Carrot, pineapple and pistachio cake - this easy vegan carrot sheet cake is a delicious tropical twist on regular carrot cake.
Topped with a luscious cloud of white chocolate cream cheese whipped cream, this is a great springtime cake which would be perfect for Easter.
I love carrot cake all year round but Easter does feel like the most appropriate time for it and this cake would be perfect for feeding a crowd at a Spring gathering.
This vegan carrot traybake cake has the addition of chopped tinned pineapple to help keep it really moist and to add bursts of juicy pineapple flavour. I also used pistachios in place of the more common walnuts to make it a bit more special; feel free to use whatever kind of nuts you like, or use raisins instead if you prefer.
Instead of the usual cream cheese frosting, I opted for a white chocolate cream cheese whipped cream topping. It is beautifully light and creamy and not too sweet.
This is a veganised version of one of my old non-vegan recipe posts, I am slowly working my way though creating vegan versions of them all!
Ingredient Details:
Milk: You can use any kind you like but it should ideally be unsweetened and soy milk is best as it has the highest protein content.
Sugar: I prefer to use light brown soft but caster or granulated sugar is fine too.
Oil: Any neutral flavoured oil will work, I use olive or sunflower.
Plain flour: Plain (all-purpose) flour is best. I haven't tested this gluten-free but I think that it should work ok with a plain GF flour blend plus ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum.
Baking powder and soda: Using both baking powder and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) will give you the best rise and texture. Don't swap one for the other, you will not get the same result.
Vanilla extract: Extract is better than essence and you can also use vanilla bean paste.
Spices: Carrot cake needs spices! I use cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg but feel free to vary them to suit you. A spice blend such as mixed spice or pumpkin spice would work well.
Carrot: Use freshly grated carrots, not pre-grated from the supermarket, as they would be too dry. I prefer to use a regular size grater rather than a fine one but either should be fine. Make sure to weigh out the carrot after peeling and grating it to get the right amount.
Tinned pineapple: I use tinned pineapple chunks which I roughly chop. Make sure that you drain the pineapple really well as you don't want to add too much moisture and make the cake wet; I like to pat it dry with some kitchen paper. The pineapple can be safely omitted if you prefer.
Pistachios: I used roughly chopped pistachios instead of the usual walnuts but any kind of nut will work, or use raisins or sultanas instead.
Frosting:
Vegan whipping cream: I used the Coconut Collaborative one, but Elmlea or Oatly should also be fine. Thick, cold coconut cream (just the solid white part from a tin of chilled full fat coconut milk) should also work, but may result in a slightly different texture.
Vegan cream cheese: I use Philedelphia, but any coconut oil based cream cheese should work ok. It must be at room temperature so make sure to take it out of the fridge about 3 hours before making the frosting.
White chocolate: This is needed to make the frosting set, do not omit it. I order mine from here, but there are various other options online and vegan white chocolate can also be found in some supermarkets.
Icing sugar: Icing (powdered) sugar is needed to add a bit of sweetness and to help the cream stiffen up when whipped. Do not swap this for any other kind of sugar or sweetener.
Lemon juice: A bit of lemon juice adds a hint of extra tang that I find vegan cream cheese tends to be lacking in.
How To Make Carrot, Pineapple And Pistachio Cake:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Step 1: Whisk together the milk, oil, sugar, vanilla extract and orange zest in a large bowl.
Step 2: Sift together the dry ingredients, add them to the wet and stir until combined.
Step 3: Gently fold in the grated carrot followed by the pineapple and pistachios.
Step 4: Pour into a traybake tin and spread level.
Step 5: Bake for about 40 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Step 6: To make the frosting, melt the white chocolate and stir it into the room temperature cream cheese. Add the lemon juice and vanilla.
Step 7: Place the whipping cream in a separate bowl with the sifted icing sugar. Whisk with an electric mixer until it forms stiff peaks.
Step 8: Whisk the cream cheese mixture into the whipped cream a little at a time. Refrigerate if needed to firm up a bit.
Top Tips:
USE SCALES. As with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scales rather than the cup conversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
Use a standard sized grater for the carrots rather than a fine one for the best texture.
The pineapple can be safely omitted if you aren't keen on pineapple in carrot cake.
Make sure that you allow the cake to cool completely before adding the frosting and slicing into it.
The cake can be baked the day before you make the frosting and assemble the cake. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
For the frosting it is very important that the cream cheese is at room temperature. If it is too cold then the chocolate will sieze and form lumps when you mix it in.
FAQ's:
Once the cake has been frosted, it needs to be stored in the refrigerator. Ideally it should be eaten on the day it is assembled but any leftovers will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge.
