Vegan Carrot Cake Loaf
Easy vegan carrot cake loaf with the classic flavors of carrot cake, but with the one-bowl simplicity of banana bread! This moist quick bread uses brown sugar and lots of warm spices for the best flavor. It's delicious by itself or topped with a soft dairy-free cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 2 ½ cups (315g) all-purpose plain flour spooned and leveled (note 1)
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar or use more brown sugar
- ½ cup (95g) packed brown sugar or use more granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
Wet ingredients
- 2 cups (200g) coarsely grated carrots (around 1-2 large carrots)
- 1 cup (250g) dairy-free milk
- ½ cup (120g) neutral flavored oil or a light olive oil
- ¾ cup (90g) chopped walnuts or pecans, optional (note 3 for other add-ins)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar regular vinegar or lemon juice, optional
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
To decorate (see note 3 for frosting without cream cheese)
- 3 tablespoons (43g) vegan block butter room temperature
- ½ cup (80g) vegan cream cheese room temperature
- 1 ½ cups (150g) powdered sugar / icing sugar or as needed
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (25g) chopped pecans or chopped walnuts (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (355°F). Line an 8-inch (20 cm) loaf pan with parchment paper.
Make the vegan carrot cake loaf:
- Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and whisk until there are no lumps. Add all the wet ingredients (including the carrots and optional nuts) and mix until just combined. Initially, the batter will be thick, but it will loosen after a couple of minutes as the carrot and sugar will soften.
- Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan.
- Bake the cake for around 60-65 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick in the center of the loaf and it comes out clean. A few moist crumbs on your toothpick are fine but make sure there's no wet batter on it.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack.
Make the cream cheese frosting:
- Add the vegan butter to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat until it's 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 a little more powdered sugar or a few tablespoons of cornstarch. Chill the frosting until needed.
Serve the cake:
- When the loaf has completely cooled, spread the frosting on top. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts or pecans, or as desired.
- Slice and serve the loaf at room temperature.
- Store the unfrosted loaf in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. If you topped your loaf with cream cheese frosting, you can store it at room temperature for 1-2 hours or in the fridge for around 2 days. Allow the cake to come to room temperature before serving. If you used regular buttercream, store the cake at room temperature for 1-2 days.
Notes
- For the best results, measure the flour accurately otherwise, your cake may 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. I don't recommend using the measuring cup to scoop flour out of your container as it will collect too much flour which results in a dry cake. Alternatively, use the grams measurements.
- If you'd like to add raisins or coconut, I recommend reducing the nuts to 1/4 cup (30g) and adding 1/2 cup (75g) raisins (that have been soaked in water) or 1/2 cup (45g) coconut.
- If you don't have cream cheese, I recommend making a simple lemon buttercream. Whip 1/3 cup (75g) vegan block butter until pale and creamy. Add 1 1/2 cups (150g) powdered sugar and 2 or 3 teaspoons lemon juice and whip until it's light and fluffy. For more alternatives, see the blog post.