Happy First Sunday in Advent, everyone. Today I don’t have another Christmas cookie recipe for you, but one of my favorite cakes of all times, which is carrot cake. As long as I can remember, it was my go-to recipe in the form of muffins during fall and winter and I just love the dense, gooey texture and the hint of cinnamon in it. Topped off with some cream cheese frosting, this sweet treat is pure indulgence. And given the fact that one of the most popular veggies is hiding away in the name, it may or may not be easily consumed for breakfast and, if you turn a blind eye on it, regarded as one out of your five-a-day. I mean, we can’t deny the many good nutrients that come with carrots, right?
A few weeks back I had a conversation with some of my friends, who eat a vegan diet for quite some time, which gave me the final kick to try out a vegan cake for the first time (I once tried a banana bread last year, not sure if that also counts). Even though I also increasingly include vegan meals in my meal plan, this mostly happens accidentally. I try to cut down on any animal products, but I currently don’t want to restrict myself to a certain diet. While I experience it as quite easy to cook vegan without having to make any cut-backs regarding taste, I still had my doubts when it comes to baking. I don’t know about you, but even if I would not have been that skeptical, it was mostly the long ingredients lists on recipes that hindered me to finally give it a try.
However, in the end curiosity prevailed over skepticism and the result was a carrot cake that couldn’t have been any better and has approved the very critical test of various family members. Even deep-rooted omnivores wouldn’t have thought the cake was vegan and were convinced they were eating cheese frosting. The icing also was the part I was most curious about. I’ve already heard about cashew nuts serving as a replacement for cream cheese or cheeses in general (for instance here), but I honestly could not believe that it would come that close to the original taste.