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.
Vegan Carrot Bundt Cake with Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting
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 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt or pink salt
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup coconut oil (or another vegetable oil)
- 2 cups applesauce
- 2 packed cups grated carrots
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup walnuts (lightly roasted, chopped)
For the cashew cream cheese frosting:
- 1 cup raw cashews (soaked overnight)
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
- ¼ 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.
Nutrition
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Cheryl Dennis
Hi there! I am so excited to try this recipe! I have the mini Bundt pan so I guess it would be like baking cupcakes at the same temperature! Might you suggest a baking time for these please? Thank you so much!
Vaishali
Hi Cheryl, bake for 25 minutes!
Anonymous
Excited to try this - thank you for posting the recipe. Can the cake be made the day before, with the icing added in the morning? Thanks!
Vaishali
Yes, you can absolutely do that!
Aarti
Yeah, i did try it out, and it turned out absolutely yummylicious. Everyone simply loved it....It was moist , not too sweet and very flavourful. Thanks for such a wonderful receipe
Vaishali
Awesome! So happy you tried.
Aarti
The quantity of sugar had not been mentioned....I wanted to try our the cake... I've kept everything ready and then realised that sugar wasn't mentioned. Could you please clarify.
Vaishali
Aarti, it's 2 cups. Hope you try!
Anonymous
Oh wow! I can't wait to make this. Grocery store conveniently had organic carrots on sale this morning, so I guess it was meant to be that I make and eat this! Thank you for another delicious recipe. Have a beautiful weekend!
Vaishali
Hope you try! 🙂
Carole Joly
Hi,
Can I make this cake in a spring form cake mould as I don't have a bundt cake mould?
Thanks,
Carole
Vaishali
Hi Carole, absolutely, that's fine.