on getting the right consistency?
Alison Andrews says
I’m wondering if your oven temp was correct, an oven thermometer can be a good way to check what temperature your oven is actually reaching inside. The batter should not be wet, in fact you have to step away to allow the carrots to release moisture into the batter so that you can mix it.
Warrick says
Forgot the walnuts even after reading the notes…lol.
Alison Andrews says
Hahaha! Happens to me all the time. 🙂
Selin says
Hi Alison! I want to bake this cake for my daughters first birthday tomorrow, I did it once in the past and loooved it, its delish! Do you think I can cut down a little on sugar? Thanks so much!
Alison Andrews says
You can reduce the sugar a little, I wouldn’t reduce it too much though because it’s important for the texture as well as the taste. But a reduction should be fine.
Selin says
Thanks for the fast reply! I just had another idea, do you think I can replace the sugar with something else? I saw some recipes with maple sirup per example… also – this recipe is def worth five stars, forgot to rate it 🙂
Alison Zorraquin says
Hi Alison, my daughter and I wanted to thank you for your fab cake recipes. I used to love baking but when I went vegan I made so many disastrous cakes that I almost gave up,I literally used to rage in the kitchen! Your recipes have restored peace and love to the kitchen.This carrot cake is perfect. Thanks so much! ????
Alison Andrews says
Thank you so much for the wonderful comment Alison, I’m so pleased to hear that! 🙂
David says
This is amazing! The sponge on the cake is so fluffy and the flavor is so so good! I didn’t need to add milk, the batter was wet enough to mix everything together. Thank you so much for the recipe!
Alison Andrews says
That’s awesome David! Thanks so much!
Diane Spiteri says
We absolutely love this cake. It is super simple to put together once you have prepared all the ingredients. The only comment I would make is to prepare your flax eggs first. That’s what I do anyway. I make this nearly every week. We love cake! Every now and then we swap to a different cake for a change but they never compare to this. I always think it’s one of our five a day!! Xx
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Diane!
thu says
This looks so good! I will try this recipe to make one for my friend’s upcoming birthday. I have a question, do you think I could use whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour? Would it still give the same texture?
Thank you in advance for your answer,
Katie.
Alison Andrews says
Hi there, the texture would be different, it would be more coarse. You could use it if you don’t mind a change in texture though. 🙂
Taylor says
Made this cake for my boyfriends birthday for the second year in a row. Wouldn’t change a thing ❤️❤️❤️ I e absolute love this cake
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Taylor!
Beth says
I used egg replacer because i didn’t have flax meal and the sponge was incredible!! 10/10 would recommend! It’s really light and moist which is good because it gives egg free cakes a good name 😀
However the same can’t be said for the icing… I only put one tbsp of apple cider vinegar in it and it was such an overwhelming vinegar flavour/very acidic in addition to the lemon juice, I think i’d have to stick to a vinegar free icing recipe next time!
Anon says
This cake was my first attempt at a vegan bake and it was absolutely delicious!
Adeline says
Absolutely delish’! I made it today for my boyfriend’s bday and it was just incredible. Thank you, Alison, for this fab recipe. Was wondering if anyone had ever tried to freeze it? Would it be nice at all once it’s been frozen and then thawed? Any thoughts? 🙂 Xx
Alison Andrews says
So glad you enjoyed it! You can absolutely freeze it, it freezes super well. 🙂