Gluten Free Mini Carrot Cake

Why I Love Making A Mini Carrot Cake

So many carrot cake recipes make a huge amount of cake—and while I love recipes like my gluten free pumpkin sheet cake when I want to serve a crowd, sometimes I just don't need that much cake! A petite carrot cake is a good call for those times when you want enough cake for, say, 4 people with a few slices leftover. And if they happen to eat gluten-free, all the better!

• A little slice of celebration. Sweet, spiced, and tender, this cake makes enough to feed a small group without leaving you with so much cake you actually get tired of cake (believe it or not, this is possible!).
• Gluten-free or not. Follow the instructions to make this carrot cake gluten-free, or simply swap 1 cup of all-purpose flour for the gluten-free flour to make a more traditional version.
• Novice-friendly. This cake is so user-friendly! No mixer is needed—just a bowl, a whisk, and a few pantry staples.
• Customizable. Keep it simple or add nuts and raisins, a little maple syrup ... This is an adjustable recipe, and you can adapt it to your tastes.

What You'll Need

As noted, this is a super easy cake made with pantry and fridge basics. Here's a look at what you'll need—you'll find the full ingredient amounts and instructions in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• Vegetable oil - You can use any oil of your choice here, including coconut oil, olive oil (for a richer flavor), or avocado or canola oil.
• Granulated sugar
• Salt - Fine sea salt or table salt works fine.
• Eggs - Large eggs at room temperature are best.
• Spices - A combination of ground cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.
• Gluten-free flour - You can use oat flour or a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (like my homemade gluten free flour blend). Use regular all-purpose flour if you don't need a gluten free cake.
• Rising agents - Baking powder and baking soda.
• Carrots - You'll need about 1 ½ cups of finely shredded carrots.
• Frosting - Unsalted butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar.

Substitution Suggestions & Tips

• Rest the batter. Resting the batter while the oven preheats allows the gluten-free flours to fully absorb the liquid in the batter and avoid any of the dreaded "grittiness" that can occur in gluten-free baked goods.
• Use room temperature ingredients. So important! Especially for the frosting—you want a really smooth and fluffy frosting, so let the butter and cream cheese sit out on the counter until they are soft. It's OK to do this for several hours if necessary. 
• Sift the powdered sugar. Another way to ensure the smoothest frosting is to ALWAYS sift powdered sugar before adding it in. You should do this when you make any frosting recipe!
• Refrigerate the cake. This is a pretty soft cake at room temperature. To help with neat frosting, place the cooled cake in the fridge for about 30 minutes. This will help with even frosting. Also, use a gentle hand when applying the frosting.
• Add other spices. You can add ¼ teaspoon each of ground nutmeg and cardamom to give the cake an even cozier flavor.
• Stir in nuts and raisins. I have left these out of the ingredients list, but a more traditional carrot cake contains golden raisins and nuts like walnuts. Feel free to throw these in if you wish.
• To make refined sugar-free: Use coconut sugar instead of granulated sugar.
• To make dairy-free: Substitute your favorite non-dairy butter and non-dairy cream cheese in the frosting.
• Skip the frosting. I mean, why would you ...! But you absolutely can if you wish for a simpler cake: Leave off the frosting and dust the top of the cake with sifted powdered sugar and serve a little whipped cream on the side.

Proper Storage

I recommend storing carrot cake in the fridge because of the cream cheese frosting. You can eat it straight from the fridge or let it warm up a bit on the counter for 10-15 minutes to soften the frosting.

• Fridge - Store the cake, tightly covered or in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Freezer - To freeze the cake, let it cool completely, then wrap it in a layer of plastic wrap and a layer of foil. Store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw the cake completely in the fridge before you frost it.