I never met a carrot cake I didn't like. The perfect amalgamation of savoury and sweet – also, part of your five a day, kinda – this beautifully textured baked treat is an ideal accompaniment to any afternoon tea date. But why share?
If you're not in the business of dietary requirements, that's quite alright: rest assured you'll still very much enjoy this vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free variant on the root veg-based cake classic. And health!
FOR THE CAKE, YOU WILL NEED:
> 250g buckwheat flour (spelt would be nice too)
> 200g coconut sugar
> 4 tsp cinnamon
> 1-2 tsp nutmeg
> 1 tsp Himalayan salt (my preferred choice, but don't make a special trip to buy it if you just want to use the salt in your cupboard)
> 3-4 tsp baking powder
> 200-250g carrots, grated
> 150g apple puree
> approx. 50ml plant/coconut oil
> optional extras: sunflower seeds, raisins, chopped walnuts
> a loaf tin, well greased
FOR THE FROSTING:
> 150g cashews, soaked and drained (I pop mine in a bowl of water overnight, but a couple of hours will suffice)
> 1-2 tsp vanilla extract
> 2 tbsp agave syrup (or maple, if you fancy)
> 2 tbsp coconut oil
> 2 tsp lemon juice
> a splash of your chosen milk (I use oat or almond)
THIS IS HOW WE DO IT:
1) Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2) Combine all the dry cake ingredients (minus the coconut sugar) in a mixing bowl.
3) In a separate vessel, whisk together the apple puree, oil, sugar, milk, and vanilla extract.
4) Pour the liquid mix into the bowl of dry ingredients, and whisk together thoroughly – get as much air in as you can!
5) Add the grated carrot (and optional extras if you're including them), folding until thoroughly combined.
6) Put the cake mix into the greased loaf tin, then pop in the preheated oven for approx. 35 minutes.
7) For the frosting, put all the ingredients into a decent blender (my NutriBullet works great) and pulse for about one minute – until a smooth, creamy texture is created. Once made, put it in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.
8) When the cake has completely cooled, generously spread the cashew cream on top.
Have your cake and eat it.