Vegan Carrot Cake Roll

I was buying carrots for a recipe and all there was to buy was a giant bag of carrots, not the bulk ones I normally buy.  I only needed one or two for my recipe but I bought it because they were an important part of it.  I had a lot of extra carrots leftover after though, so I started to think of fun ways to use them.  The first that came to mind was carrot cake!  I love carrot cake and I actually have not made any yet this year even though I consider it a spring dessert so it was about time!  I have actually been wanting to make a vegan carrot cake roll for a while now and this was the perfect opportunity!

I love cake rolls because I think they are easier to make than a layer cake but you still get a good amount of frosting!  Also, they are a bit less fussy to frost and look beautiful, provided you are careful when rolling them.  I think I have it figured out pretty well though, I haven't had one break since the first one I made years ago and that was because it was too dry. This base cake recipe that I use now though is moist and pliable so it is the perfect candidate for a rolled cake!

It actually uses dates as a sweetener, which you can't really taste they just give it a nice texture and caramel brown sugar like sweetness. I add in some spices as is essential for carrot cake as far as I am concerned, and vanilla and the batter smells heavenly!  Lastly I added plenty of carrots. Sometimes I put nuts and raisins in my carrot cake but I didn't this time simply because I wanted it to slice nicely.

It baked up beautifully and deserved a delicious filling and frosting. I made some faux cream cheese frosting and it was the perfect partner for the cake!  It was so heavenly!  Lightly spiced, sweet and the perfect light and soft texture!  If you are a carrot cake fan, or have too many carrots on hand like I did, give this a try!

Vegan Carrot Cake Roll 

Makes one 15 inch long rolled cake, serves 8-10

Ingredients:

15x10 inch jelly roll pan

Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups organic whole wheat pastry flour*
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1 1/4 cups packed soft medjool dates, pitted, soaked in water for 30 minutes and 2 cups of the soaking water reserved
• 1/4 cup almond butter
• 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

Filling:

• 1 15 oz can full fat organic coconut milk  (you want a brand that is mostly the thick cream like Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk or coconut cream or it will not work and won't thicken), chilled
• 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp cider vinegar
• 3/4 cup melted coconut butter (warmed to liquid)*

Frosting:

• 1 cup full fat organic coconut milk  (you want a brand that is mostly the thick cream like Thai Kitchen full fat coconut milk or coconut cream or it will not work and won't thicken), chilled
• 1/2 cup mashed banana
• 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp cider vinegar
• 3/4 cup melted coconut butter (warmed to liquid)*

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees and position rack in center of oven.
2. Line a 15 x 10 inch jellyroll pan with parchment paper.
3. Coat parchment paper and pan sides lightly with oil so that the cake doesn't stick.
4. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and sea salt in a large bowl to blend well.  Set aside.
5. Place dates, reserved water, almond butter, and vanilla extract into a blender, and blend until smooth, then whisk this blended mixture into the flour mixture until well blended. Whisk in the carrots, then the cider vinegar until bubbles form.
6. Transfer cake batter to prepared pan and bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes.
7. Cool cake completely.
8. To make the filling, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth.  Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until the consistency of stiffly whipped cream (about 30-45 minutes depending on how warm it has gotten.  Once it is ready place in the refrigerator until ready to assemble.
9. When ready to assemble, spread filling over the top of the cake, then roll up jellyroll style starting with the short side and using the parchment to assist you in rolling.  Be careful because you don't want it to break, but if it cracks as you roll it no worries, keep rolling.  Let chill in the freezer once rolled for a few hours before frosting the outside.
10. To make the frosting, combine all ingredients in a high speed blender and blend until completely smooth.  Pour into a bowl and place in the freezer until the consistency of stiffly whipped cream (about 30-45 minutes depending on how warm it has gotten.  Once it is ready place in the refrigerator until ready to frost.  Spread the frosting over the outside of the cake, and serve!

Keeps for up to 1 week covered in the refrigerator.

*If you would like to make this gluten free, swap the whole wheat flour for Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour (I have tested this brand and know it works, but have not tried other brands so I am not sure if they would turn out the same).

*If you don't have coconut butter but you have cacao butter, you can sub melted cacao butter for the coconut butter and the cake will have a white chocolate flavored frosting/filling.