Eggless Carrot Cake | Vegan Carrot Cake

I am as tightly wound up as the spiral wire on those old black telephones (remember those phones where we had to stick our finger into the number ring and then swing it all the way to the right, then again for the next number. I miss those old telephones). My mind is racing through menus, ingredients and lists. Hasini’s birthday is today and I’ve got a lot of things planned. As always I’ve also taken up a few baking projects (baking a cupcake and doing a simple buttercream swirl is a project for me) and it scares me no end. Baking is fine but decorating is downright frightening. Wish me luck. I’ll tell you all later how things go.

The recipe I am posting today makes THE most yummy, unbelievably soft and moist carrot cake and all that without eggs. There is no milk, no butter and no eggs – it’s 100% Vegan. It’s virtually impossible to go wrong with this recipe – it’s as simple as it can be.

I made this eggless carrot cake for my mother’s birthday a couple of days back and it was a huge hit. You will not believe how heavenly our house smelt. The carrots and cinnamon together create music, as in musical fragrance or does fragrant music sound better? This is what happens when I try to get all poetic. Carrots and cinnamon are basically a gorgeous combination. So don't skip the cinnamon. Did you know applesauce makes a great substitute for eggs along with a little baking powder (1/2 tsp baking powder for every ¼ cup of applesauce and ¼ cup of applesauce for every egg)? What’s more you can make your own applesauce at home. It’s very very easy. This cake is so delicious on it’s own you won’t need a frosting but if you do want to go for one, try cream cheese frosting. It takes the carrot cake to another level altogether.

I am sending this beautiful carrot cake to Srivalli's Cake Mela and Pari's "Only Baked Treats" event guest hosted by Kalyani.

Prep time: 25 mins
Baking time: 20-25 mins
Makes:  15 cupcakes or 9 cupcakes and 1 small fluted ball shaped cake

Ingredients

All purpose flour/Maida – 1 cup
Cinnamon powder – 1 tsp
Baking powder – 1 tsp
Baking soda – 1 tsp
Salt – a pinch
Granulated sugar – 1 cup
Grated Carrots – 1-1/2 cups
Applesauce – 1/2 cup (I made my own. I steamed 2 apples, pureed and strained them)
Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp
Oil – ¾ cup

Method

1.      Grate carrots to make 1-1/2 cups. Set aside.

2.      To make applesauce, wash two apples and chop into medium chunks. No need to peel/core them. Steam the apples for 7-10 minutes or till they turn soft. A knife should easily slide through the steamed chunk. Let cool. Blend the apples to a puree adding a little water (just as much as necessary) to help along. Strain the puree through a fine mesh sieve. Measure out ½ cup. Set aside.

3.      Preheat oven to 180 C. Line cupcake pan with paper liners or grease and line a 7-inch pan with parchment paper.

4.      Sieve together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon twice. Set aside.

5.      In a bowl, add oil, sugar and grated carrots and beat for 1 minute till well mixed. Add the vanilla essence and apple sauce and beat again for minute till well mixed.

6.      Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat just until all the flour is properly incorporated – about half a minute. Use a rubber spatula to fold from the bottom and check for traces of flour.

7.      Turn the batter into the prepared pan. Bake cupcakes for 20-25 minutes. Bigger cakes may take 30-35 minutes. Check after the 20 minute mark. Insert a toothpick down the centre of the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is done. Remove from oven. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, slice and enjoy.