The deliciously soft and tasty low carb, this best keto carrot cake recipe has just hit the number one spot on Google AND it's only 3.8g NET carbs.
The lovely recipe is so popular because it's so simple to make and it's sugar-free too. Plus, this keto carrot cake is gluten-free, grain-free, and topped off with the most delicious cream cheese frosting.
Don't want (or need) a whole cake? Quickly turn this keto carrot cake recipe into scrumptious cupcakes instead!
If you love carrot cake, you can have your sugar-free cake and eat it too! This is an almond flour recipe the entire family will enjoy. Make this special celebration cake for birthdays, Mother's Day, Easter, Christmas, or just a winter treat with coffee.
Jump to:
Is carrot cake keto?
Regular carrot cake is not keto because it is often made with wheat flour, wholemeal flour, sugar, honey, dried dates, and often has a high sugar frosting on top.
The easy way to make a healthy keto carrot cake is to use low-carb baking alternatives such as almond flour and sugar replacements. Carrots are a root vegetable and are higher in carbs so fewer carrots can be eaten on a keto diet.
To make sure this keto carrot cake recipe falls within keto carb restrictions, fewer carrots are needed but the same warm spices and vanilla.
Nutrition information (per serving of one slice)
- Traditional carrot cake: 38 g net carbs, 3 g protein, 15 g fat, 290 calories.
- Sugar-free keto carrot cake: 3.8 g net carbs, 5.7 g protein, 31.6 g fat, 321 calories.
What a difference! Check out those net carbs - over 34 grams of net carbs saved in my keto carrot cake recipe!
Nutritional values from cronometer.com
Ingredients you need
All quantities, ingredients, and instructions are in the recipe card below.
Low Carb Carrot Cake
- Eggs - fresh medium eggs
- Butter - I used melted salted butter
- Sweetener - use your favourite sugar replacer and add more or less to your taste
- Vanilla essence - or vanilla extract
- Carrots - grated or shredded
- Walnuts - chopped
- Desiccated shredded coconut - always read the label to make sure your coconut is unsweetened and contains no added sugars
- Almond meal - blanched almond flour or ground almonds
- Ground cinnamon
- Mixed spice - or pumpkin pie spice
- Baking powder - do not be confused with baking soda
- Ground ginger - optional
Why develop a keto carrot cake recipe?
I once asked my Low-Carb and Keto For Beginners Group "who misses carrot cake when going low carb"?
I was overwhelmed by the response ... it was a resounding YES!!!
Luckily you don't need to miss out on carrot cake anymore because my low-carb carrot cake recipe is versatile and super easy.
It can be baked as a one or two-layer cake, muffins, cupcakes, or as a carrot loaf.
Which flour is best for keto carrot cake?
For this keto carrot cake recipe, I prefer to use either almond flour or almond meal. They are naturally low-carb flours and gluten-free flours.
They both work brilliantly. However, as with most natural and unprocessed low-carb and keto flours, they are not standardised and so will vary considerably from brand to brand, and even batch to batch.
So when making any low-carb baking, you will become accustomed to experimenting with possibly adding some additional low-carb flour to your batter to ensure it is the correct cake consistency.
Some almond flour/meal will absorb more liquids from your cake batter than others. Even how you store your almond flour/meal is important to prevent the flour from absorbing moisture from the air (and hence, less from your cake batter).
So if in doubt, add some additional almond flour to thicken your cake batter.
Can I use coconut flour?
You cannot directly substitute coconut flour for almond flour, these two low-carb flours behave completely differently.
Once you understand the difference between coconut flour vs almond flour you'll understand how to avoid expensive baking mistakes.
The cake tastes wonderful when made with almond flour, however, if you have a nut allergy, then there is a carrot cake with coconut flour version in my Lunchbox Cookbook.
I also have an entire index of coconut flour recipes. You'll find lots of tasty low-carb and keto recipes that are suitable for those of you with nut allergies or whose children attend a nut-free school.
How to make keto cream cheese frosting
This classic low-carb carrot cake with keto cream cheese frosting recipe is a fabulous treat with your morning coffee or as a low-carb dessert.
Top Tip: Always allow this healthy sugar-free carrot cake to completely cool on a wire rack before adding your keto cream cheese frosting (icing).
