These healthy Vegan Carrot Cake bars are just what you need for a simple, yet tasty Easter morning treat. These bars are Paleo, Vegan and even allergy friendly (nut free). In addition, these carrot bars are only sweetened with bananas - the perfect addition to any family brunch.
I'm hosting brunch this Easter!
And, I'm quite excited about it! We'll be heading to an early church service, taking the kids on an Easter egg hunt, and then brunching with extended family.
Something you may not know, I'm often shy about sharing my baking and cooking with others. Yes, that's right! I don't really like to cook for anyone outside of my immediate family.
But this year I've got these healthy vegan carrot cake bars up my sleeve. I'm pretty sure even my vegetable-hating father in law will love these 😉
Besides appealing to the taste buds of my family members who don't like vegetables, my goal was for for these bars to be toddler friendly. As in, free of all common allergens and not loaded with sugar. Oh, and of course tasty!
Vegan Carrot Cake Everyone Will Love
My recipe for vegan carrot cake bars is perfect for babies and kids (and adults) since it contains healthy, allergy-free ingredients. These bars are:
- paleo and vegan
- nut free
- dairy free
- egg free
- gluten free & grain free - made with coconut flour
- only sweetened with bananas - no sugar added
- moist and tender
My picky toddler gave these bars his approval. Which, makes me one happy mama since they are a great way to squeeze in extra nutrients.
This gluten free carrot cake bar recipe definitely tastes like dessert, but they are healthy enough to enjoy at breakfast or brunch. Even more so if you swap out the frosting for a sugar free alternative like coconut butter.
Ingredients
These healthy carrot cake bars contain a few simple, every day ingredients. Here's what you need:
For the Carrot Cake
- flax eggs
- ripe bananas
- shredded
carrot - coconut oil
- vanilla extract
- coconut flour
- tapioca flour
- baking powder
- cinnamon
- nutmeg
- salt
carrot
For the Frosting
- non-hydrogenated shortening (or butter)
- maple syrup
- vanilla extract
- tapioca flour (or powdered sugar for a sweeter frosting)
How to Make Vegan Carrot Cake Bars
These batter for these vegan carrot cake bars is made in one bowl and baked in an 8" x 8" glass pan. Here's what you need to do:
First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8" square glass pan with parchment paper and set aside.
Next, make the flax eggs by mixing together ground flax and water. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
Peel the bananas and mash them in a large mixing bowl. Add in the shredded carrot, melted coconut oil, flax eggs and vanilla. Mix well.
Next, add in the coconut flour, tapioca flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix with a spatula until well combined.
Scoop the batter into the lined baking pan and smooth it out in an even layer.
Then, place the pan in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
After baking, remove the bars from the oven and cool them to room temperature in the baking pan.
Carrot Cake Bar Frosting
These paleo carrot cake bars are frosted with a low sugar buttercream. It's made of four simple ingredients: non-hydrogenated shortening, maple syrup, vanilla and tapioca flour.
The frosting is mildly sweet, but can be made sweeter by swapping the tapioca flour for powdered sugar.
To make the frosting, whisk together all frosting ingredients in a small bowl. If necessary, melt the shortening for 5-10 seconds in the microwave. This makes the frosting creamier and easier to work with.
Storage
Since these paleo vegan carrot cake bars are moist, you will want to store them in the fridge. They stay well up to a week. The frosting solidifies at cold temperatures. However, you can let these them rest at room temperature before serving and the frosting will soften.
More Paleo Vegan Desserts
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Vegan Carrot Cake Bars (Paleo, Nut Free)
- Prep Time: 20 min
- Cook Time: 45 min
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 16 bite-sized bars 1x
Description
These Vegan Carrot Cake Bars are Paleo, allergy free and only sweetened with bananas. The frosting is made from 4 simple ingredients. This simple dessert is healthy enough for breakfast and perfect for babies, kids and adults.
Ingredients
Bars
- 2 flax eggs (2 Tbsp ground flax + 6 Tbsp water)
- 2-3 large, ripe bananas (250g)
- 1 cup shredded carrot (85g)
- ¼ cup melted coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup coconut flour, lightly packed (32g)
- ¼ cup tapioca flour (32g)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
Frosting
- ⅓ cup non-hydrogenated shortening
- 2 Tbsp maple syrup
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 Tbsp tapioca flour
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- For the bars: in a small bowl, make flax eggs by mixing together 2 Tbsp ground flax + 6 Tbsp water. Let sit for 5 minutes to set.
- Peel bananas and mash in a large mixing bowl.
- Add in shredded carrot, melted coconut oil, vanilla and flax eggs. Mix well.
- Add remaining bar ingredients to bowl and mix well.
- Pour batter into a lined 8" x 8" glass pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
- Remove from oven and cool bars to room temperature in glass pan*
- For the frosting: in a small mixing bowl, whisk together shortening, maple syrup and vanilla. Add tapioca flour 1 Tbsp at a time. Whisk until smooth**
- Spread frosting over cooled bars. Optional: add desired toppings such as chopped nuts, bee pollen and/or sprinkles.
- Place bars in fridge for at least 10-20 minutes for frosting to set.
- Remove from fridge, cut into bars (recipe makes 16 bars) and serve!
- Store carrot cake bars in fridge.
carrot, melted coconut oil, vanilla and flax eggs. Mix well.Notes
For best results, measure ingredients by weight.
*It's important to cool the bars in the glass pan so that they continue cooking
**May need to warm frosting for 5-10 seconds in the microwave to soften shortening
Keywords: carrot cake bars, vegan carrot cake bars, paleo carrot cake bars, paleo vegan carrot cake, easy carrot cake bars, banana carrot bars, allergy friendly dessert, healthy carrot cake bars
Rose Martine says
YUMMY!!!!! Thanks for sharing your recipe! I’ve heard about your blog a couple of times and will now spend my afternoon reading 🙂
Katie says
Thank you Rose! I hope you find some recipes you like 🙂
Hannah Flack says
This recipe is AMAZING. I will eat this for the rest of my life! So good and easy-peasy.
Katie says
Thank you Hannah! I'm so happy to hear that - you just made my weekend 🙂
Katie says
My family and I love these vegan carrot cake bars. Hope you all do too!
★★★★★
Cat says
In my case it didnt work out. It didint grow at all and after 45 minutes had still dough consistence.. I'm gonna try another one maybe 3 bananas was too much. Maybe more coconut flour?
Does it have to be baked in glass ? I Have a normal metal square cake tin.
Katie says
Did you measure the ingredients by weight? Measuring by weight will ensure that you have the right quantities and the bars will bake properly. The baking dish may play a small role in the way it bakes, but the ingredient quantities are more important.
Irene says
Can we use something else other than shortening?
Katie says
Any type of butter should work, coconut oil too.