The un-iced carrot, pineapple and pistachio cake can be wrapped and frozen for up to three months. Allow to defrost at room temperature. I do not recommend freezing the frosting.
More Vegan Easter Cakes:
- Vegan Simnel cake
- Chocolate orange Battenberg
- Vegan orange loaf cake
- Vegan carrot cake with cream cheese frosting
- Vegan chocolate cheesecake
- Vegan lemon poppy seed cake
- Lemon drizzle cake
- Vegan cherry almond cake
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
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Carrot, Pineapple And Pistachio Cake (vegan)
Ingredients
Cake:
- 240 ml (1 cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- 225 ml (¾ cup + 3 Tablespoons) neutral oil (I use olive)
- 290 g (1 ½ cups) light brown soft sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- finely grated zest of 1 orange
- 465 g (3 + ¾ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ¾ teaspoons bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 300 g (10 ½ oz) grated carrot
- 240 g (1 cup) well drained tinned pineapple chunks (one 425g tin, well drained) (optional)
- 125 g (4 ½ oz) pistachios, roughly chopped plus extra for decorating (optional)
Cream Cheese Whiped Cream:
- 125 g (4 ½ oz) vegan white chocolate finely chopped
- 150 g (5 oz) vegan cream cheese room temperature
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 220 ml (¾ cup + 3 Tablespoons) vegan whipping cream cold
- 25 g (3 Tablespoons) icing (powdered) sugar sifted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160℃ fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 23 x 33 cm/9 x13 in rectangular cake tin and line with a strip of baking parchment.
- Roughly chopped the tinned pineapple and pat dry.
- Whisk together the milk, oil, sugar, vanilla extract and orange zest in a large bowl.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
- Tip the dry ingredients into the wet and stir with a balloon whisk until combined.
- Fold in the grated carrot followed by the pineapple and pistachios.
- Pour into the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Bake for 35-45 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.
- Once the cake is cool remove from the tin and peel off the baking parchment.
- To make the frosting, melt the white chocolate, either over a pan of gently simmering water (don't let the bowl touch the water) or in short bursts in the microwave, stirring often.
- Place the cream cheese in a bowl and whisk in the melted chocolate, followed by the lemon juice and vanilla, set aside.
- Place the whipping cream in a separate bowl with the sifted icing sugar. Whisk with an electric mixer until it forms stiff peaks.
- Make sure that the cream cheese mixture has cooled to room temperature then whisk it into the cream a little at a time. If the frosting is too soft, cover the bowl and place it in the fridge for an hour to firm up slightly. This is a fairly soft frosting however and probably won't become really firm (the texture will vary depending on the brands of cream and cream cheese that you use).
- Spread the frosting over the top of the cake and sprinkle with chopped pistachios if you like. Keep refrigerated.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup coversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!
Katie
This sounds amazing, I love pineapple in cake!! Pinned for later 🙂
Katie xoxo
Laura Harris
I made this cake for a family birthday party and it was absolutely amazing. Everyone commented on how lovely it was. Not too sweet and one of the best carrot cake recipes they've ever had. They were surprised to find out there was white chocolate in the icing as it's not a strong flavour. I would recommend this for any celebration and I would say serves more than 16 more like 20 people. There's quite a lot of ingredients for the preparation but it's not complicated. Vegan White chocolate can be tricky to find but I bought three small bars from Tesco in the free from section, I used Philadelphia plant cream cheese and cocoa collaborative vegan cream. Thank you so much Domestic Gothess for the recipe!
Sally
This looks lovely and sounds delicious Hannah
NARELLE ASHBY
Myo can't wait to eat this have made for my son”s 27th birthday thank you for sharing - I halved the quantity and used a fluted ring cake tin very pretty result and photographed.
Jennifer
Hi! I’m planning to make this for Easter and will need to drive to my mother in laws about 2 hours away. Temperature where I am is about 50-55 degrees. What do you think is the best option? Making the cake the day before and putting it in the fridge or making the cake and the frosting that day but keep them separate on the drive and then frost once I get there? Thanks!
Maya
Baked this cake and it's really nice, soft and taste amazingly good! And the cream on top was super yummy I followed the recipe exactly as is written. Thank you for sharing
Lala
I've made so many of your recipes with wonderful results! I can always rely on them to impress vegans and omnivores alike. This carrot cake is truly next level! I made it for Easter earlier this year, and my family is still talking about it in August! Now, my sister has asked me to make it for her wedding. I'm delighted! Thank you for our new family favorite:)
Jen
I am a terrible baker. I made this cake and let it cool and then realised when I cut it that it was really underbaked so I put it back in the oven for 15mins which is something apparently you should not do! The cake still turned out really good and two people who shared some messaged me after to ask for the recipe so I know they genuinely liked it and were not just being polite!! This is a great recipe.