Ginger Carrot Cake with Orange Glaze (Vegan/Sugar free)

This is from Ben’s favorite cookbook May All Beings Be Feed , John Robbins,  1992 pg. 380. It is out of print, but you can find it used.  Ben follows the recipe without adjustments. Instead of orange glaze, sometimes we make the white icing recipe that is on the blog or "Gabe's whipped cream". It doesn't need it, but it sometimes I really just want the texture.

It takes awhile to make it, so I suggest prepping one day and making it the next. The reciepe can be doubled

Makes one 8 inch square cake or one 9 inch round cake, or cupcakes. ***

¾ cup unfiltered apple juice *

½ cup canola or safflower oil (or grapeseed oil) **

1 ½ cups raisins

½ cup maple syrup

Grated zest of 1 orange

1½ cups of grated carrots (about 3 med. Carrots)

2 teaspoons finely grated fresh gingerroot
2 cups wholewheat pastry flour

1-teaspoon nonaluminum baking powder

1 teaspoon Baking soda

1 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/2-teaspoon fine sea salt

1 cup coarsely chopped raw walnuts

Orange Glaze 
(we don't use all the glaze, so we save it for a stirfry sauce)

3 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil and 8 by 8 inch cake pan or a 9-inch round pan and dust with flour, shaking out the excess.

Put the apple juice, oil, ½ cup of raisins, the maple syrup, and the organic zest in a blender until smooth. Add the carrots and ginger and pulse just to mix.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together. Add the apple juice mixture and combine, using a few strokes as possible so you do not over mix the batter. Fold in the remaining 1 cup raisins and the walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Use the spatula to spread the batter evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the orange glaze: In a small bowl, combine the maple syrup and orange juke and stir together until thoroughly blended. 

When the cake is done, remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Transfer to a wire rack, and while the cake is still warm, brush on the glaze with a pastry brush.

* we have used regular apple juice successfully
** (we only use safflower oil or grapeseed oil because canola is made from rapeseed, a GMO plant that wasn’t originally made for human consumption.)
*** Yummy cupcakes - 350 degrees, 10-15 mins.