Gluten Free Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is moist, delicious and decadent without gluten. Omit the frosting on top of your cake and your recipe is paleo.
Easter is right around the corner can you believe it? Being a food blogger you think about most major holiday’s months in advance because you need to work on coming up with amazing recipes and it takes time to write, bake or cook, re-bake and re-cook and photograph recipes. What would the holidays be without great food?
Sometimes when you are working on new recipes you hit the jack pot and sometimes your recipe hits the trash can. I wrote this carrot cake recipe one night while I was in my PJ’s listening to spotify. I had seen a layered over the top carrot cake at a local bakery, and I thought I would feel sick eating so much sugar and flour. Though I love a good carrot cake so I went to work coming up with a cake that would taste like you want a carrot cake to taste, without making me feel like crap after. I couldn’t wait to try out the recipe the next day {I am wierd like that}. I just knew it would be awesome and boy it was. This is a seriously dense heavy moist cake, and I promise not a sole will know it is gluten free and it is also paleo friendly, if you omit the frosting. Loaded with carrots, spices and walnuts the signature flavors of a great carrot cake.
- [br][b]Carrot Cake [/b]
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2/3 cup tapioca
- 1/3 coconut flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ? teaspoon ground cloves
- 3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts {optional}
- 8 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 ripe bananas (1 1/4 cups), mashed well
- 1 1/2 cups grated carrots (about 3 medium)
- 1/2 cup coconut cream
- 2 eggs, lightly whisked
- [br][b]Frosting:[/b]
- 6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup (or to taste)
- Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a 9x5x3 / 8-cup loaf pan (or 8×8 cake pan) and line it with parchment paper.
- Sift together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the walnuts and set aside.
- Stir together the maple syrup and melted butter.
- In a separate bowl combine the bananas and carrots. Stir in the butter mixture,
- Whisk in the coconut cream and the eggs.
- Add the flour mixture and stir until everything just comes together. Spoon into the prepared pan. Bake for about 50 – 60 minutes or until a toothpick tests clean in the center of the cake – it’ll be less if you are using a standard cake pan. Remove from oven and let cool.
- While the cake is baking whip together the cream cheese and maple syrup.
- When the cake has completely cooled frost the top of the cake with an offset spatula.
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I love that this is GF — and I extra-love that it’s made in a loaf pan, so I can pass it off as “breakfast bread” and no one will get judgy that I’m eating cake for breakfast. 🙂
I am all about cake in the morning Yankee Kitchen Ninja!
OMG my mouth is watering. Almost Paleo friendly is good for me…I will just count dairy as paleo for the day!
I wouldn’t be able to stop at just one slice!!
Is almond flour the same as almond meal? Is the tapioca in the little ball form or tapioca flour? How is coconut cream purchased? Could you give me a brand to look for? I would like to make this for a friend who is eating gluten-free and don’t know much about the ingredients you listed. I would be grateful for some help!
Jenny, Almond Meal and Almond Flour are the same thing. Tapioca Flour is a flour that you can find in your baking isle or organic baking isle at the grocery store. Coconut cream comes in a can, and the cream will be at the top for you to scoop out with a spoon. There will be water at the bottom, which is coconut water that you can drink or add to smoothies. Here are links to give you a better idea. Almond Flour: http://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Almond-Flour/dp/B00473RWXY/ref=sr_1_5?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1427204966&sr=1-5&keywords=almond+flour Tapioca: http://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Tapioca-Flour/dp/B0019GZ87Y/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1427204999&sr=1-1&keywords=tapioca+flour Coconut Cream:http://www.amazon.com/Native-Forest-Organic-Premium-Unsweetened/dp/B00AF7XMYY/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1427205022&sr=1-1&keywords=coconut+cream Let me know if you have anyother questions. Enjoy!
Hi Amy,
Trader Joe’s carries all of the ingredients (and their coconut cream is sooooo good). If you don’t have a Trader Joe’s near you I believe their products are available on Amazon.com
We are fortunate that we don’t have gluten allergies. I can honestly say allergy or not I am making this cake! It looks fabulous!
Enjoy Chandra!
You just made my day, My Easter Cake is Planned woohooo, PLus I can eat as much as I can without worrying about Calories, well not much and sugar so cheers.
Hope you enjoy it Julie. Have a wonderful Easter!
I have been wanting to create my own gluten-free carrot cake for some time! Yours looks amazing! Definitely have motivated me to experiment! 🙂
Thanks Kacey!
Dear Amy, This cake sounds wonderful and looks absolutely beautiful! xo, Catherine
Thanks Catherine!
This looks absolutely delicious! I love that there is no white sugar. Just perfect 🙂
This looks wonderful! I haven’t tried baking with tapioca, but I need to. I’m not an experienced GF baker at all! I love how simple the frosting is and not too sweet. Sounds perfect!
Thanks Andi!
LOVELY! I’ve been meaning to create a carrot cake and now I don’t have too! Pinned.
Enjoy Laura!
This looks like such a wonderful recipe! I think I am going to make it for Easter. There are a couple relatives who are vegan – do you think substituting the butter for coconut oil would create the same consistency? If not, what would you recommend? Thanks!! Can’t wait to try this recipe this weekend!
Arianna,
Using Coconut oil should be fine, it might effect the flavor, but not in a bad way.