Name: Vegan Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Ingredients: 2.5 C flour (all-purpose); 2 tsp baking soda; 2 tsp cinnamon; 1 tsp salt; 1 C vegetable oil (see notes below for reduced oil); 1-3/4 C brown sugar (vegan); 2 tsp vanilla extract; 3 vegan egg replacer; 1 C pineapple (crushed & drained); 3 C carrots (peeled & grated); 1/2 C unsweetened coconut; 1 C walnuts (chopped - (optional)); 1/2 C golden raisins ((optional))

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Vegan Pineapple Carrot Cake🥕 A scrumptiously rich and moist classic carrot cake made with all plant-based ingredients including carrots, pineapple, cinnamon and vanilla, topped with a luscious lemony cream cheese frosting.

A layered vegan pineapple carrot cake iced with cream cheese frosting and decorated with dried citrus slices.

It's time for carrot cake! Actually, it's always time for carrot cake since this fabulous plant-based dessert is perfect to serve anytime of the year. You don't need a special occasion to enjoy a slice of this absolutely delicious vegan cake.

It's fun to indulge in a slice of carrot cake as an afternoon treat with a cup of coffee or tea, (just like I sometimes do with my favorite lemon blueberry bread and vegan zucchini bread). Since this cake keeps well when refrigerated, you can enjoy it for several days. It can also be frozen and then thawed for those moments when you just have to have something sweet and satisfying.

★★★★★ "The cake is moist and so full of flavor and the frosting! I could eat it by itself! I can't wait to have it with my coffee in the morning!" Kelsey

A slice of layered vegan pineapple carrot cake iced with cream cheese frosting served on a plate.

Table of Contents

🥕Ingredient Notes
🥕Instructions
🥕Carrot Cake Decorating Tips
🥕Equipment
🥕FAQ's
Recipe
Food Safety
Comments

I've tried a lot of different carrot cake recipes over the years, but this one is hands-down, my all time favorite. Not just because it is my mom's recipe, but I admit, that does make it just that much sweeter. I love veganizing traditional family recipes and this eggless and dairy-free version is even better than the original. After all, this is The Carrot Underground🥕 and it is my moral duty to provide you with the very best vegan carrot cake recipe ever!

🥕Why I love this recipe (and you will too!)

There are so many things to love about this recipe for vegan pineapple carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. The addition of crushed pineapple creates a perfectly moist and flavorful carrot cake with just the right amount of sweetness and spice.

I sometimes include flaked coconut, which provides an extra layer of flavor, texture, and a nice chewiness to the cake. Topped with a luscious dairy-free lemon cream cheese frosting which I also use on my favorite lemon cake, it's the ultimate crowd-pleaser for vegans and non-vegans alike.

Wait, there's more!

Vegan pineapple carrot cake is a lovely and delicious dessert to serve when you are having guests or family over.
It's perfect for everyday and holidays including: Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Fall events.
You can create a single or multi-layer cake or cupcakes with this one recipe.
If you're short on time, you can prepare it a day in advance and refrigerate your cake(s) until you are ready to serve.
It's easy to swap out or add ingredients in this recipe
It's a lot of fun to make and even more fun to eat!
And it's 100% vegan! How sweet is that?

🥕Ingredient Notes

The Cake

Ingredients for vegan pineapple carrot cake including carrots, pineapple, flour, sugar, vegetable oil, coconut, egg replacer, cinnamon, baking soda, vanilla, and salt.

🥕See the recipe card below for quantities & details

Flour - all-purpose (I prefer organic unbleached flour in this recipe)
Baking Soda - fresh is best (helps your cake to rise)
Cinnamon
Salt
Oil - vegetable or coconut oil (see FAQ's below for oil-free version)
Brown Sugar - I like organic vegan brown sugar as it adds to the flavor and color of the cake. I haven't made this recipe with other types of sugar or sweeteners, so I can't offer you first-hand advice.
Vanilla Extract
Egg Replacer vegan 🥕 I used a packaged powdered egg replacer mixed with water, however, there are other suitable options you can also use. See the FAQ's below for more info.
Pineapple - crushed & drained (fresh or canned) I use canned because I'm lazy.
Carrots - (freshly grated) I use a box grater because I prefer thinly grated carrots. I don't recommend packaged pre-grated carrots as they're usually coarsely cut which may affect the texture of the cake. A food processor is another option for grating your carrots.
Coconut - flaked, unsweetened (optional) If you prefer your cake to have a lighter and more delicate crumb, then you should skip the coconut.
Walnuts - chopped (optional)
Raisins or sultanas - (optional)

The Frosting

Ingredients for vegan lemon cream cheese frosting including powdered sugar, vegan cream cheese, vegan butter, lemon juice, and lemon zest.