Keto carrot cake FAQ
I used an 8 inch / 20 cm round cake tin. Prepare the baking tin by greasing the bottom and the sides, or use baking parchment paper to link the cake tin.
Alternatively, you can use a silicon or springform loose bottom cake tin too.
Yes, you can use the same keto carrot cake batter to make carrot cake muffins, keto carrot cupcakes, and even a keto carrot loaf.
Just adjust the cooking times accordingly and ensure the cake batter is completely cooked into the centre of the cakes.
Yes, the sugar-free and keto frosting is made with full-fat cream cheese, melted butter, and your favourite sweetener (sugar replacement).
Powdered sweetener is best because it will make the frosting smooth and creamy, however, if you only have granulated sweetener then place it in your food processor or coffee grinder and pulse until you have powdered sweetener.
Always allow your gluten-free carrot cake to be completely cooled on a wire rack before frosting/icing otherwise the icing/frosting will melt and slide right off the cake rather than rest on top.
Brands of almond flour/meal vary considerably to how much liquid from the batter the flour/meal will absorb.
To prevent your cake from being too moist use additional almond flour/meal to ensure the correct cake batter consistency. I recommend adding 1 tablespoon at a time until you get that standard cake batter look.
I have never heard of anyone's cake batter is too dry, but if it does happen, you can slowly add 1 tablespoon of heavy cream at a time. This will help to keep the cake moist but do not add too much. No one wants a soggy cake.
Sometimes the butter is still melted and rises to the surface of the warm carrot cake. Always allow the cake to cool completely so it may have time to absorb any butter that may have rendered out during cooking.
You can shred/grate your carrots by hand or in your food processor with the shredding blade. Some carrots have more moisture than others, so before you measure them, give them a gentle squeeze over your sink and allow any excess water to be removed.
This helps to make a sturdy carrot cake. Scoop your shredded carrots into your measuring cup. Do not overpack or pres down otherwise you will add too much and the nutrition values for the cake will be too high.
Yes, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost on the counter at room temperature. You can freeze it undecorated or frosted.
Yes, omitting the frosting is the easiest way OR cutting smaller slices.
Without frosting: 3.8 g NET carbs, 5.7 g protein, 31.6 g fat, 321 calories
With frosting: 5.3 g NET carbs, 8.6 g protein, 35.1 g fat, 370 calories
I usually prefer to use prepared baking pans that have been sprayed with cooking spray or brushed with melted butter. I have baked this delicious cake in round cakes tins, a loaf tin, or cupcake cases.
If you want a healthy birthday cake, use two prepared baking pans then once the cakes are completely cool, add sugar-free cream cheese frosting between the two cake layers.
Does anyone else have a watering mouth yet? This easy keto carrot cake recipe is at the top of my favorite dessert list. It has all the flavour I crave, but none of the guilt or sluggish carbs.
Make one for yourself and see!
📖 Recipe
Please rate this recipe.
Keto Carrot Cake Recipe
Calculate ingredients
Ingredients
Low Carb Carrot Cake
- 5 eggs - medium
- 200 g (7 oz) butter melted
- 3 tablespoon granulated sweetener of choice or more, to your taste
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 200 g (2 cups) carrots grated/shredded
- 50 g (½ cup) walnut halves/pieces chopped, optional
- 50 g (½ cup) desiccated/shredded coconut unsweetened
- 150 g (1 ½ cups) almond meal/flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1-2 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) ground mixed spice
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)
- 200 g (7 oz) cream cheese
- 1-2 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) granulated sweetener of choice or more, to your taste
Instructions
Low-Carb Carrot Cake
- Beat eggs, melted butter, sweetener, and vanilla together.
- Add grated/shredded carrot, walnuts, and coconut then mix almond meal/flour, spices and baking powder.
- Pour into a greased and lined tin. Bake at 180C/350F for 40-50 minutes or until a fork pushed in, comes out clean.
- Ensure your cake is completely cool before icing/frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)
- Warm the cream cheese in the microwave for 20 seconds to soften it.
- Stir in 1-2 tablespoons of sweetener of choice until you get the level of sweetness you prefer.
- You could also add some lemon zest to give it more flavour. This would add a small number of carbs.
- Cover with cream cheese frosting.
Notes
- I used an 8 inch/ 20 cm cake tin.
