This reader-favorite gluten-free carrot cake gets a moist, tender, springy crumb from a blend of gluten-free flours: sweet rice, oat, millet, and tapioca. Gently spiced with cinnamon and ginger and slathered with vegan cream cheese frosting, this single-layer cake is easy enough to bake on a weeknight, but dress it up with carrot ribbons and becomes a dessert centerpiece for any gathering.
Prep Time: 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 30 minutesminutes
Total: 50 minutesminutes
Servings: 10servings
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
1teaspoonvegan butter or coconut oil, for the pan
8ouncescarrots (about 4 medium), grated on smallest holes of box grater (1¼ cups packed)
1bunch rainbow carrots (or a couple of regular carrots)(optional)
A few sprigs carrot greens or parsley
Instructions
Prepare Things
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350ºF.
Butter a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper cut to fit.
Batter
In a large bowl, stir together the grated carrots, eggs, sugar, and oil until combined.
Place a medium mesh strainer over the bowl and add the oat, sweet rice, millet, and tapioca flours along with the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.
Sift the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, stirring until combined. Stir in the walnuts.
Bake
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth into an even layer.
Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, 22-30 minutes. board to cool completely.
Remove from the oven and let cool 20 minutes in the pan. Turn the cake out onto a serving
Top
Spread the cream cheese frosting over the cooled cake. Chill briefly if the frosting is overly soft.
Optionally decorate with carrot ribbons: Peel the carrots. Lay a carrot on a cutting board and begin peeling long, wide strips from one side. Repeat with the other carrots; you’ll have more carrot ribbons than you need for one cake. (Throw them in a salad!) Use your fingers to curl the ribbons into rounds and stick them into the frosting; the frosting will hold them in place. Sprinkle the cake with finely chopped walnuts and decorate with carrot greens.
If the frosting is soft, chill the cake until firm enough to slice, 30 minutes and up to several hours, then cut into wedges. Let the cake slices stand at room temperature to soften the frosting and serve. Leftover cake keeps well, refrigerated airtight, for up to 4 days.
For rice flour, sub by weight cassava flour or GF AP blend
For oat flour, sub by weight sorghum or teff flour
For millet flour, sub by weight sorghum or almond flour
For tapioca flour, sub by weight arrowroot flour or corn starch
Do-Ahead:
The cake can be baked and stored, covered, at room temperature for 1 day, refrigerated for up to 3 days, or wrapped and frozen for up to several months.
The frosted cake can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Leftover cake keeps beautifully, refrigerated airtight, for up to 1 week.
Variation: Cassava & Coconut Flour Carrot Cake (kosher for Passover)Replace the sugar with 1/2 cup maple syrup (+2 tablespoons if you like it sweeter). Use avocado oil, mild olive oil, or melted coconut oil in place of the sunflower oil. Replace the flours with 3/4 cup (105 g) Bob's Red Mill cassava flour and 1/4 cup (25 g) Bob's Red Mill coconut flour. Top the cake with paleo cream cheese frosting, whipped coconut cream or thick coconut yogurt.Nutritional values are based on one of twelve servings.