Carrot Cake Truffles with Vanilla Bean Icing Recipe

raw Carrot Cake Truffles with Vanilla Bean Icing Recipe. This healthy vegan cake recipe is fun to make little carrot cake balls

Easy to make raw carrot cake truffles that are vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free and most importantly delicious. No bake cake balls that are suitable for a raw food diet with a cashew cream frosting. Maple syrup is heated but contains nutrients so is generally accepted as suitable for raw foodists.

Be sure to use gluten-free oats if you don’t eat gluten when making these raw carrot cake energy balls.  Full of healthy fats, fibre and protein – you can have your cake and eat it with this healthy cake!

Raw Carrot Cake Truffles made from wholefood ingredients and free of flour, eggs, sugar and dairy. Covered in raw cashew frosting.

The chia seeds can be replaced with either flax seeds or more oats, they help set the raw cake balls. Chia is high in heart-healthy fats, omega-3, calcium and protein so ups the nutritional content.

Did you know that up until recently chia seeds were only legal in Europe to add a small amount to bread. If any brand dared to put a recipe for chia pudding on the packet it would have been illegal! Despite chia existing for thousands of years and being a staple of the Incas its an ingredient that was previously unknown of a few decades ago in the west.

Carrot Cake Balls with Vanilla Bean Icing Video Recipe

Play on YouTube, View Fast video or View No Music video

If you would rather have one big raw carrot cake than truffles just press the base ingredient into a pan and top with the icing. It’s slightly quicker to make it as a cake.

If you don’t have coconut cream / butter you can replace with coconut oil or just leave out but the icing will not be as firm. Cashew cream frosting is easy to make even in an inexpensive bullet blender and is smooth and creamy.

raw vegan carrot cake truffles recipe using just wholefood ingredients that are not refined.

Vanilla is expensive but it’s really worth it in my opinion in this raw carrot cake. I would rather have something with proper vanilla once a week than artificial vanilla every day. In the video I used fresh vanilla pods for a rare treat but a high-quality extract is a good halfway house with great flavour and not too expensive.

Yield: 16 balls

Raw Carrot Cake Balls

raw Carrot Cake Truffles with Vanilla Bean Icing Recipe. This healthy vegan cake recipe is fun to make little carrot cake balls

Raw carrot cake balls made from just a few whole food ingredients. Free of dairy, wheat, eggs and refined sugar. High in taste, fibre and nutrition. Can either be made as balls or one large raw carrot cake.

Prep Time 25 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

Raw Carrot Cake

  • 2 cups / 100g grated Carrot
  • 1 cup / 150g Walnuts
  • 1 cup / 100g Dates
  • 3 tbsp Oats
  • 2 tbsp shredded Coconut
  • 1 tbsp Chia seeds
  • 1 tsp Cinnamon
  • Β½ tsp ground Ginger
  • ΒΌ tsp Nutmeg

Cashew Frosting

  • 1 cup / 150g Cashews
  • Β½ cup / 120 ml Coconut butter or oil
  • 3 tbsp Maple syrup
  • 1 tsp Vanilla
  • 1 Lime juiced

Instructions

  1. Put all of the base ingredients for the raw carrot cake into a food processor and pulse blend until they are all combined.
  2. The mixture should be firm, if not add more oats.
  3. Either roll into balls for truffles and place on non stick sheets or push into a cake pan for one big carrot cake. Place in the freezer to chill while you make the icing.
  4. Melt the coconut cream/butter/oil as its solid at room temperature. I melt by placing in a bowl within a bowl of hot water.
  5. Place all of the carrot cake cashew frosting ingredients into a blender with a few tablespoons of water. Blend until you get a smooth creamy icing.
  6. Hold the carrot cake truffles on a fork over the icing and spoon on the cashew vanilla bean icing. Then sprinkle with cinnamon and put on a non stick sheet.
  7. For the cake just pour the icing on top and spread it out. Sprinkle with cinnamon / grated carrots / chopped nuts to garnish.
  8. Once the raw carrot cake balls are made chill in the fridge for half an hour and they are ready to eat.
  9. Raw carrot cake will last several days stored in the fridge.

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Nutrition Information

Yield

16

Serving Size

1

Amount Per Serving Calories 160Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 0mgSodium 49mgCarbohydrates 10gFiber 2gSugar 6gProtein 2g

If you like this recipe check out our Tropical Lemon Cake.
Tropical Lemon Cake - No Bake and Raw

Did you know vanilla comes from the orchids of genus Vanilla and originally came from what we now know as Mexico and Guatemala. The pods are picked when still green and blanched in hot water then left to sun dry for months. It’s the second most expensive spice after saffron and 80% of the world’s supply comes from the island nations of Madagascar and Reunion according to Huff.

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48 thoughts on “Carrot Cake Truffles with Vanilla Bean Icing”

  1. Did you use a Nutribullet to blend? It looks like it. I find it is much easier to use because it is so easy to clean, but don’t want to mess up the recipe if you feel it won’t work as well.

    1. I did in the video, however I would recommend a normal food processor. With a bullet type device you have to shake it and stir a few times. But if you just have a bullet it will work fine, but maybe blend the base in two batches and then mix together. The great thing about a no bake recipe like this it’s very hard to mess it up πŸ™‚

  2. This is so tasty! Easily the best carrot cake I have ever made. I did make it as a normal cake rather than truffles as my skills are quite limited in the kitchen. I’m not raw but im sticking to raw cakes as they are so much easier to make, actually healthy and taste just as good. Thanks nest and glow

    1. Hello, I think there has been confusion over me using creamed coconut for this recipe, Just use coconut oil and the icing will work out great πŸ™‚

  3. This was so tasty, thanks so much for the recipe. The icing is amazing, it is a bit soft if its taken out of the fridge and left but still amazing – just a bit messy!