Cream Cheese - vegan plain cream cheese (use your favorite)
Butter - vegan (your choice)
Lemon Juice - freshly squeezed preferred, however, bottled lemon juice will work well too
Lemon Zest - freshly grated
Powdered Sugar

🥕Instructions

Note: This recipe makes one 9" x 13" cake, two 9" round layers or 24 cupcakes.

How to make the cake

Preheat oven to 350ºF/180℃

Dry ingredients for vegan carrot cake sifted into a mixing bowl.

Sift together flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.

A mixing bowl filled with dry ingredients for vegan carrot cake.

2. Set bowl of dry ingredients aside.

Wet ingredients for vegan carrot cake inside a mixing bowl.

3. In a large bowl, place oil, egg replacer, sugar, and vanilla.

Wet ingredients for vegan carrot cake combined inside a mixing bowl.

4. Stir until the wet ingredients are thoroughly combined.

Note: You can stir the batter by hand, however, it will be quite thick and a bit of a challenge to combine. I suggest using an electric hand or stand mixer to thoroughly blend in all the ingredients. It makes the job a lot quicker, not to mention, a whole lot easier too.

Vegan carrot cake dry ingredients stirred into wet ingredients in a mixing bowl.

5. Gradually stir in dry ingredients.

Thick batter for vegan carrot cake in a mixing bowl.

6. The batter will be very thick.

Shredded carrots, coconut, and crushed pineapple inside a mixing bowl.

7. Add grated carrot, pineapple, coconut, and any other add-ins you choose.

Vegan carrot cake batter inside a mixing bowl.

8. Mix the batter until fully combined.

Vegan carrot cake batter inside a mixing bowl, next to two oiled and floured cake pans.

9. Grease the cake pan(s) with a light coating of vegetable oil or dairy-free butter and lightly dust the bottom(s) and side(s) with flour. If making cupcakes, place paper liners into tin.

Vegan carrot cake batter inside two round cake pans.

10. Fill the cake pan with batter. For a layer cake, fill each cake pan with an equal amount of batter. For cupcakes, fill each cup ⅔ full.

Two baked carrot cakes inside round pans.

11. Bake layer cakes for approximately 45 minutes. (Note, a single layer cake might take a few additional minutes to bake). Bake cupcakes for 25 - 28 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the middle. If it comes out dry, they're ready to be removed from the oven.

A two layer vegan carrot cake iced with lemon cream cheese frosting and decorated with a flower made from lemon, orange and lime peels.

12. Place cakes or cupcakes on a wire rack to cool. Once completely cooled, the cakes will be ready to be iced with vegan lemon cream cheese frosting.

How to make the frosting

See the full recipe for making vegan cream cheese frosting.

🥕Carrot Cake Decorating Tips

This vegan pineapple carrot cake is so moist and full of flavor, if you prefer, you can skip the frosting and enjoy it naked. Personally, I like my cake fully dressed with a generous topping of vegan lemon cream cheese frosting.

How to ice a vegan carrot cake

The best part of baking your own vegan pineapple carrot cake is icing it with yummy lemon cream cheese frosting! Here is everything you need to know to make your cake simply scrumptious!

If you're icing a single layer rectangular vegan carrot cake, I suggest leaving the cake in the pan. Use a spatula or spreader and gently spread frosting over the top of the cake. You can dress it up (see below) or keep it simple with a sprinkle of lemon zest or a handful of chopped walnuts on top.

If you're icing a 2-layer cake, turn the bottom layer upside down on a large flat plate or cake stand. Use a spreader to apply a coat of frosting (no more than ¼" thick or the cake layers could slide a bit). If that should happen, you can keep them from sliding by using 2 or 3 tooth picks or trimmed down bamboo skewers run through the layers. (Do be sure to remove them when serving the cake).

A vegan carrot cake iced in vegan lemon cream cheese frosting and decorated with a flower made of orange, lemon and lime peels.

I decided to leave the sides naked and decorated the cake (above) with sliced fresh orange, lemon, and lime peel to create a flower design.

