Captivating Carrot Cake — a plant-based British recipe by BOSH!
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Captivating Carrot Cake

Carrot cake is one of those bakes we genuinely never get tired of, and this vegan version is honestly one of the best things we've ever made. It's got that perfect moist, spiced crumb with pockets of sweet sultana and freshly grated carrot all the way through. We use a flaxseed paste as the egg replacer and trust us on this one, it works an absolute treat. Top it with a generous cloud of vegan cream cheese frosting and you've got a proper showstopper that nobody will believe is plant-based. Make it this weekend, you won't regret it.

Cook: 40 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Food processor
  • Electric hand blender
  • 20cm cake tin greased & lined with baking paper
  • Flaxseed paste (2 tbsp ground flaxseed + 6 tbsp warm water) — mix & let sit before starting

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 320g brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp ground flaxseed
  • 6 tbsp warm water
  • 120ml soy milk
  • 250g carrots - grated
  • 120ml olive oil
  • 100g sultanas
  • 240 plain flour
  • salt
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 75 plant-based butter
  • 450 icing sugar
  • lemon zest
  • walnuts

Method

1

Make the cake mixture

  • Form a flaxseed paste binder, as an egg alternative, by adding 6 tbsp of warm water to 2 tbsp of ground flaxseed, and mix it together until you have a paste 
  • Put all the cake ingredients (apart from the sultanas & crated carrot) into a food processor & whizz them up into a paste
  • Pour the paste into a bowl, add the sultanas & carrot & mix it all together with a wooden spoon
2

Bake the cake

  • Pour the mixture into a cake tin
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes, and a skewer comes out clean
3

Meanwhile, make the icing

  • Pour the icing ingredients into a bowl & mix it together until it turns into a thick cream
  • Use an electric hand blender to finish off the icing
4

Finish and serve

  • Take the cake out of the oven & let it rest until it's completely cool (the cake needs to be cool in order to ice it properly)
  • Ice the cake
  • Decorate the cake with walnuts & lemon zest

Tips & Variations

  • Get your grating right: We find freshly grated carrot works so much better than pre-grated shop stuff. It holds more moisture and gives the cake that lovely tender texture.
  • Don't skip the flaxseed paste: Give it a full minute to come together before adding it in. The longer it sits, the more it thickens up and the better it binds.
  • Make it your own: Henry always throws in a handful of chopped walnuts for a bit of crunch. Pecans work brilliantly too if that's what you've got in the cupboard.

Why This Works

The flaxseed paste is the real hero here. It binds everything together just like an egg would, and the food processor does the heavy lifting to get a beautifully smooth, consistent batter before you fold in the good stuff. The combo of warm spices with the natural sweetness of carrot and sultanas means every single bite is packed with flavour.