Vegan Carrot Bundt Cake with Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

This vegan carrot bundt cake with cashew cream cheese frosting is about as delicious as cake gets. It has a moist, tender crumb, thanks to applesauce and the carrots, and it’s all whole wheat. The gorgeous cashew cream frosting is sweetened with maple syrup.

Around here, I never need an excuse to make carrot cake. Because this vegan carrot bundt cake goes down famously with everyone I know, vegan or not.

I started making this cake years ago, as a layer cake with vegan cream cheese, but with cashews to save the day, I wanted to try out a drizzle that would be as natural as it is delicious. There’s maple syrup in this cream cheese drizzle, and it makes an already delicious cake even more amazing.

Jay’s home this coming week for Spring break, and with Easter coming up, it seemed like the perfect time to bake up a cake. For one, he helps decimate it fast enough that I don’t end up with too much of it in my tummy. For another, he loves it.

I usually add to this cake some cardamom. A great idea I stole years ago from my blogger friend Suganya, because the cardamom adds to the cake a distinct flavor of carrot halwa, a popular Indian sweet. I have often used it in carrot-based recipes since, like this Carrot Bread. Although I didn’t add any cardamom to the cake this time, opting instead for a more traditional flavor, do try it if you want a taste of the exotic. It’s quite marvelous.

Here’s looking forward to a great weekend. May yours be filled with fun and sweet things.

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Vegan Carrot Bundt Cake with Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

This vegan carrot bundt cake with cashew cream cheese frosting is about as delicious as cake gets. It has a moist, tender crumb, thanks to applesauce and the carrots, and it's all whole wheat. The gorgeous cashew cream frosting is sweetened with maple syrup.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr 5 mins

Total Time1 hr 20 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Soy-free, Vegan, Wholegrain

Servings: 16 servings

Author: Vaishali Honawar

Ingredients

For the carrot cake:

• 3 cups whole wheat pastry flour (you can substitute with half and half of unbleached all-purpose flour and whole-wheat flour)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt or pink salt
• 2 tsp powdered cinnamon
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp powdered cardamom (optional)
• 1 cup coconut or other oil
• 2 cups applesauce
• 2 tightly packed cups grated carrots
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup walnuts, lightly roasted, chopped

For the cashew cream cheese frosting:

• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp nutritional yeast
• 1/4 cup nondairy milk

Instructions

• Prep a 9-inch bundt pan by spraying or coating with oil and flour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Make the carrot cake:

• In a bowl, sift and whisk together the flour, baking soda and baking powder. Add and mix salt, cinnamon and sugar.
• In a larger bowl, mix the wet ingredients: oil, applesauce, carrots, and vanilla extract.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two batches, mixing well after each addition and scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula. Stir in the walnuts.
• Scrape all the batter into the bundt pan evenly, and straighten the top out with a spatula.
• Place in the preheated oven and bake for 65-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool on a rack in the bundt pan for 30 minutes, then turn upside down to unmold the cake. It should slide right off. Continue cooling the cake.

Make the cashew cream cheese frosting:

• Place the soaked, drained cashews in a blender, add the remaining ingredients, and blend until very smooth.
• Drizzle over the cooled cake using a spatula or spoon.

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More vegan cakes from the archives:

Low-fat, whole-wheat vegan Chocolate Orange Bundt Cake

Vegan Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

Indian-Style Low Fat Cucumber Cake

Vegan Gingerbread Cake, whole wheat

Mava Cake, an Indian style pound cake