These no-bake carrot cake bites are a perfect blend of interesting textures and flavors. They’re quick and easy to prepare with no baking involved. They’re gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free, but taste like a decadent dessert. Top them with a luscious vegan cream cheese frosting that will blow your mind!
These no-bake carrot cake bites with vegan cream cheese frosting are a dream come true for carrot cake lovers. They are chewy, dense, and bursting with flavor from the carrots, walnuts, coconut, raisins, and spices. The best part is that they don’t require any baking skills. Just mix the ingredients in a bowl, press them into a dish, prepare and pour the frosting, and freeze until firm. The combination of the delicious carrot cake textures with the smooth, rich, and creamy vegan cream cheese frosting is my idea of heaven!
No-Bake Carrot Cake Bites Ingredients
These scrumptious bars are made with a handful of nutritious and wholesome ingredients. You will need:
- Quick oats: Quick-cooking oats are softer in texture than regular rolled or old-fashioned oats. Thus, they work better in these no-bake carrot cake bites. Rolled oats would give the bars a firmer and chewier consistency. If using rolled oats, it’s best to pulse them in a food processor for about 10 seconds until they break down a bit and become softer. Look for a GF label on the package (like this one) if you’re trying to eat gluten-free since not all oat products are gluten-free.
- Walnuts: Chop them as finely as you like with a knife or a food processor to create the desired texture. You can substitute with pecans or sunflower seeds if you can’t have walnuts.
- Carrots: Finely grate the carrots using the small shredding side of a box grater. Alternatively, you could use the smaller shredding disc of a food processor. I do not recommend using a mandolin since it results in larger shreds that don’t blend quite nicely with other ingredients.
- Unsweetened shredded coconut: Make sure to use a product with only 1 ingredient, unsulfured coconut, and no added sugar, like this.
- Raisins: Substitute the raisins with dried cranberries or chopped dates or omit them, if you wish.
- Tahini: Substitute with other nut or seed butters of choice, such as peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, or sun butter.
- Pure maple syrup: Start with 1/4 cup (as written in the recipe) if you don’t like overly sweet treats. Taste test and add more, 1 tablespoon at a time, to achieve the desired level of sweetness.
- Vanilla extract: Use a high-quality pure vanilla extract (like this) that’s free from refined sugar, fillers, and additives.
- Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon is an essential spice for adding warmth and a sweet aromatic carrot cake flavor.
- Nutmeg: Always use freshly grated nutmeg, which is a million times more fragrant and flavorful than store-bought ground nutmeg.
- Ginger: Freshly grated ginger root adds a fabulous spicy zing to these carrot cake truffles. If unable to use fresh ginger, you can opt for 1/2 teaspoon of dried ginger powder instead.
- Sea salt: A little pinch of salt can make a big difference in the taste and help enhance the flavors of other ingredients.
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
While you certainly can prepare the bars without the vegan cream cheese frosting if you’re in a rush, try not to skip it when possible. The frosting is really the star of the show here. It’s velvety smooth, subtly sweet, and tangy with hints of lemon and vanilla. So hard not to devour half of the batch while frosting the cake! Here’s what you’ll need:
- Raw cashews that have been previously soaked are what make this frosting rich, creamy, and nutritious. It’s best to soak them for at least 2 hours or overnight to get a velvety smooth texture, especially if you’re not using a high-powered blender. If short on time, cover them with boiling water for 15-30 minutes to let them soften.
- Yogurt: You can use your favorite plain dairy-free yogurt such as cashew, coconut, or almond milk yogurt. If you’re not avoiding dairy, plain organic Greek yogurt could also be used. The thicker the yogurt is, the firmer the consistency of the frosting will be.
- Pure maple syrup: My favorite natural, unrefined sweetener to use. If you don’t have maple syrup, you could opt for raw honey instead.
- Lemon juice: Use only freshly-squeezed lemon or lime juice.
