Vegan carrot cake with cocoa butter bunny mousse

Hello! 🙂 I am feeling very springy and I feel that carrot cake is super springy too! In addition, I had just bought these cute bunny moulds (easily found on amazon), so I really wanted to make something cute and special, also because I will not able to visit my parents for Easter, so focussing on something cute to visually share with them felt like a good idea. I kind of winged the recipe, based on carrot cakes I have previously made and adjusting to my own taste. This is very spices and in particular ginger forward, has pineapple in it to sweeten and add moisture, has mostly unrefined sugar and has a mix of white and spelt flour. I hope you will try and enjoy it!

For the cake:

Dry mix:

150g all purpose flour

60g spelt flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 tbsp ground ginger

Pinch of salt

Fruit-carrot mix:

20g chopped hazelnuts – oven roasted at 170C for 6-8 mins

1 inc grated fresh ginger

120g grated carrot

140g chopped pineapple

Zest of 1 orange

Sugars:

120g brown sugar

50g caster sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp bicarbonate

Wet:

120 ml hazelnut milk + 1 tbsp vinegar

120ml rapeseed oil

Mix the dry ingredients and set aside. In another bowl grate the carrots and chop the pineapple, add the fresh ginger and the fresh lemon zest. In a glass mix the hazelnut milk with the vinegar, let curdle and sit. Pour the sugars in the dry mix, whisk and add the fruit-carrot mix. Add the baking powder and soda. Then add the oil. Whisk well and finally add the buttermilk in three batches. Bake in a preheated oven at 160C fan for 50’.

Remove from oven and let sit in the baking tin for 40’. Then cut in two.

For the filling:

50g vegan butter

100g cream cheese

Zest of 1 orange

100g icing sugar

Beat the vegan butter for a minute, add the cream cheese and zest and finally the icing sugar. Spread well the filling between the two parts of the sponge.

For the frosting:

100g vegan butter

100g icing sugar

+Matcha powder/beet powder for the leaves and flower buds

This buttercream needs to be stiffer to hold the cake together well and be the basis for the decoration. Beat the butter first, once softened add the sugar. Add natural powders such as matcha for the leaves and beetroot powder for the buds.

For the bunny cocoa butter mousse:

100g heavy cream

50g almond milk

70g cocoa butter

20 soy powder

25 icing sugar)

2g agar +10 cold water

Heat the almond milk in a pan, when it simmers add the agar agar and mix well. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Melt the cocoa butter and blend it with the soy milk powder and the icing sugar. Pour the warm milk in this mix and blend. Let cool.

Whip the heavy cream and incorporate folding in 3 batches in the cocoa butter mixture. Pour in the bunny mould and freeze for at least 2h before unmoudling.