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.
Rebecca Brennen says
This was delicious! If I make it the day before, should I frost it then, or before serving?
Alison Andrews says
Yes you can frost it the same day and then store covered overnight in the fridge, bring to room temperature on the counter before serving.
Jas says
Hi Thanks for the recipe my cake was a little crumbly what did I do wrong? Thanks.
Alison Andrews says
Hi Jas, you may have accidentally used too much flour. Either measure it using the spoon and level it (spoon into your measuring cup and then level off the top with a knife) or weigh it on a food scale.
Haylee says
Hi there, I’ve made this before and it was amazing. I’m wondering if I can make it with GF flour?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Haylee, yes it works wonderfully with gluten free flour! You can also see our gluten free carrot cake post. 🙂
Katie says
This carrot cake is perfect! I made it for my (non-vegan) stepdaughter’s birthday a few years ago and now she asks for it every birthday! I sometimes throw in a handful of raisins and I use your regular vanilla frosting rather than the lemon. I also like to increase the ingredients by 50% to make a 3 layer cake since everybody always wants more 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful to hear that Katie! Thanks so much!
Krystle J Watson says
Wowzers, this cake is amazing! I doubled the recipe and made it into a 9×13 cake for Mother’s Day, and 8 cupcakes for a birthday party I was going to, they both turned out great. One thing I did catch and it could be what’s messing other people up, 300g of brown sugar was about 3 cups for me. As I was doubling the recipe this was fine, but I was going to put 600g in since that would have been the doubled amount, it looked like way too much on the scales so I went by volume instead. AND I had no trouble with it being too dry and I live in a semi-desert state that usually causes problems with those things. Eating a piece of leftover cake with my coffee right now and just wanted to say how awesome this cake is!
Alison Andrews says
So glad you enjoyed it Krystle! I’m not sure what was happening with the sugar though because 1 cup of light brown sugar is 200g. So the volume matches the weight. But so glad your cake turned out great! Reducing the sugar does work well for a lot of people. 🙂
Debbie Cawley says
This is the BEST EVER carrot cake I have ever made or tasted! Beautiful, moist, delicious and so easy!
Have been asked by a lot of friends for the recipeafter I shared my photos on FB!
Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Debbie!
Dawn says
It came out amazing thanks. So well risen. I also added a handful of currants and coconut and the zest of an orange. I also just used 1/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup soya milk mixed to lower the fat and it still worked wonderful!
Tiffany says
This cake was such a hit for my 1 yr. olds bday! I used avocado oil as it was what I had. I didn’t have to use any milk because I used coconut sugar which i mixed in with the carrots before I prepped everything so it became nice and juicy by the time it was time to add them in. I also doubled the recipe and made 2 very nice sized 8 inch layer cakes.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks so much for sharing Tiffany!
Lucy says
Love this recipe! Have used it a few times now. Always a hit with the family! Thanks for sharing your recipe ☺️
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks so much Lucy!
Tali says
This turned out awesome!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Tali!
Lisa says
I was wondering if I could do this recipe in two 9-in cake pan? (I don’t have a smaller cake pan) Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Lisa, the layers will be a little thin, maybe a little too thin. It might be better to do it as a single layer and see how that goes, bake time will probably be 35-40 minutes.
Elizabeth says
Thank you for this recipe. I made it once already and would like to try it again. My cake was delicious, everyone gobbled it up. It was a little thick though. My baking soda and powder were both fresh and I attempted to not knock the air out of it while stirring. Any ideas on how to make it a bit less dense?
Also, I was thinking about adding raisins next time. Any advice on that?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Elizabeth, you may have used a bit too much flour, I recommend to use the spoon and level method (spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife, don’t scoop it or pack it into the cup) or weigh it on a food scale. I think you could add up to a cup of raisins into the batter without any issues. All the best! 🙂
Michelle says
I love my traditional carrot cake with pineapple included in the batter. Do you think that would be possible to incorporate in this recipe and if so how much do you think will suffice?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Michelle, I think you could use crushed pineapple, 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.
Sitota says
Hi! Can I make this in a 9×13 dish, and if so what would the baking times be?
Alison Andrews says
You can, the baking time would be 25 minutes. 🙂
Maddy says
Like the cake but don’t like the lemon frosting. I felt the frosting overwhelmed the cake flavor. I’ll make again but with cream cheese frosting. I used my food processor to shredd the carrots which made this cake really quick and easy to make.
Tapiola says
I have made this cake twice in the past month and eaten it (by myself) in record time on both occasions! It is soooo good. I fudged the proportions ever so slightly to get nice thick layers in my 8” pans and found the recipe to be very flexible.