- Always allow your cake to be completely cooled before frosting/icing your low-carb carrot cake
- Brands of almond flour/meal vary considerably to how much liquid from the batter the flour/meal will absorb. To prevent your cake from being too moist:
- you may need to use additional almond flour/meal to ensure correct cake batter consistency
- always allow the cake to cool completely so it may have time to absorb any butter that may have rendered out during cooking
- Nutrition values are for the cake only. Frosting/icing is optional.
Without frosting: 3.8 g NET carbs, 5.7 g protein, 31.6 g fat, 321 calories
With frosting: 5.3 g NET carbs, 8.6 g protein, 35.1 g fat, 370 calories
5-INGREDIENTS COOKBOOK
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YOUR HOLIDAY PANTRY & GIFT GUIDES
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Approximate nutrition information is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. For the most accurate nutritional data, use the actual ingredients and brands you used in your preferred nutrition calculator.
More keto cake recipes
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Chocolate flourless fudge cake
1-minute keto vanilla berry mug cake
Chocolate cream cheese sugar-free frosting
Kaye McWilliams
Would love to make this, but I need USA measurements.....have no idea how to convert this.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
All recipes have US and Metric measurements. Simply click on the large red buttons below each recipe to switch between the measurement you prefer 😉
lauren
Just made 12 decent sized cupcakes. I followed the recipe for the cake exactly and the texture was perfection. The only thing I altered was the icing, it just tasted a little too tangy for me so I added about a tablespoon of tahini and it was delicious.
S
I made this today and unfortunately it wasn't edible; too crumby and bitter.
Viola
This recipe looks delicious! I want to ask though, can I skip/replace coconut? I don't like coconut taste. >.>
Also, can I use sunflower flour instead of ground seeds?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I would say you could change 1 item in this recipe not both, that would be a new recipe completely and each recipe here has been developed after much trial and error. Skipping the coconut might just about work, as it isn't a huge proportion of the cake, however it wont look like the picture and be a different texture.
Brad
I followed this recipe word for word, and it was dreadful! I don't know what, if anything I did was wrong, but it was horrible! The batter was far too dense and dry whilst mixing. I knew that was a problem right away. I went ahead and baked it, and it rose a bit, but it was so dense and heavy. After I let it cool sufficiently, I made the frosting, ( which by the way is a terrible frosting choice!). Cream cheese and sweetener?! Why not just make a traditional buttercream/ cream cheese frosting with stevia or chosen sweetener? I should have went with my gut instinct. I am a great cake decorator, and have good piping skills, so the cake looked superb and delicious once finished. Even though the crumb of the cake was bad, I've made many low carb cakes of different varieties, but this crumb was terrible. Although It looked great, the taste and texture was awful. Overly moist yet dry and crumbly at the same time. The frosting was just what it was, sweetened, flavored cream cheese. Yuck. Too rich, heavy, and uninspired. A bit of heavy whipped cream and even whipped butter would have lightened the affair greatly. The cake texture and mouthfeel could be improved with some tweaks. All in all not a stunner for my sisters Birthday. Everyone picked around the cake and ate the low carb ice cream we served with it instead! Terrible!
Hikerhacker
I think the quantity of butter in this recipe is excessive. Can you cut back to 100g without affecting the consistency? I don't want a super oily cake as other reviewers have mentioned before.
Rachel S.
Thank you very much for this recipe , seems like a delicious (Healthy!) cake and would like to try it.
As I line in a Non-English country, would like to make sure as for the Almond flour quantity.
For this ingredient you give Cup as a measure. There are all kind of Cups. Can you specify what kind of cup and the weight of your 1.5 cup of Almond Flour (in grams).
Thanks again
Rachel
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I've clarified it. 1.5 cups = 150g almond flour/meal
Rachel S.
Thank you very much Libby for your clarification (and for your good contribution
to the battle against Carbs).
I have baked the cake and the result was very tasty, also the texture and the shape.
I used 2 tins - each 7 X 20.5 cm .
campanile2016
Just baked this carrot cake (cupcakes in my case) and had one and I love the taste. Many thanks!
Anu
I tried this cake today and it came out well...I changed the servings from 10 slices to 6 and printed out the recipe, but the quantity of almond flour remained the same. Luckily I found out the mistake before adding the flour and scaled it down to slightly less than a cup....it turned out well. Thanks for the recipe !