    1. That’s right yes, just use coconut oil or creamed coconut – a solid coconut fat. Plenty have made it from the solid cream at the top of a can of coconut milk and said how great it was.

    1. Anything that will thicken it is good. Cornflour works, but you will need to heat it. Or if you don’t mind it sloppy (it will still taste good) use some banana. Add as little water as possible and grind the cashews first so you don’t need as much water.

  4. Hi
    the base is lovely!!! [Totes Lovely!!]

    in the recipe it calls for coconut OIL and in the video and the instructions it said coconut CREAM. Which do you use or can you use both? Also is it cream from a can?

    1. Hello and thanks :), when I made the version for the video I used creamed coconut (a solid coconut fat) but you can replace this with coconut oil. Otherwise you can use the cream from the top of a coconut milk if you prefer as it’s very similar to creamed coconut. πŸ™‚ Sorry it’s a bit confusing with different countries having different names for various coconut products. It always tastes delicious no matter what kind you use, but coconut oil / creamed coconut helps it to set the best πŸ™‚

  5. I tried it and they looked good! but I didn’t like the ‘wet’ ‘uncooked’ feeling when I take a bite in them. It was firm like in the video but it keeps making me remember about raw dough while eating it. I liked the cream on the top and I will use it for other recipes for sure!.. but I really don’t like the truffles this way. πŸ™

    1. No worries you can’t win every time, if your expecting a cooked cake type consistency it would be a shock. Glad the icing was a hit. Try the cotton candy cheesecake πŸ™‚

    1. Bastian Nest and Glow

      No, cashews and macadamias are the only nuts I don’t soak – unless I don’t have a powerful blender.

  6. While I appreciate the effort in making healthy dessert options, the cost profile is just not feasible for many. In Canada, 150 gms of Organic Cashews is $6.46 and 150 gm of Walnuts: $9.99. Just these 2 ingredients bring the cost of this dessert to $16.46. That IMO is a pretty expensive home made dessert.

    Many plant based/Paleo recipes use expensive nuts (walnuts/cashews) as the main ingredients. I just don’t see how this can remain feasible for the average person/ family. I understand that there should not be a price put on health, however, altruism aside, realistically, there is. Sorry.

    My comments are not intended to offend. The recipes are great!! Perhaps you could suggest some cost friendly tips and alternatives?

    1. Bastian Nest and Glow

      Hi Lenore, I do see what you are saying. I’m living on savings with a few dollars a day coming in from running this site full-time. So I certainly know what it’s like living on a tight budget!

      Organic nuts are certainly out of my reach at the moment. Using standard nuts and the cheaper less premium grades make this recipe not particularly expensive in the UK. The cheaper grades often are not perfect aesthetically and in smaller pieces but it doesn’t matter for this recipe.

      Saying that I do plan to make a nut-free version that will be much more affordable πŸ™‚

    1. Bastian Nest and Glow

      Hi Lorraine, it’s in the works. I’ve tried making a few seed carrot cakes and wasn’t totally happy with it so will be doing some more tweaking before it’s ready πŸ™‚

    2. Try using chia seeds and sunflower seeds . You will be able to get the same consistency with it having to use nuts πŸ™‚ ?

  7. Hello I think there is a mistake in the recipe you wrote coconut oil and in the video it’s coconut cream! My icing was awful because I put oil instead of coconut cream!!

    1. Bastian Nest and Glow

      Hello Fabienne, there’s some inconsistencies in different countries what is coconut cream. I’ve tried to explain this in the recipe, but obviously it still needs some work! If you use oil it should be fine. What went wrong? Was it too soft?

      1. It didn’t look like your icing: white and creamy. It was with a strange colour and too fat. I put some coconut cream with 90 % coconut milk extract to save . It was better after. I will do it again better later. I continue to be your fan!!????

  8. I keep seeing your recipes and they all look deliouse and can’t wait to try some. I’m on a diet called acid watchers diet and I have celiac disease so these recipes are great for me. The only ingredient I can’t have because of the acidity is lemon which is bad for acid reflux. If I omit the lemon from the recipes do you think the recipe will still work out and be tasty?

  9. Incredebily tasty! I choose not to make the frosting as is too messy and rich in calories and still loved them.

  10. Hi Bastian ,
    I made the recipe (it’s lovely ) however the frosting came out way to greasy .
    Also 2 cups / 100 grams of grated carrot does not make sense .
    Annette

    1. Hi there, sorry to hear the frosting came out too greasy – did it not set? By my calculations, 2 cups of grated carrot is about 100g – but I guess it depends how tight you pack it in. Being a brit I do always use grams myself but try to covert for others πŸ™‚

  11. Patrizia Verrelli

    For the frosting, do i need to melt the coconut oil?
    i buy in large tubs, it is in solid form at the present time as we are experiencing the chill of winter in Ontario, Canada

  12. Hi there Bastian! This recipe looks great! I intend to make it for my baby’s first birthday but would like to replace the dates with something else. Do you think banana will work as well?
    Thank you!

    1. Bastian Durward

      Hi there, banana I don’t think would be sweet enough unless dried. How about dried vine fruit or apricots? Hope you like the recipe

    1. Bastian Durward

      Hi there, you can do – it’s not quite as sweet as maple and it affects the colour more. But still yummy – it’s what I would use if I wasn’t taking photos of the food

    2. Amazing taste! Thank you for the recipe! My frosting came out too thick, though. Next time I will probably add some coconut milk to it. The taste, however is AMAZING with the lime juice and maple syrup!!!

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