Fluffy and moist vegan carrot cake that is packed with warm spices and will melt in your mouth. This no-fuss cake uses only common pantry ingredients and is easy to make.
Why you'll love this carrot cake
TASTE/TEXTURE: Moist crumb that sticks to your fork and is packed with flavor. I've served this cake to non-vegans and they couldn't tell that it didn't contain eggs, dairy or conventional butter!
OCCASION: Perfect for Easter, Spring or whenever you need a classic dessert.
DIFFICULTY: The cake comes together in one bowl and you don't need to use any special egg replacers!
Ingredients you'll need
The full list of ingredient quantities and instructions are in the gray recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Notes about the ingredients
Coarsely shredded carrots add moisture and flavor to the carrot cake. You can use a box grater or food processor to grate your carrots (I used a food processor).
Neutral-flavored oil keeps the cake soft and moist, and allows the other flavors to shine. Melted coconut oil will work but I recommend serving the cake at room temperature as coconut oil solidifies at certain temperatures and can make a cake feel dry.
Dairy-free milk. I used soy milk but any variety will work (or even water).
Brown sugar and granulated sugar. Brown sugar adds flavor whereas granulated sugar keeps the carrot cake fluffy. We get the best of both worlds!
Apple cider vinegar makes the cake more soft and tender. Eggless cakes can still be fluffy ;)!
How to make vegan carrot cake
First, if your all-purpose flour or brown sugar has lumps, make sure you sift them!
In one large bowl, stir the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients then mix until combined. If you're using nuts, add them at the same time as the wet ingredients.
You can mix the batter by hand, with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Whatever you choose, make sure you don't overmix the cake batter otherwise your cake will be dense and tough.
Baking tips
It'll take approximately 35-40 minutes to bake this vegan carrot cake and it's ready when a toothpick comes out clean.
The cakes may dome a little in the oven. If so, I recommend cutting the domes off as it's 100% easier to stack a cake when the layers are flat.
If you have cake strips, I suggest using them for this cake. Cake strips minimize cakes from doming which is super helpful when we need to layer them.
Decorating the carrot cake
Make sure the cake layers are completely cool before decorating. When the frosting is warm, it will be too soft to hold up your cake layers.
I decorated my cake with a vegan cream cheese frosting. If you can't access cream cheese, I recommend using a classic buttercream frosting with a squeeze of lemon (for example, from my lemon cake recipe). The lemon adds tartness to the buttercream and it'll taste similar to cream cheese frosting!
Customizing this recipe
Without changing the recipe, you can add:
- shredded or fine coconut
- raisins
- different spices for example, cardamom
- orange or lemon zest
I haven't tested it but the cake should also work with crushed pineapple. I recommend reducing the plant milk and replacing it with pineapple.
This recipe will also work in:
- Two 7-inch and 9-inch round cake pans. If using 7-inch pans, they'll need to be at least 2 inches tall otherwise they will overflow. You will also need to adjust the baking time.
- One 9-inch square cake pan
- One 10-inch round cake pan
- One 9x13 inch rectangle pan for a sheet cake
Alternatively, check out my carrot cake loaf, carrot muffins or carrot cupcakes.
Yes, try using whole wheat flour or spelt flour combined with coconut sugar. But add an extra dash of milk as those flours are more absorbent. You may be able to use applesauce instead of oil but the cake will come out denser.
If you'd like a recipe with less sugar, see my carrot cake loaf or muffins.
You may also like my carrot cake cookies!
More vegan cake recipes
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Vegan Carrot Cake
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 3 cups (375g) all-purpose plain flour, spooned and leveled (note 1, and for gluten-free option)
- 1 cup (190g) packed brown sugar, or use more granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar, or use more brown sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients
- 3 cups (300g) coarsely grated carrots, (around 3-4 medium carrots)
- 1 ¼ cups (315g) dairy-free milk
- ½ cup (125g) neutral flavored oil, or a light olive oil
- 1 cup (120g) chopped walnuts, or pecans, optional (note 2 for other add-ins)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, regular vinegar or lemon juice, optional
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting (see note 3 for frosting without cream cheese)
- ½ cup (115g) vegan block butter, room temperature
- 8 oz (240g) vegan cream cheese, room temperature
- 4 cups (400g) powdered sugar / icing sugar, more if needed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons (20g) cornstarch / corn flour, or ¼ cup melted vegetable shortening or coconut oil, for a firmer frosting (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F). Grease or line 2 x 8 inch (20 cm) round cake pans with parchment paper.
