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.

Luau Salad (GF, Raw, Vegan)

Still going strong on my 100% raw diet, a little less than a week to go.  I'm feeling great, lots of energy and my insides feel good. Not that I was feeling bad at all before, this is just what I have been noticing. I'm thinking it's a combo of the 100% raw cleanse that I'm doing and considerable amounts of structured water I have been drinking.
This is seriously such a great salad, and so colorful too! The dressing is a sweet citrus dressing, almost a creamy vinaigrette. I was so excited to sit down and eat it, and I wasn't the least bit disappointed. I don't think you will be either. ENJOY!!

easiest way to cube mango, cut into a grid & then flip inside out & cut apart from the skin

 

Serves A LOT, maybe 10

1 head Red Leaf Lettuce, rough chopped
1 1/2 C Spinach, rough chopped
1 cucumber, diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 stalks celery, diced
5 green onions, thinly sliced
1 mango, cut into cubes
1/3 C Pineapple, chopped
1/3 C macadamia nuts, soaked for 20 min rinsed thoroughly & medium chopped
2 Tbs unsweetened coconut
1 Mandarin Orange, peeled and segemented

Optional Garnish
2 Tbs unsweetened coconut
2 Tbs Sunflower Seeds

Dressing
Juice of 2 Mandarin Oranges/Clementines
1/3 C Olive Oil
1/3 C Raw Agave Nectar
1/3 C Lime Juice
1 Tbs Raw Almond Butter
1 tsp Ground Coriander
1/2 tsp Orange Flavor/Extract (I used Simply Organic's Orange Flavor)
1/2 tsp RealSalt (Sea Salt or Himalayan Salt works also)
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp Onion Powder
1 tsp Sesame Seeds
dash of Ground Cardamom


Combine all salad ingredients in large salad bowl and mix. If you are going for presentation, reserve 1/4 of the mango and 1-2 Tbs of the macadamia nuts to place on the top of the salad along with the optional garnish. To make the dressing, just put all ingredients into a small bowl and stir together really well. I also had it in a container with a lid and shook it up to make sure everything was mixed well. You can toss the salad with the dressing, although I have found that it is nice to just have the dressing in a separate container for individuals to add as they please. Plus, it allows the salad to keep longer if it isn't devoured in one sitting.