Cathy
I made this yesterday and it turned out well. I did have to add another 15 minutes to the baking time though. While it is a tasty cake, my personal preference is a sweeter cake, most likely this is due to the lack of pineapple and raisins that would be in the traditional version. Next time I make it I'll boost the sweeter a bit to better align with my taste. I love that it is a single layer, perfect when you don't have anyone else helping you eat it :-). I am curious on the nutritional information source. I made as written and got many more calories and carbs with the stated serving size using My Fitness Pal. I increased the serving size to 12 because that is more in line with the size I cut and it was still hefty with 482 calories and 6 net carbs.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
This is why I always state "sweetener of choice, to your taste" as we all have different sweet tolerances depending on how long we have been low carb. Feel free to add more, but as time goes on, you will be able to cut back on it. If you ever make a recipe and it is not sweet enough (remember to always taste test before baking) then you can always serve with sweetened whipped cream or sweet frosting. As for the nutrition, I use cronometer.com which is far more accurate than MFP. I stopped using that years ago as the values are so wrong and there are far too many "user added" values which may be total or net carbs, there is no distinction.
Cathy
Thanks, lesson learned, I will taste next time and add more a bit at a time. Happy to hear that cronometer.com is more accurate, the higher calories and carbs freaked me out, but not enough to prevent me from eating it 🙂
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Excellent appraisal then 😉
unmowngrass
You've really found chronometer that good? I used it for a couple of days last week, and I found the readings very odd. Things like, vit. A was 250% of daily recommended intake despite only eating soup, or water at 90% daily intake after drinking only one cup... .
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Yes, I like it. It has the correct US nutrition values. As with any app, you just have to be careful that you select the correct items. I'm not sure which soup you selected.
Thermomixmade
Loved this, I made a half sized one because it's only me that eats it. Served with low carb ice cream, nearly as good as the real thing!
Ody
Wait did you say that this is low carb??? Wow....BEST LOW CARB CAKE EVER!!! Thankyou so much for this recipe. You are the best
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Aw, thank you 🙂
Jen Smith
I tested out this recipe because I plan on bringing it for Easter. It seems that I had a different experience than others (I read all the reviews). My batter was very thick. I did everything the way the recipe said except I used pumpkin pie spice since I didn't have mixed spice and I also make them cupcakes. I had to bake at least 30 mins and the cake was too moist. I can't imagine adding another egg and almond flour. I won't be able to mix the batter. Even though it was moist, it still kind of stuck to the cupcake liners. Any suggestions? I don't have time to do another test run so whatever I try, it what I bring. Thank you!
Marlene
I'm very excited to make this cake for my partners birthday this week! What do you consider "one serving" with your nutritional facts? How many pieces have you divided your cake into?
I'm not sure if I should consider 12 pieces or more, but I'm concerned my carb amount will be higher than what you've posted if that's the case...
Thanks for your help!!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
The recipe states it makes 10 large slices. If you cut the cake into smaller or larger slices, then you will have to adjust the nutrition values accordingly.
Marlene
Thank you! I must have missed where it said 10.
Making this tonight and very excited, despite some of the unsuccessful reviews I'm hoping for the best 🙂
Nathalie
Libby,
On what temperature & for how long should I bake the carrot cake when's I make muffins (12)? Thanks so much in advance & for your yummy EASY recipes!
Nathalie
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I would bake at the same temperature but for only 15-20 minutes, but this could vary widely depending if you are using a cupcake tray or muffin tray.
Kyle Carpani
My cake was very mealy and crumbly... as most of the recipes i have tried are... i think it is the almond flour (red barn)... how can i fix this? they all have almost a powdery texture...
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Go for almond meal (ground almonds). I use this in most of my recipes and is generally interchangeable with almond flour but it sounds like that brand you are currently using is too powdery for some reason.
Tracey Bond-Heird
I didn't like the cake at all. I actually had to throw the whole thing away. Didn't like the icing either, way too sour and too strong of a cream cheese flavor, I even added vanilla. It would make a good spread for a bagel but not icing on a cake. Also, the cake had way too much carrot. I think the almond flour was bitter but it was too hard to tell if that was the biter taste because I couldn't taste enough by itself with all the carrots. The carrots were too hard and crunchy, just not what I was expecting. Maybe I expected too much.