Make the vegan carrot cake (note 4 for make-ahead instructions):
- Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and whisk until the mixture is well combined and there are no lumps. Add all the wet ingredients (including the carrots and nuts) and mix until just combined.
- Evenly divide the carrot cake batter into your prepared cake pans.
- Bake the cakes for around 35-40 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick in the middle and it comes out clean.
- Allow the cakes to cool completely in their pans on a cooling rack.
Make the cream cheese frosting:
- Add the vegan butter to a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat until light and fluffy. Add the vegan cream cheese and beat until there are no lumps.
- Add the sugar and vanilla extract and beat until just combined. If your frosting is too runny, add up to 1 extra cup of powdered sugar, corn starch or drizzle in the shortening while mixing.
- Chill the frosting until needed.
Frosting the cake:
- When the cakes have completely cooled, place one layer on a serving plate.
- Spread or pipe around ¾ cup of frosting on the cake and place the remaining cake on top.
- Spread the remaining frosting on the cake. If you have excess frosting, use a piping bag with a star nozzle to pipe the remaining frosting on top of the cake. Decorate the cake as desired.
- Store the frosted vegan carrot cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Allow the cake to come to room temperature for 1 hour before serving. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 5 days or in the freezer for 1 month.
Video
Notes
- Measuring the flour: Please measure the flour accurately otherwise, your cake will be dry and dense. If using measuring cups, use the spoon and level method where you fluff up the flour in its bag, use a spoon to add flour to a measuring cup, then level it off with a knife. Using the measuring cup to scoop flour out of your container will result in a dry cake. Alternatively, use the grams measurements.
Gluten-free version: This recipe works well with King Arthur's gluten-free measure for measure flour. Your batter may be thicker, but the cakes will still bake well. I recommend baking the cakes for 40-45 minutes. - If you'd like to add raisins or coconut, I recommend reducing the nuts to ½ cup (60g) and adding 1 cup (150g) raisins or 1 cup (85g) coconut.
- If you don't have cream cheese, I recommend making lemon buttercream frosting from my vegan lemon cake recipe.
- This vegan carrot cake can be prepared the day before. You can make the whole cake, decorate it and store it in an airtight container in the fridge overnight. Alternatively, you can make the cake layers and store them at room temperature in a container or plastic wrap overnight. The frosting can be made the day before but needs to be chilled overnight. Let the frosting to come to room temperature before using.
Nutrition
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Sandra Bovy says
It is so good! I do not bake a lot, but this was easy. It only needed a bit more time in my oven than it said in the recipy. I will also use a bit more spices next time. It was a big plus for me that the ingredients where also in g, not only cups. Will make this again! Greetings from Belgium
Lisette says
I made this cake last January for my sister’s birthday and she loved it! I have so much fun making and decorating the cake that it was well worth all the planning since having two toddlers at home, lol. Definitely recommend her recipes and taking the time to read all the instructions and notes. Thank you!
Justine Lees says
Made this at the weekend. It took much longer in my oven than you recommended but the end result is fabulous! My son and husband both said the cake was 'well fit!' Praise indeed. Thanks for sharing.
Anthea says
Hi Justine, I'm so glad that you loved this cake! That's strange about the baking time, but it sounds like it worked out well at the end. Thanks so much for letting me know 🙂
Karen says
Hi Anthea
Have you frozen an un-iced cake and iced later? Would it freeze well and how far ahead of icing would you reccomend taking it out of the freezer.
Any tips greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Anthea says
Hi Karen, yes I used to do this when I had a cake business (although, it's been a few years). Undecorated cake layers freeze quite well. Normally, I cover the cakes in some type of food wrap and store them in a container in the freezer. Then, I let the cakes thaw in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Thawing at room temperature will be a more sudden temperature change which can cause condensation. The only thing I wouldn't recommend is adding whole fruit to a cake (such as berries) as their texture will change. Carrots in carrot cake are fine though. I hope that helps!
