Sunday, June 19, 2011

Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Frosting (Vegan)

One of my dad's favorite cakes is carrot cake. So for Father's Day I made one for him that would be a healthier vegan version (so I could eat it too, because I love carrot cake!) The cake and frosting recipes I got from different sites and edited them. I like things like this to be low glycemic, so I don't get a major sugar high from it.

Cake
3 cups spelt flour
2 cups coconut sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tbsp baking soda
1 Tbsp cinnamon
3/4 cup coconut oil
3/4 cup banana, mashed
4 Tbsp flaxseed, ground
12 Tbsp warm water
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
12 drops vanilla stevia
1 1/2 cups shelled walnuts, chopped (plus more for topping)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened, shredded coconut
2 cups of finely grated carrots
1 cup of drained crushed pineapple

Coconut Cream Frosting
1 cup coconut milk (canned)
1 cup agave nectar
pinch real salt
5 teaspoons arrowroot powder
1 tablespoon water (or coconut water)
1 1/4 cup coconut oil

Cake Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9 inch cake pans. Mix ground flax with warm water and allow to sit for 5 min. Sift dry ingredients into a bowl. If coconut oil is solid, submerge jar into hot water for 5-10 min to melt it. Add melted oil, flax mixture, vanilla and stevia. Beat well. Mix in chopped walnuts, coconut, carrots and pineapple. Pour batter into pans equally. Bake for 40-45 minutes (shift positions of cakes front-to-back if necessary about halfway through), or a little longer, until edges have pulled away from sides and a toothpick or fork inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool on rack. Once cakes have cooled, and the frosting has set up, frost. Sprinkle top with chopped walnuts or arrange walnut halves in a crown around the top.


Frosting Instructions
In a medium saucepan, heat coconut milk, agave and salt, simmer for 10 minutes
In a little bowl, combine arrowroot and water to form a smooth paste. Pour arrowroot mixture into saucepan. Mix them really well together with a fork or whisk, then bring to a boil, for a min or 2 until shiny. Remove pot from heat and very slowly blend in coconut oil with a hand blender, it splatters easily.
Allow pot to cool for 10 minutes
Put the pot in the fridge for 45-120 minutes, until frosting gets solid and turns white throughout.
Remove from fridge and blend again with a hand mixer, until fluffy.