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The Free From Fairy

The Free From Fairy

Home » Free From Recipes » Gluten Free Recipes » Sugar Free Carrot Cake (Gluten Free)

11th September 2014 ·

Sugar Free Carrot Cake (Gluten Free)

Dairy-free Recipes· Free From Recipes· Gluten Free Cake Recipes· Gluten Free Recipes· Gluten Free Snack Recipes· Recipes Using Free From Fairy Gluten Free Flour· Refined Sugar Free Recipes· Soya Free Recipes· Sweet Gluten Free Recipes

These sugar free carrot cake muffins are sweetened with dried fruit and banana. Because they are made with gluten free flour and ground almonds they are suitable for anyone with coeliac disease or people following a gluten free diet.

I’ve shared an optional cream cheese frosting. This is sweetened with honey or maple syrup.

Please note that I have called these sugar free but technically they contain sugar from fruit. A true sugar free cake is impossible!

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This gluten free, dairy free and sugar free carrot cake is wonderfully moist whilst being relatively healthy. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

sugar free carrot cake muffins on a cake stand

How is a carrot cake sugar free?

Well OK, I have to confess. A sugar free cake is impossible as I outlined above. But this is as close as you can get.

Rather than sweeten the carrot cake muffins with sugar I opted to use banana and dried fruits. This provides the sweetness along with a good dose of fibre. Eating fibre and sugar together (such as whole fruits) slows the digestion of carbohydrates and sugar absorption leading to more steady blood sugar levels.

It’s also why I created my wholegrain gluten free flour blend which is used in this recipe.

If you choose to make the frosting be aware that it is sweetened with a liquid sweetener like honey or maple syrup. This will increase the sugar in the recipe but can, if desired, be made just with the orange zest.

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What flour do you use to make gluten free cake?

If you aren’t gluten free you can make this cake with standard wheat flour. I suggest using spelt or other equally nutritious flour.

However, for our purposes I made this cake with my wholegrain gluten free flour blend. It’s a blend of naturally gluten free wholegrain flours: teff, sorghum and buckwheat. To ensure the blend works in all baking (from bread to pastry, cakes and pasta) I also include a little naturally gluten free starch in the form of potato and tapioca.

If you’re outside the UK and can’t buy the blend then check out my online gluten free cookery courses where I show how to make it.

In addition to my flour blend I use ground almonds in this recipe for added protein and fibre, and less carbohydrate.

Sugar free carrot cake with optional orange cream cheese frosting

Why do you include flax seeds?

I’ve tried to make a really healthy carrot cake recipe that is perfect for adults, children and babies. I’ve included flax seeds because they too are a great source of dietary fibre, not to mention other health benefits.

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How do you make sugar free carrot cake?

It’s a really easy recipe to make but there is one piece of equipment you are going to need; a food processor.

This chops the carrot, dried fruit and banana to make a relatively smooth cake batter. Without a food processor your cake would have whole fruit in it which may not be a problem but I haven’t tried it that way.

Frequently asked questions

I can’t eat nuts – is there an alternative to make this a nut free carrot cake?

Yes. You can substitute the ground almonds in the recipe for more flour

I am following the GAPS/SCD/Paleo diet. How can I make this carrot cake suitable?

Simply substitute the flour with more ground almonds. Depending on your specific diet you may also need to remove the raising agents (bicarbonate or soda and baking powder).

Can I make this vegan?

I have never tried to make this recipe without eggs but it should be possible. You will need to replace the eggs with 2 additional teaspoons of ground flax seeds mixed with 6 tablespoons of water. I also suggest increasing the amount of baking powder by 1 teaspoon.

I notice the recipe is also dairy free. Can I make it with dairy?

Yes, if you don’t have coconut oil or don’t want to use it feel free to swap it for butter.

Can I make one big cake rather than carrot cake muffins?

I have never baked this recipe as one cake or as a carrot cake loaf or tray bake but I’m certain it’s possible. The baking time will need to increase significantly and will depend on the size and shape tin you use. If you’re making it into a tray bake it will need less cooking time than a small round cake.

I can’t eat bananas. Can I use something instead?

Yes, if you can’t eat bananas, don’t like the flavour or simply don’t have any then replace them with 50g honey or maple syrup.

How do I store these sugar free carrot cakes?