- Vanilla extract
How to Make No-Bake Carrot Cake Bites
These no-bake carrot cake bites are the perfect treat for any occasion. You can whip them up in no time with a few simple steps:
- Make the no-bake cake mixture. Mix the first five ingredients in a large bowl, then add the wet ingredients and spices. Press the mixture into an 8×8-inch dish lined with parchment paper and place it in the freezer to firm up.
- Make the vegan cream cheese frosting. In the meantime, drain the soaked cashews and add them to a blender with the remaining frosting ingredients. Blend for 1 minute or longer until you get a super smooth and velvety texture.
- Assemble: Take out the dish from the freezer and spread the frosting over the bars using a spoon or spatula. Place back in the freezer for 30 minutes (up to 4 hours) to firm up. Cut into squares and enjoy!
How to Store No-Bake Carrot Cake Bites
Store these no-cake carrot cake bites in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If you wish to freeze them, first arrange them spaced on a baking sheet so no bites are touching. Freeze for an hour until firm. Then transfer the bites to an airtight container or resealable bag. Press out as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to 3 months. When it’s time to serve, let them slowly thaw in the fridge overnight or leave them on the counter for about 30 minutes to defrost.
More Delicious No-Bake Treats
- Healthy Nanaimo Bars
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites
- No-Bake Sweet Potato Brownies
- No-Bake Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you try and enjoy these no-bake carrot cake bites with vegan cream cheese frosting, please leave a comment and rate the recipe. Don’t forget to tag your photo @nutriholist #nutriholist on Instagram or share a picture on our Facebook page. We love seeing your creations!
No-Bake Carrot Cake Bites with Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Carrot Cake Bites
- 1 and 1/2 cups gluten-free quick oats {See Notes}
- 3/4 cup walnuts chopped
- 1 cup (2 medium) carrots finely grated
- 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/4 cup raisins sub with dried cranberries or omit
- 1/4 cup tahini or nut/seed butter of choice
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup add more to taste
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg freshly ground
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger grated
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup raw cashews soaked for 2+ hours {See Notes}
- 1/2 cup dairy-free yogurt (cashew, coconut, almond) or plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add the quick oats, chopped walnuts, finely grated carrots, shredded coconut, and raisins to a large bowl and stir to combine. You could use a food processor to chop the walnuts with the S blade and shred the carrots with the shredding blade. Or you could chop and shred manually with a knife and box grater, respectively.
- Add the tahini, maple syrup, and spices, and mix some more to thoroughly combine.
- Line an 8x8 inch dish with parchment paper and pour in the mixture. Spread and press down the mixture with the back of a spoon or spatula to flatten. Place in the freezer while you prepare the frosting.
- Rinse and drain the soaked cashews. Add to a blender with the remaining frosting ingredients. Blend for about a minute until completely smooth and no longer grainy.
- Remove the dish from the freezer and pour the frosting over the carrot cake mixture and spread it with a spoon or spatula into an even layer.
- Place back in the freezer for 30 minutes (up to 4 hours) to firm up. Cut into squares, and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
- Quick oats are recommended for a more tender texture. Rolled oats would give the bars a firmer and chewier consistency. If using rolled oats, it’s best to pulse them in a food processor for about 10 seconds until they break down a bit and become softer.
- Use finely grated carrots for best results. A box grater or the finer shredding blade of a food processor works best.
- For the frosting, soak the cashews for at least 2 hours or overnight to get a super smooth consistency, especially if you're not using a high-powered blender. You can speed up the process if you're short on time by covering the cashews with boiling water for 15-30 minutes to let them soften. Drain and use in the recipe.
- These bites are not overly sweet. If you prefer yours sweeter, add an additional 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and taste test. Add more as needed.
- If you plan on freezing the bites, first arrange them spaced on a baking sheet so no bites are touching. Freeze for an hour until firm. Then transfer the bites to an airtight container or resealable bag. Press out as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to 3 months.
nice vegan rcps
Thank you so much!