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Gluten Free Carrot Snacking Cake with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
As far as cakes go, this gluten free snacking cake is pretty healthy and very easy to make your own. You're going to love this one!
Dare I say this is the best carrot cake I have ever had?! Not only is it light and fluffy, but it is also pretty healthy. It’s made with tons of carrots and a wholesome blend of almond and oat flour, making it gluten free. And instead of your average cream cheese frosting, I use brown butter to give it a nutty addictiveness that’s impossible to stop eating (or licking off the mixing spoon)!
This easy snacking carrot cake is the best sweet treat for an Easter brunch or just a casual, sweet treat to grab throughout the week. You will absolutely love this one!
Watch Me Make a Gluten Free Carrot Cake
Table of Contents
What is a Snacking Cake?
Ingredients and Substitutions
How to Make the Carrot Cake
How to Make the Frosting
Storing
Tips
Reasons to Love It
Gluten Free Carrot Cake Recipe
What is a Snacking Cake?
A homemade snacking cake is basically just a really easy, casual cake you can snack on throughout the week. It’s usually baked in a single layer, so there’s no levelling or stacking or layering required. A snacking cake is there for you for a casual, quick treat after dinner on a weeknight to curb that sweet tooth.
Carrot cake is the perfect snacking cake because it’s also on the healthier side as far as cakes are concerned. It’s loaded with carrots and uses a blend of gluten free flours, plus any and all mix-ins you want, like raisins and pecans.
Carrot Cake Ingredients and Substitutions
Carrots
The star of the show! I grate my carrots on the smaller hole side of a box grater (to keep the cake soft rather than chunky) and measure out one packed cup.
Almond Flour and Oat Flour
This blend of gluten free flours gives this carrot cake its light and fluffy texture. You can also easily make your own oat flour by grinding up whole rolled oats in a food processor until it reaches a fine flour texture.
Optional Mix-ins
To make this carrot cake even more of a hearty snacking cake, I add both raisins and toasted pecans. But the great thing about carrot cake is you can really customize it with whatever mix-ins you like best. You could skip either or both for a simpler recipe, use golden raisins or walnuts instead of pecans… it’s up to you. I chose not to add shredded coconut, but you totally could!
Greek Yogurt
Yogurt thickens the batter and gives it a little tang. I recommend using Greek yogurt because it’s a thicker texture. You could instead use sour cream for a similar flavor and consistency. A one-to-one swap of dairy-free sour cream or Greek yogurt works, too.
Maple Syrup and Brown Sugar
Maple syrup gives this cake so much moisture while also adding natural sweetness. I use light brown sugar for the other sweetener, but you could substitute coconut sugar instead.
Spices
Cinnamon, ground ginger, and nutmeg almost give this cake a pumpkin-spiced flavor that goes really well with the carrots and nutty almond flour. Keep the ratios as listed in the recipe because nutmeg and ginger have a tendency to become overpowering pretty quickly.
Olive Oil
Instead of using butter, I used olive oil in the batter because I love the moisture and lightness it gives the cake. It also makes it a little healthier. You could use avocado oil, vegetable oil, or melted coconut oil instead.
Frosting Ingredients and Substitutions
This super easy frosting is made with a simple base recipe of butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt. I elevate it by browning the butter first, which gives the frosting a rich, nutty flavor I just can’t get enough of.
Carrot cake is very versatile and customizable, so just like with the mix-ins, you can have fun with your frosting flavors, too. I kept mine simple, but you could also add the zest of one orange or lemon, which would pair perfectly with the carrot cake.
If you’re making the cake dairy-free, you can also totally make the frosting dairy-free, too. Just use a one-to-one swap of your favorite dairy-free butter and cream cheese!
How to Make the Gluten Free Carrot Cake
Start by preheating your oven to 375ºF. Line an 8×8-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper.
Step 1
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, maple syrup, brown sugar, olive oil, and Greek yogurt.
Step 2
Add the grated carrots and whisk again.
Step 3
In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond flour, oat flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Step 4
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to mix until combined.