Beth
Did you buy store-bought shredded carrots? They might be thicker than carrots you grate yourself.
Tracey Bond-Heird
Have you ever added unsalted butter to the cream cheese icing? Just wondering what it would taste like. I make a cream cheese icing that uses vanilla, cream cheese, unsalted butter, and sugar. I'm just wondering what would happen if I just traded out sugar for Splenda (less Splenda probably, that icing is pretty sweet).
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I only have salted butter in the fridge but I am sure unsalted would work. The subtle salt taste does make it flavoursome and yes you could substitute the sugar for a sweetener, just keep adding a little at a time so it doesn't become over sweetened.
Robyn
Hi, this cake is my first attempt at low carb baking. I msde them into muffins, for portion control, and they taste great. I was missing cake, and these make a great treat.
My question is, when working out the net carbs, for 2 of my ingredients (walnuts and coconut ) the fibre is more than the carbs. Does that negate the carbs from those ingredients?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
If you ever see a nutrition panel where the fibre is more than the carbs (which is impossible) the carbs must be showing NET CARBS. Here is a guide to carb counting as different countries show net or total. Here in NZ products may show either depending on their country of origin and it is never made very clear. "Typically the US nutrition labels show TOTAL CARBS. Typically UK nutrition labels show NET CARBS. NZ/AUST show net carbs (and stating fibre is optional)".
Anita
Hi, when u say almond meal/flour I take that to mean 'meal or flour' , so following this assumption could I use flaxmeal as a substitute for the almond meal? I have every ingredient in the house but no almond meal or flour of any kind except for flaxseed meal. Can't get out the house to get the missing part and really want to make this asap, help?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
When I say almond meal/flour, I mean almond meal or almond flour. The link in the recipe takes you through to Amazon so you can see what ingredient I am using or referring to. I also add most of the ingredients I use below the recipe. Flax meal would be too heavy and bitter tasting for this cake. I hope I got to you in time 🙂
QQ
I just bought coconut flour, thinking, I can do some baking from DitchTheCarbs recipes....and then now, going through the recipes, they all require almond meal/flour (and I almost bought almond flour) sigh. Please please please tell me I can substitute almond flour for coconut flour? And by how much?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
You're in luck. I am moving away from almond flour due to nut allergies, cost and higher omega 6 levels. Most of my newer recipes are coconut flour based or at least, have it as an alternative. Try my flourless berry cake, keto waffles, blueberry cheesecake for starters. Here is my Ultimate Guide To Low-Carb Flours too. Worth a read.
Sandy Copeland
Would it work with 1/2 almond flour and 1/2 coconut flour?
Thanks in advance ☺
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Sorry, it is too much of a complete change in recipe to advise.
Sam
I’ve done this with 1/4 cup coconut flour to 3/4 almond flour worked well for me
Cherry
Can you use baking soda instead of baking power to avoid the aluminium? If so, would it be a different quantity.
Lisa
Baking powder and baking soda are not interchangeable. You should be able to find aluminum free baking powder in an ordinary grocery store and certainly in a health foods store. The brand I use is Rumford. It's also sold on Amazon if you can't find it.
Anu
This is really a fantastic low carb carrot cake. I added some unsweetened lemon extract to the frosting which gave it a delicious tang... mmmmm. My new favourite low carb (non-chocolate) cake.. thank you!
Lou
Just wanted to say given the fact Im a terrible baker, my first attempt at this wonderful cake was a winner.
I have made a lot of things from your recipes, this cake is delicious, moist and with just the right amount of sweetness.
I substituted walnuts for pecans and added a little lemon juice onto the sweet cheese cream icing, its a lovely combo.
Thanks
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
This is great news Lou, I especially wanted to create easy recipes that encourage people to cook at home more. Good luck with all the other recipes you will be trying.
Kathy
Hi Libby, I cannot get granulated stevia. I have liquid and powder form, how much would you use of each? Thanks
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
It really depends on the strength of each one, brands can vary quite considerably. Granulated stevia measure spoon for spoon in place of sugar, so simply add your sweetener a little at a time until you get the sweetness you like. Sorry if that is a little vague, it is the hardest aspect of low carb cooking to be precise about as our sweet taste is so different depending on how long you have been sugar free for. Good luck and you'll get the hang of it.
