The Best Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

The Best Gluten Free Carrot Cake that is tender and light, with a gingery kick. Then topped and layered with a sinful amount of velvety cream cheese frosting. This is the Best Gluten-Free Carrot Cake you will ever make! 

I’m a purist when it comes to my Gluten-Free Carrot Cake, so you won’t find any raisins here. This cake gets most of its moisture and flavour from the fresh carrots, warming spices, and brown sugar. Now, before I lose all the raisin lovers out there, this recipe does allow for some additions which can include the grape’s ugly older sister, or some deeply toasted walnuts. The benefits to keeping your Gluten-Free Carrot Cake free from add-ins is that you can really highlight this humble root vegetable and bring out its earthy sweetness. Another bonus to keeping this cake all carrot and spice is that you can achieve a light and stable cake crumb which helps to achieve those restaurant worthy cake slices.

What makes this THE BEST gluten-free carrot cake recipe?

Let’s briefly dive into how this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake remains light while still maintaining the perfect balance of tenderness and moisture. To achieve this fluffy crumb structure and turn this into the best cake possible, you will need to do two things:

1. The carrots need to be grated using a box grater. This cuts the carrots into small enough pieces while also allowing them to hold onto all their juice even during the baking process. If you use a food processor, the carrots begin to release their juices immediately, causing a wet mixture that leads to a soggy, dense cake. 
   • Note, I would also avoid pre-grated carrots as they tend to be dry and sliced too thick. This creates tiny, chewy carrots pieces in your carrot cake. Not very pleasant.
2. Incorporating egg whites and sugar that have been whipped into a French meringue. By folding in the addition of French meringue we are creating a much-needed lift to our cake which can be easily weighed down from all the carrots. 
   • Traditional carrot cake recipes commonly use a *Two-Stage mixing method which is oil based. This method doesn’t lend well to gluten-free carrot cake as the combination of the mixing method, oil to flour ratio, and consistency of gluten-free flours and gums results in a much heavier, dense cake. By choosing to use this meringue-based mixing method, it gives the cake more lift and allows us to use butter instead of oil, turning this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake, technically, into a *Sponge Cake.

*Sponge Cake Method: Otherwise known as the Egg-Foam mixing method. This method refers to egg whites and sugar being whipped into a meringue, and/or egg yolks and sugar being whipped into a sabayon. Then folded in. 

*Two-Stage Method: Otherwise known as the High-Ratio mixing method. This method refers to a cake that contains a high ratio of liquid and sugar to flour. The liquid is added in two stages and yields a batter-like consistency. 

Why you need this gluten-free carrot cake in your life

• Anytime you can turn a vegetable into a sweet dessert is reason enough to get out your mixing bowl.
• Because this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake recipe is lighter and fluffier than traditional carrot cake recipes you can easily make them into cupcakes without any adjustments. Don’t we all love when something is easy?
• The combination of this slightly sweet, tender Gluten-Free Carrot Cake and tangy, smooth Cream Cheese Frosting is so comforting and satisfying. You will find yourself wanting more even after the last cakey crumb has been licked off the plate.
• It’s literally The Best Gluten-Free Carrot Cake you will ever bake and eat! I want you to experience this cake just so we can talk about it.

Cream cheese frosting

In North America and the UK, Cream Cheese Frosting is the traditional wingman for Carrot Cake, and with good reason. If you have every eaten a slice of carrot cake plain you will have likely sensed that there was something missing, or maybe like the cake could almost be “healthy”, which it most definitely isn’t. That’s because the cake naturally walks the savoury line and by adding the tangy, sweet cream cheese frosting it helps create balance. 

If for whatever reason you are not a cream cheese fan or need something that is slightly more sturdy (cream cheese frosting is very soft and loose), I would recommend topping and layering this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake with a Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

Gluten-free carrot cake changes and substitutions:  dairy free, nut free and cupcakes

Question: Can this gluten-free carrot cake be made dairy-free?

Yes! Although I have not made this recipe dairy-free, you can easily swap the butter for a high quality vegan or lactose free butter.  I like to use Miyoko’s European Style Cultured Vegan Butter when substituting butter in my recipes. For the buttermilk, you can use a vegan buttermilk. I have used this recipe for vegan buttermilk from Minimalist Baker. 

For the Cream Cheese Frosting there are plenty of dairy-free cream cheese alternatives on the market and you can swap them one for one for the Cream Cheese Frosting recipe.

Questions: Can this gluten-free carrot cake be made nut-free?

It can! Instead of adding ground nuts, substitute equal parts gluten free flour. Then I would add an additional 1 tablespoons of buttermilk and add 2 tsp of vegetable oil to the buttermilk. This will replace the added moisture that we were getting from the natural oils in the ground nuts.

Question: Can this gluten-free carrot cake be made into cupcakes?

Yes! Instead of making two 8” cake rounds you can make 24 cupcakes with this recipe. No alternations or substitutions other than the baking time.

Prepare cupcakes tins with paper liners and set aside. Make the cake as instructed. Fill cupcake liners ¾ full and tap the baking tray on the counter to help level the batter. You can also use the back of a spoon if the batter seems thick.

