Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

Name: Gluten-Free Carrot Cake
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 260 min
Ingredients: 1 cup Carrots (shredded in a food processor); 1 cup Dates (pitted); ½ cup Unsweetened Coconut Flakes; 1 cup Walnuts; ¼ cup Coconut Oil (melted); ¼ cup Coconut Flour (do not substitute this); 1 teaspoon Cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg; ½ teaspoon Ginger; ½ cup Cashews (soaked in water 20 minutes); ⅛ cup Unsweetened Coconut Milk (or milk of choice); 1 tablespoon Maple Syrup; 2 tablespoons Coconut Oil (melted); 1 teaspoon Almond Extract; 2 tablespoons Walnuts (for topping)

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If you’re in the mood for carrot cake, but don’t feel like turning on the oven, this chilled Gluten-Free Carrot Cake is the perfect dessert for you! This cake doesn’t require any baking, and it comes together in just 20 minutes.

Gluten free carrot cake slices on a plate with a green napkin underneath.

Not only is this flourless carrot cake gluten-free, but it’s also vegan! The cake slices are held together using a base of dates and pecans, packed together with the carrots. It has all the flavors of carrot cake, from the warm spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Instead of cream cheese icing, it has a creamy cashew maple coconut icing. This is the perfect chilled dessert for Easter or whenever a carrot cake craving strikes!

If you like unique carrot cake-inspired recipes, you will love my Carrot Cake Protein Smoothie and Carrot Cake Bites!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Fun Spin on the Classic: I love classic carrot cake, but I can’t eat it all the time. This healthy carrot cake lets me satisfy my cravings without even turning on the oven or loading up on sugar.
Vegan Dessert: From the cake to the icing, this is a true vegan dessert. There’s no need to substitute anything with plant-based alternatives because it’s all plant-based!
Delicious Carrot, Date, and Walnut Base: The rich base for this cake is made with carrots, dates, and walnuts. The dates hold the cake together and supply loads of fiber to every slice.

Ingredients

Carrots: You can’t have carrot cake without carrots! Use a food processor to shred them into little pieces so they are easy to eat inside the cake without being too large or crunchy.
Dates: Not only are dates naturally sweet, but they are an excellent source of fiber.
Walnuts: Nuts are a great source of healthy fats, and walnuts taste amazing in carrot cakes. They add crunch to this no-bake cake.
Coconut Flour: This flour absorbs a lot of moisture and acts as a binder for no-bake desserts.
Spices: You need warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger to capture the flavors of a traditional carrot cake.
Cashews: Blending soaked cashews creates a rich, creamy icing that’s naturally vegan to top this cake with.
Coconut Milk: You’ll need a bit of coconut milk to add to the cashews to create the icing and keep it thin.

See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.

Variations & Dietary Modifications

Try a Different Sticky Base: If you aren’t a fan of dates, you can use dried figs, raisins, or even dried cranberries as the sticky base for this gluten-free, dairy-free carrot cake recipe.
Try with Olive Oil: This paleo carrot cake uses coconut oil, but you can use olive oil instead. The two oils can be substituted for each other using a 1:1 ratio, which keeps things simple.
Make Cream Cheese Icing Instead: If you don’t need a vegan cake and miss that cream cheese tang, feel free to make a cream cheese icing using softened cream cheese and maple syrup instead, just like in this banana carrot bread recipe.

How to Make Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

This gluten-free carrot cake recipe doesn’t require any baking and comes together in just 20 minutes. All you need to make it is a food processor and a loaf pan lined with parchment paper.

Step 1: Process Dates to Paste. Blend the dates in the food processor until it forms a paste. Use a spatula to break up the paste into chunks and spread them evenly throughout the food processor.

Walnuts, carrots, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, coconut flour, coconut oil and coconut flakes added to the food processor.

Step 2: Add Other Ingredients. Add the walnuts, carrots, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, coconut flour, coconut oil, and coconut flakes to the food processor and blend them until they combine with the dates and form a dough.

Step 3: Pack Into a Loaf Pan. Transfer the dough to your lined loaf pan and press it into an even layer. Place it in the freezer while you make the icing.

Step 4: Blend the Icing. Add the soaked cashews, coconut milk, maple syrup, almond extract, and coconut oil to the food processor. Blend until they form a silky smooth icing.

Icing and walnuts sprinkled on top of the cake.

Step 5: Top with Icing and Freeze. Use a spatula to spread the icing over the cake. Top with walnut pieces if you’d like. Then place the cake back in the freezer for at least 4 hours before slicing and enjoying!

Expert Tips

Soak Cashews: Be sure to soak your cashews in water for at least 4 hours, but overnight is best. This helps them soften and absorb the moisture so the consistency after blending is creamier.
Soften Dates: You will probably also need to soften the dates in water before you blend them into a paste. Soak them in slightly warm water for 5-10 minutes before blending them.
Storing: This cake must be kept in the freezer. The coconut oil and other components begin to melt and break down at room temperature, so this needs to be stored in the freezer at all times. It will last frozen for at least 2-3 months. You can cut the cake into individual slices after the initial freeze to make them easier to grab for a quick snack.

A hand picking up a piece of gluten-free carrot cake.

Serving Suggestions

These simple no-bake carrot cake bites are the perfect vegan snack when you’re in the mood for carrot cake. The warm spices, carrots, and nuts capture all of the flavors of the classic cake, while the dates add sweetness and hold it together. These need to be kept cold so they don’t melt apart, so if you want to pack them for lunch or on-the-go snacking, be sure to use ice packs in an insulated cooler!

This date-based carrot cake has plenty of fat and fiber, but not much protein. Create a more nutritionally balanced snack by pairing it with a strawberry Greek yogurt smoothie.
Enjoy these little slices of cake as dessert with your avocado chicken salad for lunch.
Use your leftover carrots and make my orange carrot ginger juice for a little extra nourishment in the afternoon while you snack on your cake.