“I Love You This Much” Vegan Carrot Cake

Happy Valentine’s Day, love birds. While this is the Hallmark holiday for anything sweet and indulgent, I thought I would share a way to take part that doesn’t result in quite so much guilt. This vegan and (almost) raw carrot cake is the perfect example of how to do so. Made with carrots, walnuts, dates, and candied ginger, with a maple cashew frosting and topped with sprinkled coconut and shaved dark chocolate, it will spice up anyone’s holiday. Plus, nothing says “I love you” quite like a treat that won’t clog your arteries or send blood sugars soaring. How’s that for some romance?

Those of you wondering why this recipe is not completely raw — the reason comes down to the maple syrup and dark chocolate; both use heat in their manufacturing process. If you want to cut it out, you certainly can.

“I Love You This Much” Vegan Carrot Cake

Ingredients:

Cake
3 cups shredded carrots

1 cup pitted medjool dates

1 cup walnuts

2/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup candied ginger

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. salt

Frosting
1 cup cashews

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 tsp. sea salt

2-4 tsp. water (depending on desired consistency)

Topping
1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup shaved dark chocolate

1.  To start, you’ll want to soak your walnuts and cashews ahead of time. Put them both in separate bowls, and fill with water. Allow to soak for a minimum of three hours. Once the walnuts and cashews have soaked, drain the water and prep the additional ingredients.

2.  Combine all cake ingredients in a blender. Pulse until 2/3 pureed. You still want the “batter” to have some texture.

3.  Spoon into a cake pan or desired mold, or simply shape the batter into your desired shape on a plate. You can make it multi-layer with a smear of frosting in between, or get as creative as you’d like!

4.  For the frosting, you will again add all ingredients into a blender. Puree, and then add water to reach desired consistency.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

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