Place the first cupcake tray on a baking sheet, baking only one cupcake tray at a time, place on the centre rack of the oven and bake for approximately 20-25minutes. After 15-20minutes check the cupcakes but inserting a toothpick into the centre of a cupcake. They are done when they are slightly golden around the edges and the toothpick comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely in the pan before topping with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Gluten-free carrot cake ingredients

list of the ingredients needed to make this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake:

1. Carrots. Freshly grated with a box cutter. I prefer to buy 2-3 large carrots as they are easier to grate. Smaller carrots will be slightly sweeter, they just require a little more prep and peeling.
2. Gluten Free Flour Blend. You can make this cake using my gluten-free flour blend recipe found here. Alternatively, this recipe has also been tested using Cup4Cup Multipurpose Flour and Bob’s 1 to 1 flour blend and yielded similar results.
3. Light Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar. The combination of sugars adds more moisture and a delicate molasses flavour.
4. Unsalted Butter. Butter makes everything better but ultimately we are choosing butter over oil as the main fat because we are making a sponge cake.
5. Buttermilk. This adds moisture, tangy flavour and the milk proteins will help our cake last longer once it’s baked.
6. Eggs (yolks and whites separated). The whites will be whipped into a French meringue and the yolks will be added in separately. 
7. Ground Almonds or Walnuts. The ground nuts help to create the texture we all know and love about traditional carrot cake. They also add their natural oils to the cake, adding moisture.
8. Baking Powder. Lift, lift, lift. The baking powder acts as our secondary leavener after the meringue. 
9. Vanilla. 
10. Lemon or Orange Zest.
11. Ground Spices. Cinnamon, Ginger, Coriander, Cardamom
12. Kosher Salt.

How to make this gluten-free carrot cake

Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F degrees. Line the bottoms of two 8″ round pans with parchment and grease with butter or baking spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together gluten free flour blend, ground almond flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the egg whites at a medium speed for about 2 minutes or until soft peaks begin to form. Slowly add granulated sugar by the teaspoon. Add the vanilla extract. Turn the mixer up to high speed and continue to whip until thick, glossy stiff peaks have formed. You now have French Meringue! 

Transfer the meringue to a separate bowl and place the mixing bowl back on the stand-mixer. No need to clean the bowl.

Using the same bowl that was just used to make the French Meringue but switching to a paddle attachment, beat the soft butter, light brown sugar and citrus zest until fluffy and pale in colour. Slowly begin adding in one egg yolk at a time, waiting until each yolk is fully incorporated before adding the next.

Removing the bowl from the stand mixer and using a large spatula, gently fold in 1/3 of the French Meringue into the creamed butter mixture. 

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and gently fold together until almost fully combined. There will still be a few flour streaks. That’s okay. 

Add ½ of the buttermilk and stir until well combined.  Add another 1/3 of flour and fold in.  Add the remaining ½ of the buttermilk and stir until everything is homogenous.

Fold in half of the remaining meringue and grated carrots. Finish by gently folding in the remaining meringue trying to maintain as much volume from the meringue as possible.

Pour the carrot cake mixture into the prepare cake pans and bake for 45-50min or until the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan and a skewer inserted comes out clean with a few crumbs.

Allow the cakes to cool completely in the cake pans before turning them out.

How do I know when the gluten-free carrot cake is fully baked?

There are two simple ways to ensure your carrot cake is baked to perfection.  The first thing you want to do about 10 minutes before the end of your bake time is to take a large wooden skewer and poke the centre of the cake. When you pull it out there should only be a few sticky crumbs attached and no traces of wet batter.

The second way to ensure your carrot cake is fully baked is to look at the edges of the cake They should be slightly golden and starting to pull away from the sides of the cake pan.

Pastry Chef tips & tricks

• When preparing to make the meringue you want to make sure your mixing bowl is free of oil and grease. If it’s not, your egg whites and sugar won’t whip properly. The easiest way to ensure a clean bowl is to use 1/2 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice to wipe the inside of the bowl. Allow it to dry for a few minutes before adding your egg whites.
• When making the French Meringue make sure not to overwhip the peaks beyond stiff otherwise the meringue will break and cause the cake to be dry.
• Ultimately, this Gluten-Free Carrot Cake is a spice cake. So don’t be shy when it comes to adding these warming spices. Flavour, flavour, flavour baby!
• Aways toast your nuts before adding them to your desserts and cakes. This will not only enhance the flavour of the nut, but it will draw out the oil making it crispy which will leave us with a crunchy nut instead of a chewy nut. 
• To toast any nut, place them on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 400°F/200°C for 10-15 minutes or until they look dark golden in colour. Be careful as nuts will go from golden to burnt in a matter of minutes.
• Raisins. Although I’m not a fan I know there are a few of you that NEED to have these little sweet, chewy orbs in your carrot cake. For this recipe you can add up-to ½ cup or 1 cup or 100-200g of golden raisins. Keeping in mind when including the toasted nuts that you don’t want to add more than 1 ½ cups of inclusions or you risk weighing the cake down.
• Wait until the Gluten-Free Carrot Cake is completely cooled before you layer and top the Cream Cheese Frosting. Adding any frosting or buttercream to a still hot or warm cake with quickly turn it into a liquid mess.

How to store gluten free carrot cake

Store on the counter for 1 day (due to the cream cheese frosting) or in the fridge for 3-4 days. Because carrot cakes have more moisture than other cakes and the carrot shavings slowly release their juices over time, they tend to stay fresher longer.

Unfrosted cakes can be wrapped tightly in clingfilm and frozen for 2-3 months. Allow the cakes to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.

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