Raw Carrot Cake Delight

I love the idea of having Tea and Cake at the weekends, infact anytime i am a sucker for this. Is it because i am English? hmm i'm not sure, but it certainly makes me happy. It is especially lovely to feel good after eating delicious things, so i am ecstatic to find this delicious RAW carrot cake recipe. If it lasts the night we will be enjoying it this weekend too, hopefully outside in the sun as the forecast looks like it will be a warm and sunny one. I hope you enjoy yours too......out in the sun if possible!

For the Carrot Cake

(original recipe from the Two Blue Lemons Blog via the Childhood Magic Blog)  

4 cups shredded carrots (about 1.5 lbs)

1 cup dates (about 16 dates)

1 cup walnuts

3/4 dried apricots

1-1.5 cups unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup raisins or currants

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon allspice

( Not wanting to wait until i could go shopping  i made mine without dates or apricots and used one shredded apple instead. Childhood magic added fresh lemon juice and a small piece of vanilla bean pod to the main recipe and the frosting)

For the Cashew Frosting

1.5 cups raw cashews

2 tablespoons honey or agave

3 tablespoons water

Additions: Fresh lemon juice and a small piece of vanilla pod

Alternate frosting:

Store-bought cashew butter sweetened with agave or honey to taste

Preparation - Carrot Cake

1. Grate the carrot in a food processor fitted with the grater attachment. (God bless you if you're going to grate all that carrot by hand!) Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set aside.

2. In the food processor, now fitted with the blade attachment, blend the dates, apricots, and walnuts until combined but not a paste . Add to the shredded carrots and mix.

3. Add the spices to the carrot mixture and blend.

4. Transfer the mixture to the food processor and blend in two batches until the mixture comes together and holds its shape.

5. Fold in the coconut.

6. Using a dry measuring cup (I used a 1/3 cup measure but you are your own Carrot Cake master) portion out the mixture and frost each cake with a heaping tablespoon of cashew frosting.

Preparation - Cashew Frosting

1. Whirl the cashews in the food processor, continuously scraping down the sides, until the cashews form a thick paste (a.k.a. cashew butter). This could take a while... just be patient and keep scraping! You can add a few tablespoons of water to encourage the cashews if you get impatient.

2. Add the honey (or agave) to the food processor and blend until incorporated.

Russell James also has a wonderful Raw Carrot and Orange Cake recipe but as i don't have a dehydrator i prefer the recipe above!

Wishing you a happy weekend lovely people