Step 5
If using pecans and raisins (or other mix-ins), fold them into the batter.
Step 6
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely before frosting.
How to Make the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
While the cake bakes, make the brown butter cream cheese frosting.
Step 1
In a small saucepan, add the butter over medium-low heat. When the butter is melted, whisk regularly for about 4-6 minutes. The butter will foam and then turn golden brown. Once it’s brown, immediately pour the butter into a bowl and refrigerate for about 45 minutes or until it’s almost solid but you can press an indent into it.
Step 2
Once the brown butter is mostly solid, make the frosting: Scrape the butter into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a mixing bowl with an electric mixer!) Using the whisk attachment, whip the butter on medium-high speed for about 1 minute until light and fluffy. Add the softened cream cheese and whip again for 1 minute until fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Step 3
Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Mix on low speed, then gradually increase the speed to medium-high and mix for about 1 minute until the frosting is light and fluffy. If it’s too thick, you can mix in 1 teaspoon of milk at a time until it’s spreadable.
Step 4
Once the cake is cool, spread the frosting evenly over the surface. Use a large, sharp knife to slice the cake into 16 pieces. Enjoy!
Storing Carrot Cake
You can store your frosted carrot cake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Simply leave it in the pan you baked it in and cover it tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Tips for Making the Best Gluten Free Carrot Cake
- Every oven is different, so check the cake at 30 minutes first to see where it’s at.
- Don’t overbake your cake! It should be lightly golden brown and the tester should come out clean when you poke it in the center of the cake. A few crumbs on the tester is okay, as long as there is no wet batter.
- Bake the cake in the middle to upper third of your oven for an even bake without the top getting too dark.
- Let the cake cool completely before frosting. If it’s still even a little bit warm, the frosting will melt.
- Browning butter has several phases, but you’ll know it’s ready when it starts to smell nutty and it turns lightly brown in color. Take it off the heat when it starts to turn brown.
- Solidifying the brown butter in the fridge is crucial! If you add hot brown butter to cold cream cheese, the mixture will curdle and get lumpy. We don’t want that!
Why You’ll Love This Gluten Free Snacking Carrot Cake
- Gluten Free: Almond flour and oat flour make this a gluten free cake, but even gluten lovers won’t be able to tell the difference. It’s still light, moist, and fluffy!
- Healthy: As far as cakes go, this one is pretty healthy. Oats and almonds have more protein than all-purpose flour. I swapped out butter for olive oil in the batter. And of course the carrots and optional mix-ins give this snacking cake some added fiber and nutrients.
- Customizable: You can omit all the mix-ins for a simpler cake, add all the mix-ins, plus any other you like, such as shredded coconut. Or, you can swap my mix-ins for variations: walnuts instead of pecans, golden raisins instead of regular raisins. It’s totally up to you!
This was SOO good. The brown butter adds so much flavour to the frosting. And the cake itself was incredible – so moist and full of flavour.
Absolutely delicious ♥️
INCREDIBLE recipe. Will be making this on repeat. Did had the powdered sugar in the frosting, but that was it. So good.
The browned butter cream cheese frosting is lethal! Made this for the family for Easter and it’s now a requirement!
It’s delicious! Had a pizza party tonight with friends and made this to test it out before Easter this weekend for my family. It was a hit!! I’m personally an OG cream cheese frosting stan so I’ll probably do without the brown butter next time but 50% of my friends loved it with the brown butter!
I added candied pecans into mine! Also used coconut oil over olive oil, and it was perfect at 35 min.
Can’t wait to make it again for my family on Easter! It’s a fabulous recipe!
These are DELICIOUS! I did a whole block of cream cheese instead of half just to have more icing. I will definitely be making them again. So yummy!!!
Made this immediately after it was posted. Had everything at home except for the mix-ins (but you don’t miss them at all!). Absolutely delicious carrot cake and the brown butter frosting is sooo bomb. Cake was done for me at 30 min and was nice and moist still, so definitely set the timer at the lower end for the toothpick test. Going to be making a double batch of this for my twins’ second birthday cake!!