If you are looking for a delicious carrot cake, you have come to the right place, as this vegan carrot cake with orange buttercream is everything you can desire from a cake! Moist, with the right amount of spices and orange buttercream creates wonders with a carrot cake sponge. Additionally, adding vegetables to your cake batter counts as one of five daily, right?
Most of you might not know that I’ve lived in the United Kingdom for quite some time. And my time in London was when I first tried carrot cake. I must admit that I was skeptical at first, but the moment I tried a bite, I was instantly blown away! I could not believe that adding carrots and the right amount of intense spices to your cake does wonders. The sponge was moist and rich, just as I like, and the cream cheese frosting perfectly complemented the flavors. I wasn’t vegan back then, and so did the cake. But this doesn’t change the fact that carrots cake has been one of my favorite cake flavors from the moment I tasted it.
Eggless Baking: The Secret to Moist and Fluffy Cakes
A common misconception is that you can only make a moist, fluffy cake with eggs. Well, that’s not true! You can create an exceptionally moist and soft cake without any eggs. You need to know what ingredient does its magic in replacing standard animal-based components such as egg, butter, or dairy.
The eggs usually take on a few roles: add structure and texture or act as a leavening agent.
Replacing eggs with some fat, such as sunflower oil, or adding something moist and affluent such as apple sauce, vegan buttermilk, or even vegan yogurt, creates the structure and texture of vegan baking. And using baking soda, baking powder, or even both allows your baked goods to rise and creates a fluffiness.
The Ingredients for Vegan Carrot Cake
Let’s get started! First, we’ll need to gather some ingredients for the cake batter. You’ll need 540g of white cake flour, 250g of white sugar, 170g of brown cane sugar, 300ml of almond milk, 150ml of sunflower oil, 3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 310g of grated carrots, 3 teaspoons of cinnamon powder, 1 teaspoon of allspice, 1 teaspoon of ginger powder, 2.5 teaspoons of baking powder, 1.5 teaspoons of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt.
For orange buttercream frosting, you’ll need 350g of vegan butter (I used Naturli vegan block), 410g of powdered sugar, the fine-grated zest of 1 medium orange, and one teaspoon of vanilla extract. Last, you will need 40 g of chopped pistachios for the finishing touch.
Vegan Carrot Cake Step-by-step
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 355 F. (Fan mode top and bottom)
- Line three equal-sized baking pans with baking paper on the bottom and sides. I do it by cutting the circle to cover the bottom and then covering the sides separately.
- To make the cake batter, use a stand mixer or mix all ingredients by hand.
- In a small jug, add plant milk and apple cider vinegar and mix. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes till you have a vegan buttermilk.Add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and all spices, including salt, to a mixing bowl.
- Mix it all, then add vegan buttermilk, sunflower oil, and vanilla extract.
- Gently mix all ingredients, add grated carrots, and mix again to incorporate everything together. Refrain from overmixing, as the cake will be too dense.
- Divide the batter equally between all three cake pans, and put it in the oven to bake.
- Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes, depending on your oven. The cake is made once the toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Once baked, remove it from the baking pans and let it cool completely before frosting.
Vegan orange buttercream frosting:
- Your butter needs to be at room temperature but not too soft.
- Add butter to the mixing bowl. (Use a stand or hand mixer)
- Whip it until it becomes soft and creamy.
- Start adding powdered sugar one or two tablespoons at a time.
- Once all sugar has been incorporated, add orange zest and vanilla extract.
- Continue to whip slowly until you have a smooth and fluffy buttercream. Use a moderate mode or overwhip, as your buttercream can become a bit runny.
- To frost your cake, and the first sponge on the desired plate. Top it up with the buttercream using an ice cream scoop or piping bag with a nozzle.
- Even the frosting and add another piece of cake sponge. Repeat the same with frosting.
- Add the last sponge on top, cover its top with frosting, and work on the cake sides.
- You must frost your cake top and sides quite thick to create swirls.
- To do this technique, you need a turntable. You turn your cake fast and create a swirl using a spatula tip.
- Once the cake is frosted, decorate it with chopped pistachios.
Vegan carrot cake with orange buttercream
Ingredients
Cake batter
- 540 g white cake flour
- 250 g white sugar
- 170 g brown cane sugar
- 300 ml almond milk
- 150 ml sunflower oil
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 310 g grated carrots
- 3 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1 tsp all spice
- 1 tsp ginger powder
- 2.5 tsp baking powder
- 1.5 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Orange buttercream frosting
- 350 g vegan butter (I used Naturli vegan block)
- 410 g powdered sugar
- 1 medium orange zest (fine-grated)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Decorating the cake
- 40 g grounded pistachios
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 355 F. (Fan mode top and bottom)
- Line three equal-sized baking pans with baking paper on the bottom and sides. I do it by cutting the circle to cover the bottom and then covering the sides separately.
- To make the cake batter, use a stand mixer or mix all ingredients by hand.
- In a small jug, add plant milk and apple cider vinegar and mix. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes till you have a vegan buttermilk.
- Add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and all spices, including salt, to a mixing bowl.
- Mix it all, then add vegan buttermilk, sunflower oil, and vanilla extract.
- Gently mix all ingredients, add grated carrots, and mix again to incorporate everything together. Refrain from overmixing, as the cake will be too dense.
- Divide the batter equally between all three cake pans, and put it in the oven to bake.
- Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes, depending on your oven. The cake is made once the toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Once baked, remove it from the baking pans and let it cool completely before frosting.
Vegan orange buttercream frosting
- Your butter needs to be at room temperature but not too soft.
- Add butter to the mixing bowl. (Use stand or hand mixer)
- Whip it until it becomes soft and creamy.
- Start adding powdered sugar one or two tablespoons at a time.
- Once all sugar has been incorporated, add orange zest and vanilla extract.
- Continue to whip slowly until you have a smooth and fluffy buttercream. Use a moderate mode or overwhip, as your buttercream can become a bit runny.
- To frost your cake, and the first sponge on the desired plate. Top it up with the buttercream using an ice cream scoop or piping bag with a nozzle.
- Even the frosting and add another piece of cake sponge. Repeat the same with frosting.
- Add the last sponge on top, cover its top with frosting, and work on the cake sides.
- You must frost your cake top and sides quite thick to create swirls.
- To do this technique, you need a turntable. You turn your cake fast and create a swirl using a spatula tip. There is a tutorial on how to do it.
- Once the cake is frosted, decorate it with chopped pistachios.
How to Make Swirls on Cake
The spatula icing technique is a nifty trick to finish your cake. It is when you make indentations on both the top and side of your cake to create patterns. This technique is convenient if you are struggling with icing your cake smoothly, as it will cover any imperfections but make your vegan carrot cake (or any cake!) look pretty and rustic-looking.
It would be best to have a turntable for this technique, as you will be moving (rotating) your cake fast. Just make sure your cake is freshly iced because it becomes hard to create nice and smooth spatula ribbons as the icing sets. Also, it is best to ice your cake pretty thickly because, for this decorating technique, you’ll be removing a bit of the icing each time, and you want to avoid having any patches of the cake showing.
Place the spatula at a slight angle, and go into the icing, but not all the way down into the base of your cake. Start moving and, at the same time, start slowly spinning your turntable while moving the spatula upward. Go in one continuous movement until to reach the top. Now you can do the same for the top of the cake by starting on one side and slowly moving towards the center while creating a pattern.
There is a tutorial you can watch on Youtube to learn this technique.
Are you more of a chocolate fan? Why not try this vegan Easter creme eggs recipe? https://www.plantasticblondie.com/vegan-easter-creme-eggs/