The cakes without the frosting can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days at room temperature.
If you are using the frosting I recommend adding it before eating the cakes because it can go a little brown over time.

Cut in half sugar free gluten free carrot cake muffin

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Pin the recipe so you don’t lose it:

Sugar Free Carrot Cake Muffins (Gluten Free)

Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Soya-free, Sugar-free carrot cake.
5 from 5 votes
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Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Total Time30 mins
Servings 12 large muffins
Author Vicki Montague – The Free From Fairy

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 60 g dates - pitted
  • 30 g dried apricots - preferably the brown ones without sulphites
  • 30 g dried mixed fruit
  • 2 medium carrots
  • 60 g coconut oil - I used Biona mild that doesn’t have any taste
  • 2 medium eggs - ideally organic
  • 1 tsp ground flax seeds
  • 75 g Free From Fairy plain gluten free flour
  • 75 g ground almonds
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp mixed spice
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the optional frosting

  • 250 g cream cheese - make sure you use full fat
  • 1 orange - zest only
  • 4 tsp honey - or maple syrup

Instructions
 

  • Grate the carrots.
  • Place all the fruit and the grated carrots along with the oil and eggs into a food processor or mini chopper and leave to mix on high for a couple of minutes.
  • Add all the remaining ingredients and mix for a further minute or so. By this time the carrot will be nicely chopped up and won’t be noticed!
  • Spoon the mixture into cupcake cases in a muffin tray.
  • Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees (160 degree fan oven), gas mark 4 for 17 – 20 minutes until springy to the touch.
  • Leave to cool and add frosting if you want it. To make the frosting combine all the ingredients together in a bowl and divide between the cakes.

Notes

Nutrition facts for information only.

Nutrition (Approx)

Calories: 246kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 191mg | Potassium: 295mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 2147IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 76mg | Iron: 1mg
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lou, Eat Your Veg says

    11th February 2015 at 10:18 am

    How lovely to see cakes totally sweetened naturally with dried fruits and zero added sugar! That’s one impressive recipe and very fitting for January’s ‘Family Foodies’ ‘Healthy Kids’ event.

    • Vicki Montague says

      11th February 2015 at 2:20 pm

      Thanks Lou! They are super scrummy too!

  2. Xeni says

    19th November 2014 at 6:15 pm

    5 stars
    Made these this afternoon with the honey cream cheese icing. Very possibly the best cakes I’ve ever made, thank you! I don’t bother looking elsewhere now for cake recipes – free from fairy ones are always brilliant and always turn out really well.

    • Vicki Montague says

      20th November 2014 at 11:15 am

      Ah thank you!! I honestly didn’t pay her to say that although she is a friend of mine ;)! Thanks for your very sweet message – it has perked my day up!

  3. Helen at Casa Costello says

    9th October 2014 at 7:17 pm

    Brilliant recipe – I love the fact that these will taste delicious but be healthy too. Thanks so much for joining in with #Bakeoftheweek – great to have you part of the team x

    • The Free From Fairy says

      9th October 2014 at 7:43 pm

      Ah thanks Helen. I will to remember to drop by again soon!

  4. The Free From Fairy says

    7th October 2014 at 2:30 pm

    Oh yes! If I can make cake and make it even a little bit healthy then I do!! 😉

  5. Honest Mum says

    17th September 2014 at 1:47 pm

    5 stars
    Will be trying these without the nuts, utterly scrumptious! Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays

    • The Free From Fairy says

      18th September 2014 at 11:59 am

      Oh yes, they would work fine without the nuts…just use flour instead…oat flour would be good. I only put nuts in to add protein 😉

  6. Michelle Murray says

    17th September 2014 at 12:45 pm

    Wow these look delicious. I do have a weak spot for a piece of cake cake!

    • The Free From Fairy says

      18th September 2014 at 11:59 am

      …and this is healthy carrot cake…really!! They are so moist you would never know they didn’t have sugar in. Let me know if you make them!

  7. Dave says

    15th September 2014 at 5:55 pm

    Hey Vicki I am still new to this whole thing of baking for yourself, can you tell me where I’d normally be able to get ground flax seeds and coconut oil? I’d love to make a carrot cake proper, my additional difficulty is I have to avoid cows milk, but can get by with goats. IN cakes this can make them taste as good as the ‘normal’ version. Do you have a way to make this into a normal tin carrot cake. When I make stuff my family loves it, even though I’m the only Coeliac, a tinned Carrot cake would probably last a bit longer than individual cakes ;-).

