Vegan Carrot Cake Recipe W Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

VEGAN CARROT CAKE RECIPE W/ CASHEW CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Line two 9-inch cake pans with a circle of parchment paper or lightly spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the crushed pineapple, vanilla, vinegar, coconut sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, and almond milk.
• Stir the dry ingredients into the wet just until incorporated.
• Stir in the shredded carrots and chopped walnuts. The batter will be thick, but still pourable.
• Divide the batter among the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
• Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire cooling rack for at least 10 minutes. Then, turn the cakes out and let them continue to cool on the wire cooling rack.
• Add the soaked cashews, lemon juice, vanilla, powdered sugar, and salt to a food processor. With the food processor running, slowly pour in the milk through the top spout. Then slowly pour in the melted coconut oil through the top spout. Continue to process until the mixture is perfectly smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Add additional milk 1 tablespoon at a time if needed to get the mixture silky smooth.
• Transfer the frosting to an airtight container and place in the fridge for several hours to firm up.
• Once the cakes have completely cooled and the frosting has thickened, turn the cakes upside down so that the perfectly flat sides are face up. Spread a thin layer of the frosting over the top of one of the cakes. Stack the other cake on top and then gently frost the whole cake. (If the frosting is too hard to spread just out of the fridge, let it sit on the counter for a bit to soften.
• Garnish with chopped walnuts.
• Store any leftover cake in an airtight container in the fridge as the frosting won't stay solid if it gets warm. Let it come back to room temperature on the counter before serving.