Some desserts are good any time of the year, and carrot cake is one of those.
I’ve had a lot of luck creating this gluten-free carrot cake — and by luck I mean that I’ve successfully served it to family and friends without them having suspicions that it was made gluten free. Their request for seconds is my biggest reward.
Give yourself some time with this one, but the end result will be delicious.
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Ingredients …
1 cup granulated white sugar
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs- room temperature
2 cups – One to One Gluten Free Baking Flour (This will already contain xanthan gum). I used King Arthur, but Pamela’s or Bob’s Red Mill work as well.
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Cinnamon
½ cup Buttermilk
1 Tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract
3 cups finely shredded carrots
8 ounce can of crushed pineapple
½ cup shredded coconut
1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
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Direction …
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Grease and flour two 9×2 round pans (use Gluten-Free flour).
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the oil, sugars, eggs and vanilla until very light and fluffy.
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk. Mix just until combined and do not over mix. I like to use a whisk for this to keep the batter light.
Fold in the carrots, nuts, coconut and pineapple until well blended.
Pour batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake layers for 30 minutes or just until the center is set. Do not over bake! The layers will not raise a lot and should be flat on top.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes then place the pans directly into the freezer. Once they are completely cooled, you can ice the cake or wrap the layers in plastic wrap and freeze for later use.
Ice with creamed cheese icing.
TammySue Vincent is a celiac and the editor’s wife.
