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Vegan Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting | Living Healthy in Seattle

Vegan Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Resting Time 2 hours
Total Time 3 hours
Servings 8

Ingredients
  

Cake

  • 3/4 cup peanut oil (canola works too)
  • 3/4 cup canned crushed pineapple
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened unflavored oat milk (like Silk) or toasted coconut almond milk blend (Califia)
  • 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed meal
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 cup organic cane sugar
  • 3/4 cup organic granulated brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 1/2 cups finely grated carrots
  • 1 cup chopped toasted walnuts, plus more for decorating
  • 1/2 cup raisins (soak in hot water to soften, if necessary)
  • Coconut oil spray, for greasing pans

Frosting

  • 1/2 cup vegan butter (Earth Balance Buttery Sticks); room temperature
  • 8 ounces vegan cream cheese (like Tofutti); room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 4 dashes ground cinnamon
  • 2 cups organic powdered sugar

Instructions
 

  • For the cake: Heat the oven to 350. Grease and line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper.
  • In a medium-small bowl, combine the oil, milk, pineapple, flaxseed and vanilla. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes.
  • In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flours, sugars, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and salt. Fold to evenly combine.
  • Gently stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
  • Fold in the carrots, walnuts and raisins.
  • Evenly distribute the batter between the cake pans.
  • Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean.
  • Transfer the cake pans to a cooling rack to cool for 10 minutes before gently loosening the cake from the pans with a knife and inverting onto the rack to cool completely.
  • For the frosting: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, cream cheese and vanilla with a hand mixer until combined. Sift in the cinnamon and sugar then carefully beat until smooth.
  • Once the cake has cooled, frost and decorate with toasted walnut pieces, if you wish.
  • Store covered at room temperature for up to 3 days for best quality and taste. I like to press plastic wrap onto the cut sides of the cake to keep it fresh.