Karen says
Perfect. Thank you
roger says
this, by far, was the best vegan carrot cake recipe i have tried!! honestly, i have tried several ones but this was the best one. my family loved it so much that they are asking me to do another one. thanks 🙂
also, it was so yummy and delicious. so decadent, moist, flavorful, and easy!!
Anthea says
Hi Roger, aw this is such a lovely review!! I'm thrilled that this is now your favorite carrot cake recipe and that your family loved it too! Thank you so much for letting me know 🙂
Nita says
Hi Anthea,
Your cake looks delicious.
What can I use instead of apple cider vinegar?
Thanks
Anthea says
Hi Nita! You can use white vinegar or lemon juice, or just omit it. Hope that helps.
Nita says
Thanks Anthea,
I made this carrot cake for my sister's birthday. It was moist and super delicious😋. I ended up using ACV anyway.
I have tried few other recipes of yours and they are all delicious.
Thank you.
Nita
Anthea says
Aw that's great to hear!! And I'm so glad that you enjoyed some of my other recipes too. Thanks so much for coming back to let me know, and I'm honored that it was part of your sister's celebrations 🙂
Keeks says
I made this carrot cake for my mother’s birthday and took leftovers into work the next day. I didn’t tell anyone it was vegan until after they’d finished their slices (people can get judgy when they hear stuff is vegan and automatically think it won’t be nice!) and everyone’s was so shocked. It tasted SOOOO good, it was so moist (apologies to anyone who hates that word) and flavourful. I’ll be making it again soon and I know it’ll be a hit with everyone.
I love how easy the recipe is to follow and how simple the ingredients are too. Totally recommend this to everyone who’s a carrot cake fan!
Anthea says
Hey! I'm soooo thrilled that everyone loved this cake and I'm honoured that it was part of your mother's birthday! I absolutely know what you mean about telling people that it's a *vegan* cake and it sounds like it challenged a few preconceived beliefs. Thanks sooo much for your wonderful feedback - you've absolutely made my day!
Susie walker says
Hi, I baked this today but it looks nothing like your cake, I'm so disappointed! It tastes nice but is very pale and a bit stodgy. I followed all your guidelines but I did sub the oil for yoghurt, would that have made a difference? Any ideas?
Anthea says
Hi Susie, I'm sorry that the texture/colour of your cake didn't turn out! In my experience, using yoghurt instead of oil definitely makes a cake denser and stodgy. With the colour of the cake, by any chance, did you choose the option of using only regular sugar, instead of brown? That would affect the colour of the cake. Or, if you did use the combination of sugars, it sounds like the yoghurt affected the colour too. Hope that helps!
Sandra says
Hello!
Can i use oat flour instead of all purpose plain flour?
Anthea says
Hi! I haven't tested this particular recipe with oat flour so I can't vouch for results. However, when using oat flour, generally you need to add a binder, such as corn starch otherwise the cake will not hold together.
sandra says
Thanks!
Tina Lowe says
I made the vegan cake batter was kind of stiff after I added the almond milk,1-1/4 cup, looks kind of bumpy on top. Should I have added more almond milk? The cake has about 15 minutes to finish baking… I’m excited! Oh, I cheated with the frosting, I didn’t use vegan ingredients
Anthea says
Hi Tina, your batter might be thicker than normal if you packed a little too much flour in your measuring cups (see note 1 in the recipe box). Also, the batter may look thicker initially, but if you let it sit for a couple of minutes, the sugar and carrots will soften and make the batter much runnier. I hope your cake turned out well!
Emma Arnold says
OMG This is truly gorgeous!! I've just made it for my boyfriend's birthday and there was lots of extra mix left over so have made Easter buns too...(which I have immediately tried)....Fully recommend!! soft ,light, fluffy...5 stars!!
Anthea says
I'm sooo happy that you loved this cake, and especially the texture!! Extra Easter cakes would be so cute too. Thanks so much for the wonderful feedback, Emma!
Elizabeth says
Hello! I'm looking to make this cake tomorrow, but have a nut allergy - will it change it much without the walnuts? Thanks! Your recipes are always stellar
Anthea says
Hi Elizabeth! The recipe works pretty much the same without the walnuts - I've baked it a few times that way and it's equally as delicious! I hope that helps and I'm so glad that you're enjoying my recipes 🙂