    Thanks again

    • The Free From Fairy says

      16th September 2014 at 12:29 pm

      Hi Dave, so glad you are starting to experiment with baking for yourself…you will get some great tasting cakes compared with what you can buy! If you have any questions then just ask. And don’t expect everything to go well the first time!! We all have bad days (am having one today for some reason!). I buy linseeds from Tesco (in wholefood section) and grind them into a powder with my coffee grinder, then keep in the freezer to retain the nutrients. You can buy milled linseeds or flaxseeds (same thing but called different things sometimes!) from supermarkets too. I buy my coconut oil from Amazon. I get the Biona brand and if you don’t like the taste of coconut you can use their ‘cuisine’ one which has no flavour! With this recipe you could just sub this for sunflower oil…the reason I use coconut (only virgin) is because it has many health benefits. This recipe has no dairy in it, apart from the icing so I would go with this recipe but put the mixture in a round or square tin and bake for about 40 mins (you will need to check on it – it may need more – you will know it is done when a skewer comes out clean. You could ice it with a mixture of icing sugar and lemon or orange juice – make it quite thick so it stays on the top. I think that would be lovely…or just have it without icing (which is what we have and it is delicious!). Let me know how you get on!

      • Dave says

        16th September 2014 at 1:11 pm

        Wow thanks for the comprehensive response, and the tips. Great help thanks for the inspiration and encouragement 😉

        D.

        • The Free From Fairy says

          16th September 2014 at 2:35 pm

          You are welcome!

  8. The Free From Fairy says

    15th September 2014 at 12:49 pm

    Ah, thanks! We are crumble addicts at the moment!! Had it again last night with lovely blackberries from the park!

  9. Mel says

    12th September 2014 at 11:09 am

    These muffins look delicious, Vicki! Next time I see you, can you bring some along please? x

    • The Free From Fairy says

      15th September 2014 at 12:50 pm

      Give them a go! They seriously take about 5 mins to prep and you won’t regret it!

  10. Michelle Twin Mum says

    11th September 2014 at 9:56 pm

    Ohh yum and the honey cream cheese frosting sounds divine too. Mich x

    • The Free From Fairy says

      15th September 2014 at 12:50 pm

      Mmm, next batch is going to have the frosting too…just for a bit of naughtyness…although to be honest they don’t need it!

  11. Sonia says

    11th September 2014 at 10:33 am

    These look lovely! I am going to make these next week for the kids lunches! I’m having to stop using milk for my daughter so am finding your blog very helpful right now x

    • The Free From Fairy says

      15th September 2014 at 12:51 pm

      Great! Not that your daughter has to give up milk…that is not great at all! But I am glad that you are enjoying my recipes. Let me know how your muffins turn out and when the kids liked them. I am about to make another batch…the perfect ‘healthy’ treat for lunchboxes or hungry kids at hometime!

Trackbacks

  1. 10 Healthy Puddings | Foodies 100 says:
    16th January 2015 at 10:00 am

    […] said muffins can’t be healthy? I love the super healthy carrot cake muffins by Vicky from Free From Fairy. They have bananas, dates, apricots, mixed fruit and carrots – […]

  2. Apple, Date & Cinnamon Flapjacks - Bake of the Week - Casa Costello says:
    9th October 2014 at 10:59 pm

    […] Chocolate Chip Iced Latte Crumble Muffins 5. Perfect for making me feel more human and still cake! Super healthy carrot cake muffins from The Free From […]

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Vicki Montague, the Free From Fairy

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Hi. I'm Vicki Montague, scientist and mum to 'Roo' (15) and 'Sunshine' (13). I'm a freelance recipe developer specialising in 'free from' food and spend many hours in my kitchen experimenting to create exciting healthy recipes that are all gluten-free & mainly dairy-free. In July 2016 I launched the world's first wholegrain, gluten-free and rice-free flour blends. In May 2018 I launched my first online programme to help people adapt to a gluten free life. I can be found at food festivals giving cookery demos and I love nothing more than teaching people how to cook and lead a positive wholesome life. Find out more about my story...

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