Shellihob
Just made this and tried my first piece. Great recipe. Tasted great and was a beautiful light consistency. A nice afternoon tea and one piece was just so filling.
I have been visiting your site for a while now Libby and this is my first comment though I have loved lots of the recipes. This is a great site and you are doing a wonderful job, helping us all stay trim and healthy. I was so pleased to find your site as I had looked at a few others and not been impressed by really wierd recipes. So glad to have this as I am from Australia and your recipes make more sense than ones from the US with ingredients that are still highly processed or are unobtainable. Again I say, well done and thanks so much for all the effort you put into this site. It's so helpful and I really appreciate it.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
This is such a lovely comment to read today, thank you so much. I absolutely love creating everything here and I am so happy you are enjoying them so much. Happy new year.
Ruth E Barmore
I have made this cake twice. The first time I followed the recipe to the letter and the cake was absolutely tasteless except for the bitter taste from the sweeter I used. So back to the drawing board. I made it again and added 1/2 cup almond flour 1 cup flour a different brand of sweetener which solved the bitter taste. Still not a home run...Any suggestions?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Gosh I'm not too sure what is going on, the carrots give a lovely sweet flavour all by themselves, as do the coconut and the spices. Maybe add double the spices and vanilla?
Chantal
Came out so perfectly! Thank you for another great recipe I totally love your cakes!
Anna J
Making it this weekend and very excited. How long would I cook for if making as cupcakes? Also have you heard of Kite Hill cream cheese made out of almond milk? Think it would work in this recipe? 8 have some in my fridge I want to use before it goes bad.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
If making cupcakes (which I have many times) I usually bake them for 15 minutes, but test them as ovens vary considerably. No I have never heard of cream cheese made from almond milk, let me know how it turned out. I'd like to try some if I can find it here.
Shelby Dworakowski
When consuming this much fat per serving you really should do your research, if you think you are in ketosis I don't think you realize that you would have to be consuming barely any carbs at all for quite so time
Success for life is balance moderate fat along low/moderate carbs with consistent high protein
Janet Bell
Well, no, that's not exactly true. Unless you are doing large amounts of physical exercise, a high protein diet for an extended period of time is very dangerous to kidneys and liver.
While I agree that research is necessary, it took me three days to get into ketosis (as demonstrated by urine and blood tests) on a very low carb diet, but I have stayed in ketosis since then with low carb but not no carb. If you are genuinely wanting to be helpful telling people things, first have your facts straight and then don't be so condescending about it.
Christena
You are a magical low carb wizard! I one-an-a-halfed this recipe to make a bday cake for my hubby. Made 2 9" rounds so I could stack 'em. I used 4 cups of finely grated carrot and 1/2 a can of pumpkin (ran out of a carrots and that seems like a logical option)
I used 2x the spices (I mean, can you ever have too much cinnamon?)
they came out like a dream. Next time, I am going to cut silicon baking mats to fit inside my cake rounds, so I can have a perfect edge.
Brilliant recipe - thank you a million times over!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
I love Christena that you call me a magical low carb wizard (well I was born on Halloween - so maybe????). You made me chuckle and smile today reading that. I love your idea of throwing some pumpkin in there - genius! My recipes are made to be adaptable so well done you. And so true, you can never have enough cinnamon (or vanilla in my opinion). 🙂
Laura
Hi, some silicone baking mats specifically state they should not be cut, probably because they contain fiberglass which could be released into your food if the food contacts a cut edge. Some silicone baking mats are made to be cut, but if you can't find one of those, you could simply cut parchment paper to the correct size.
Liz
This looks great. One question.....what is mixed spice?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Take a ook at my pumpkin pie recipe, I explain mixed vs allspice there.
Robyn
Hi, I've had a type 1 diabetes for 24 years but just started trying out a low carb diet. Just wondering if it's common for people to take some time to adjust to a high fat diet. I made your carrot cake and it worked out OK but there was a lot of butter around the edges in the tin, which absorbed into the cake when it cooled, as you said it would. But when I eat a slice of the cake, I feel a bit sick as I'm not used to eating so much butter, and I think the taste of the butter dominates everything else, especially if I don't heat up the cake before eating it.
Have you tried reducing the amount of butter, or using other oils? I think I could halve the amount of butter, but would it fall apart?
