Gâteu aux carrotes
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Gâteu aux carrotes

Fall smells like orange colour, and in my case, this season always brings me back to places where I used to spend previous falls. Carrot cake smells like my and Petra’s falls in Lausanne. You could buy this cake there everywhere in Lausanne- in famous pattiseries (pastry shops), cafés and large supermarkets, but I must admit that, at that time, I would only buy it when I went over to a freind’s place. Petra was allergic to nuts and I didn’t dare either to make it or buy it for us. Now that we reached a safe zone with allergy, there came a moment, far away from Lausanne, to make carrot cake which reminds us of some dear people whom, instead of chocolate, we used to bring a well-known carrot cake as a gift.
This is a paleo version, a version with somewhat less carbohydrates.

INGREDIENTS

  • Carrot cake

  • 4 eggs

  • ½ cup maple syrup

  • 1/3 cup melted coconut oil

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • ¼ cups unsweetened almond milk

  • 1 ¼ almond flour

  • ¼ cups coconut flour

  • 1/3 cup tapioca flour

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger powder

  • 2 and ½ cups grated carrots

  • Cream for decoration – you can make either a healthy or an unhealthy version (your choice)

  • 200 g chopped walnuts for decoration

  • Less healthy version of cream cheese for decoration

  • 200 g butter

  • 200 g cream cheese

  • 200 g powdered sugar

  • A teaspoon vanilla extract

  • Beat the butter and cream cheese without any sugar on high speed, then add the remaining ingredients and continue beating. When everything is fully incorporated – place it in the fridge for a while to harden before decorating the cake.
  • A healthy version of cashew coating

  • 1 ½ cups cashews

  • 2/3 cup thick creamy coconut milk (not easy to find)

  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 4 teaspoons honey

  • Add the cashews to a high speed food processor and blend. Add other ingredients and blend for another 3 or 4 minutes. When done, store the cream in the fridge to harden it up a little.

DIRECTIONS

  • Add the cashews to a high speed food processor and blend. Add other ingredients and blend for another 3 or 4 minutes. When done, store the cream in the fridge to harden it up a little.
  • In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients first (flour, soda, cinnamon, ginger). Separately, add wet ingredients (maple syrup, vanilla extract, almond milk) and carrots to a blender and blend it all up until smooth. When you get a fine texture, combine wet ingredientes with dry and blend again. You can bake twice in a 26-diameter pan to get two layers that you will spread with cheese coating in between, or if you do not want to have two layers as shown in the picture, you can bake once, but if you decide to go for this option, you have to bake it a little longer.
  • I bake two layers at 180 C for about 25 minutes.
    Whether you are making cream cheese or cashew coating, you can coat the cake with it and sprinkle the finely chopped walnuts on top for decoration.