Grain-Free Paleo Carrot Cake Blondies made oil-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free for a healthier treat. This delicious blondie recipe incorporates all the trappings of carrot cake for a cookie bar meets cake situation.
Remember that time we broke the internet with Paleo Lemon Poppy Seed Blondies??
Well we’re back with a carrot cake version. Same concept, different outfit of the day 😉
The quick rundown is blondies are a chocolate-free version of brownies (think moist, chewy cookie bars with an amazing crispy top and a chewy interior). I’ve been changing up my classic paleo chocolate chip blondies to add fun flavors, and for this rendition? Carrot cake!
Carrot cake includes grated carrot, raisins, shredded coconut, chopped walnuts (or pecans) and sometimes chunks of pineapple. Because pineapple seems to be a source of debate and I was worried it would make the blondies too moist, I skipped the pineapple in this particular carrot cake adventure.
Don’t worry…these yummy bars are still nice and sweet, cinnamony and chewy for an epic dessert.
Let’s chat about the features, shall we?
Highlight Reel:
- Grain-free
- Refined sugar-free
- Dairy-free
- Oil-free
- Refined sugar-free
- Loaded with healthy fats and some plant-based protein.
Ingredients for Carrot Cake Blondies:
Tahini: That magical ingredient that makes these blondies chewy. Tahini also adds to the fat content, richness, and helps the blondies stay together. If you’ve never tried tahini, you may want to give it a taste test before using it, or go with a different nut or seed butter like cashew butter. It has a naturally bitter flavor and isn’t for everyone!
You can replace the tahini with sunflower seed butter, cashew butter, or almond butter. If the nut or seed butter you’re using is very thick, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of avocado oil or coconut oil to the recipe, as tahini tends to be on the thinner side.
Pure Maple Syrup: The sweetener we use in these blondies! Pure maple syrup not only sweetens the blondies, but also contributes to the chewiness. Liquid sweeteners can be very beneficial to texture in some applications, and this is one of them!
Eggs: That key component to blondies and brownies that allows the bar to rise, keeps them held together and helps make them chewy. I haven’t tested the recipe using an egg replacer yet, but I’m willing to bet flax eggs will work – the blondies will just be denser.
Almond Flour: The base of the recipe. Super fine almond flour when combined with the other ingredients makes for an amazing blondie that you’d never know was grain-free!
Shredded Coconut: Unsweetened shredded coconut lends a creamy, naturally sweet flavor to the blondies. You can’t actually taste the coconut inside of the blondies, though you’ll detect it if you sprinkle it on top. If you don’t like coconut, simply replace it with ⅓ cup additional almond flour.
Grated Carrot: The all star ingredient for any carrot cake treat! Grated carrots bring texture, flavor and natural sweetness to these blondies
Raisins: Studding any treat with raisins gives it additional sweetness and also soft pops of texture. Raisins are an iconic ingredient in carrot cake and I love the way they taste in these blondies. You can swap them out for dried cranberries if you prefer!
Pecans: Raw pecans or walnuts are crucial for adding that nutty flavor and texture to carrot cake treats. I use raw pecans in this recipe, but you can go with walnuts if you’d like.
Sea Salt & Ground Cinnamon: Flavor enhancers! Cinnamon makes a carrot cake treat taste nice and warm, and sea salt brings out all of the flavors.
Now that we’re experts on the ingredients, let’s make them!
How to Make Carrot Cake Blondies:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8” x 8” baking pan with parchment paper.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the tahini and the pure maple syrup until well-combined and creamy. Whisk in the eggs and mix until combined.
Add the almond flour, shredded coconut grated carrot, raisins, pecans, sea salt, and ground cinnamon.
Stir until everything is well combined and all the goodies are well-distributed throughout the dough. The dough will be very thick, like cookie dough.
Transfer the dough to the parchment-lined baking pan and smooth it into an even layer. You can use your hands to press it.
If desired, sprinkle with more shredded coconut and chopped pecans.
Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes, or until the edges are golden-brown and blondies are set up.
Remove the paleo carrot cake blondies from the oven and allow them to cool at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
More Carrot Cake Recipes:
- Paleo Carrot Cake
- Paleo Carrot Cake Pancakes
- Paleo Carrot Cake Cookies
- Paleo Carrot Cake Banana Bread
- Paleo Carrot Cake Banana Bread Muffins with No Added Sweetener
- Carrot Cake Fat Balls
Paleo Carrot Cake Blondies
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup tahini or cashew butter well-stirred
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups super fine almond flour
- ½ cup shredded coconut
- 1 large carrot grated (about ⅔ cup)
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8” x 8” baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the tahini and the pure maple syrup until well-combined and creamy. Whisk in the eggs and mix until combined. Add the almond flour, shredded coconut grated carrot, raisins, pecans, sea salt, and ground cinnamon. Stir until everything is well combined and all the goodies are well-distributed throughout the dough. The dough will be very thick, like cookie dough.
- Transfer the dough to the parchment-lined baking pan and smooth it into an even layer. You can use your hands to press it. If desired, sprinkle with more shredded coconut and chopped pecans.
- Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes, or until the edges are golden-brown and blondies are set up.
- Remove blondies from the oven and allow them to cool at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Mine are like eating dough
..I followed the recipe perfectly baked then cooled. Should I bake longer?
Hi Lynn! I’m sorry to hear that! I would say they probably need longer in the oven. What brand of almond flour do you use? Some brands of almond flour are more absorbent than others, which can affect the amount of liquid needed. It could be that you need to add more almond flour, but perhaps starting with the bake time will be the fix. Let me know how it goes!
If I wanted to reduce the carb amount in this recipe, could I reduce the amount of maple syrup? What could I add so it doesn’t ruin the consistency?
Hi Tricia!
Yes, you can reduce the amount of pure maple syrup to lower the carb count. If you’d like, you can use your favorite sugar-free sweetener. To offset the loss of liquid, I would add some full-fat canned coconut milk. You don’t need to replace all of the liquid, but I would aim for 1/2 to 2/3. Let me know if you have any other questions! xoxox
Can you substitute real butter. I live in a very small town and can’t always get lots of things other people get in the bigger cities.
Hi Barabara, Do you mean replace the tahini with butter? If so, that wouldn’t work as the nut butter provides structure for the blondies. You can replace it with peanut butter or almond butter though!