Also, when I put all the ingredients into my diabetes app, it came up as 456 calories per slice (based on 10 slices per cake, and including the walnuts) and 44g fat, but your calculations say 321 calories and 31.6g of fat. I know you have to allow for variation and you can't worry about calories too much on a LCHF diet but that's a huge snack! I don't think I'd make it again because my husband's not a fan and I can't eat a whole cake by myself. But hopefully I'll have more luck with some of your other recipes.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
It takes a while to understand the full feeling from eating more healthy fats. It's not to say you should eat excessive fat but a smaller portion will allow you to feel full without the sick feeling you experienced. I think the slice for you was possibly too large (and hence too much fat that you felt uncomfortable). One of the many reasons for eating more healthy fat is so we eat less, our hunger is controlled and our appetite is in check. Many newcomers don't like feeling so full, but it's kind of the point. So we stop snacking, eat smaller portions and are no longer on the sugar/carb/hunger roller coaster. Eat only until full, stop when you have had enough. You'll get the hang of it soon, and I always say to figure out what works for YOU. Good luck Robyn.
no
so... no
Tamara
Would love to know how the cream cheese frosting turns out with no butter or cream added as I don't see a lot of recipes without them. I would definitely prefer to only use cream cheese and a sweetener but wonder if I am going to end up with a thick unspreadable and heavy texture on top? Do you blend it with a mixer first? And one last thing... how does it hold up overnight in a fridge (if also iced the night before) before serving... worried the frosting may become wet... not sure if that makes sense?? Thanks so much for helping me with these questions.
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Great questions Tamara. Firstly you need to find the right cream cheese. Not the low fat or spreadable one but the full fat regular block. It is similar in texture to a semi-soft butter. Leave it out of the fridge to come to room temp, then mix in the sweetener (and I like some vanilla) with a fork to break it up or you can use a hand held beater. It should become soft enough to spread. Once the cake is iced, then cover it in the fridge (I have a plastic microwave lid that does the job or a large upside down mixing bowl). It has never made the cake damp because once the cream cheese is back in the fridge, it hardens a little. Alternatively I have been developing a new icing which is 50:50 butter and cream cheese with sweetener and vanilla. That is luscious too.
Cynthia
Outstanding recipe! I used 2T Splenda Brown Sugar blend and got 13 cupcakes (used silicon baking cups, baked for 25 mins). These are light, fluffy, and delicious. I added some heavy whipping cream to the cream cheese and sweetened with Valencia Orange Sweetleaf stevia drops to taste. One little cake sure fills the tummy and is outrageously delish. Thanks for creating this recipe! Very much appreciated 😀 All four generations of my family approved and that's a huge deal!
Sandi M
Looks great but I'll have to try it using a trace of natural, local honey as we don't believe in artificial sweeteners of any kind. Trace amounts of honey add a couple carbs but its better for you than stevia and the like. With honey, a very little goes a very long way, especially after being lchf for over a year, and its still healthier than refined sugar or artificial sweeteners.
Soda
Actual stevia isn't bad for you nor anymore artificial than honey. Honeybees are rapidly dying off.
Kathy
in your note prior to the recipe you said,
"Further update – I managed to make my low carb carrot cake using ground sunflower seeds when I ran out of almond meal/flour. "
Could you tell me how much of the ground sunflower seeds you used and did you buy just unroasted, shelled, unsalted and ground them youself. Love the nuts in carrot cake but not a big fan of walnuts so thought this would work to give a little more of nuttier texture along with almond meal...almond flour is too expensive !!
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
From memory, I only had half the almond meal in my pantry so got some regular sunflower seeds, put them in my stick blender (I have a little blade attachment, similar to a coffee grinder) to grind them up then just threw them in. Voila! The walnuts are optional anyway so you could even replace those with whole pumpkin seeds? That might be nice.
Natalie
I'm using Truvia baking blend. Would I still use the same amount?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
If it measures spoon for spoon then yes. All my sweeteners I use measure the same as sugar. Take a look at my ultimate guide to sweeteners to see what I use and what I avoid.
Sim
This cake was sooooo yummy! I did not taste low carb at all. My husband and I both loved it!!
Amy
If I were to omit the shredded coconut, would I need to add anything to compensate?
Libby www.ditchthecarbs.com
Yes but you could easily swap it for more almond flour/meal.