Gluten Free Carrot Cake Recipe

If you or a family member have celiac disease, avoiding all ingredients containing gluten is the most important factor in a gluten free carrot cake recipe. Wheat products are not the only ingredient that can contain gluten. Believe it or not, vanilla extract can contain gluten as well, so it's important to follow the ingredient list exactly so as not to cause any health problems for those enjoying this delicious carrot cake.  This recipe will make one loaf or one layer of carrot cake.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups grated carrots (you can use a cheese grater or a food processor with a grater attachment)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. gluten-free vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 cups ready-to-use gluten-free baking mix
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (may be omitted for those with nut allergies)

1. Turn on your oven to 350 degrees to preheat it.
2. Beat together the oil, eggs, and sugar together in a large mixing bowl. Blend it until it has a creamy texture.
3. Add all of the other ingredients and mix. The batter will be thick.
4. Rub Crisco or butter onto the bottom and sides of your 8 by 4 inch loaf pan, or your 8 by 8 inch cake pan, in a thin layer. Use a paper towel or some waxed paper to spread it very thinly.
5. Pour the batter mixture into the greased pan. Put the pan in the oven and set your kitchen timer to 25 minutes.
6. Check the cake when the timer goes off. The cake is done all the way through when a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean with no wet batter sticking to it. Don't get burned!
7. If the cake is done, take it out and let it cool on a rack if you have one, or you could also use a trivet.

If you want your gluten-free carrot cake recipe to look good on a plate, here's how you get the cake out of the pan. Take a plate that is bigger than the cake, and invert it over the top of the cooled cake in the pan. If it's not cooled yet, you should wait a while because the cake might break apart. Once you have the plate centered on top of the pan, grasp the whole thing like a giant hamburger on either side and flip the pan and plate over. Set it all down together on the counter, tap the top of the cake pan a few times with your hand, and it should fall out onto the plate. Remove the plate, and the cake is ready to eat, unless you want to frost it first. The recommended icing for gluten-free carrot cake is a cream cheese frosting.

Now that you know how to make a gluten-free carrot cake recipe, you can have something to bring to potlucks or events that is safe for everyone to eat and will be appreciated by those who have gluten sensitivity. People who have celiac disease often have to say no to desserts, but now you can be the hero that everyone will appreciate. Besides, who doesn't like cake?