Habiba Tunau MD

I Love a moist slice of Carrot cake with Cream Cheese Frosting but after realizing I had developed gluten sensitivity and could no longer tolerate wheat products I could only fantasize about what it used to taste like.  

 That was until recently after using the juicer to make  fresh carrot juice with my husband when we  realized that throwing away the carrot pulp would be such a waste.  As much as the Jamaican style carrot juice or carrot punch was worth the hassle of using the juicer, wouldn’t it be even more amazing instead of discarding the pulp if we used it  in a salad, to cook or even to make a Carrot Cake! 

 So I decided not only would I make a tasty Carrot Cake but I would make it gluten free so I could eat some of course ! 

Ingredients for Gluten Free Carrot Cake :

3 cups of shredded carrots or carrot pulp after juicing ( Starting with about 2 pounds of carrots ) 

(If you are using the pulp from the juicer I would recommend you also add a cup of shredded carrots for more flavor & moisture ) 

3 cups of gluten free flour ( It may include rice, flax seed, potato & almond flour ) 

1 cup of raisins and if you are feeling adventurous include dried cranberries and nuts of choice.

Half a cup of white sugar & half a cup of brown sugar.  

1 teaspoon of baking powder. 

1 teaspoon each of allspice,  cinnamon & vanilla.

Half a cup of vegetable oil. 

Pinch of salt 

1 stick of unsalted butter at room temperature.

3 eggs

Half a cup of almond milk 

Optional : half a cup of applesauce or sour cream

Ingredients for Cream Cheese filling   

One bag of confectioners sugar

One packet  of cream cheese 

One stick of butter 

One teaspoon of vanilla 

One cup of nuts of choice ( pecans, cashews, almonds, pistachio ) for topping 

Instructions to make Carrot Cake :

In a large bowl cream butter & sugar till nice and fluffy.  Gradually add eggs one at a  time and continue to whisk. Add oil and optional applesauce and whisk well.  Add vanilla, cinnamon and allspice still while whisking .

In a separate bowl sieve dry ingredients together such as the gluten free flour, baking powder & salt before adding  one cup at a time into the wet ingredients and whisking slowly . Avoid over mixing. You can use the electric whisk on a lower speed or simply use a wooden spoon to stir it yourself.  

After the second cup of flour  add your dried fruit and sieve the rest of the flour over the fruit before mixing.  You can also sprinkle the fruit ( and or nuts ) with flour before adding it to the batter to prevent it from sinking during baking.  Add your carrot pulp or grated carrots to the batter and mix well without over mixing. 

 Finally if your batter appears too thick or heavy ( especially with gluten free flour) feel free to stir in half a cup of almond milk, sour cream or  applesauce.   

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

Line two medium sized baking tins with butter and parchment paper.  Pour batter into baking tins making sure batter is evenly spread. Bake for 45 mins to an hour. Cakes are done once a knife or toothpick inserted into the cakes center  comes out clean.

Once cakes are done let them cool before decorating. 

Instructions to make Cream Cheese Frosting:

Cream butter and cream cheese in a bowl ideally with an electric whisk. 

Add a teaspoon of vanilla.  Add confectioners sugar one cup at a time whisking after each cup.  You may need up to 4 or more cups depending on how much frosting or filling you require.  

Tips: 

To save time make the cakes the day before you need them if possible.

Use a bread knife to even off the tops of the cakes if you plan to stack or decorate them. 

I hope you find this recipe easy enough to follow. Please let me know if you try it and leave any tips you have once you do. 

Thanks for reading and yes feel free to share (-”   

-xoxo Habiba 

WATCH ME make it here :

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