How to ice a 3-layer cake

For a 3-layer vegan pineapple carrot cake, you might need to level the middle layer by gently carving the top with a long sharp knife, only removing the slightly rounded portion. (Note: A 3-layer cake will require 50% more batter and possibly more icing.) This cake is dense and moist and, as a result, each layer will be fairly heavy.

A frosted 3-layer vegan carrot cake topped with flaked coconut and dehydrated citrus slices.

For the vegan pineapple carrot cake above we iced the sides with a very light amount of lemon cream cheese frosting, sometimes known as half-dressed, semi-naked, or a crumb coat. It looks nice and helps keep the cake from drying out too quickly.

The top of the cake is finished with a generous amount of frosting sprinkled with unsweetened flaked coconut and decorated with dried slices of Cara Cara orange and lime.

Dried citrus and other fruits are a simple and pretty way to decorate your vegan pineapple carrot cake. For the beautiful cake below, my daughter decided to use slices of dried tangerine and blood orange, sprigs of fresh thyme, and a sprinkle of pistachios and cranberries.

A vegan pineapple carrot cake iced with lemon cream cheese frosting decorated with slices of dehydrated blood orange and mandarin slices.

How to dry slices of citrus fruits

In order to help preserve the fruit and prevent juice from staining the frosting or making it wet, it's a good idea to dry or dehydrate the slices before decorating. Here is how to do it: Select two or three petite citrus fruits and cut them into thin ⅛"- ¼" slices. Arrange the slices onto a parchment lined baking sheet and place in a low oven at 260℉/130℃ for about 1 hour. Turn the slices over halfway through.

How to ice pineapple carrot cake cupcakes

Vegan carrot cake cupcakes next to a white plate with a hand painted rabbit.

For cupcakes, I like to use a pastry bag with decorative tips to apply the lemon cream cheese frosting but you can also use a food grade plastic bag filled ⅓-1/2 full with frosting. Twist the open end tight and hold with one hand. Use scissors to snip a small opening on one corner and gently squeeze the bag and swirl on some frosting. You don't have to cover the entire top. A dollop in the middle makes for a nice look.

You can also create mini carrots or a decorative design with colored icing. Look for natural food colorings that are vegan and cruelty free, such as TruColor , Wilton , or Americolor .

🥕Equipment

Here are the kitchen tools you might need to prepare this recipe.

electric hand or stand mixer, or a large spoon to hand-mix
large bowl
medium bowl
grater
veggie peeler
silicone spatula
measuring cup
measuring spoons
one 9"x 13" rectangular or two 9" round cake pans or a cupcake pan
cupcake liners (if making cupcakes)
pastry bag with decorative tips for icing (optional)
flat spatula or spreader for icing
citrus juicer
zester

🥕FAQ's

What can I use instead of oil in carrot cake?

You can replace the oil with an equal amount of apple sauce, or use half oil/half apple sauce.

What can I substitute for eggs in carrot cake?

The original version of this recipe calls for 3 eggs, which I've substituted with vegan egg replacer. There are several packaged powdered egg replacers available which work well. You can also make your own by combining one tablespoon ground flax meal with three tablespoons of water (per egg). Allow it to sit 5 - 15 minutes to thicken before using. Carbonated water is another great substitute for eggs in cake recipes. For this recipe, use ⅔ cup carbonated water.

Can I use fresh or canned pineapple for the cake?

Either works! Fresh pineapple adds a vibrant flavor, however, canned pineapple is convenient and readily available. If you use fresh pineapple, crush it in a blender or food processor and be sure to drain the pineapple well before adding to the recipe.

Can I make this cake gluten-free?

Yes, you can! Simply substitute the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend. Just make sure to check that all your other ingredients are gluten-free as well.

How long will this cake stay fresh?

When stored properly in the fridge, this cake will stay fresh for up to 4 days. Just be sure to cover it well to prevent it from drying out.

More tasty treats!

If you enjoyed this recipe, you might like to check out some of my other baked goodies like my favorite fluffy and moist vegan blackberry muffins, these lightly sweet and tart chewy cranberry oat crumble bars, or this easy yummy vegan banana bread.

If you love this recipe ★★★★★ please be sure to rate it below! Sharing your experience lets me know that you enjoyed it and will help other readers decide if they should give the recipe a try too. Thanks a bunch!🥕

Vegan Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

🥕Why I love this recipe (and you will too!)