Carrot Cake Blondies
BY Eva Agha | MODERATE | VEGAN | SOY FREE
INGREDIENTS
Cream Cheese Swirl:
- 2 tsp ground chia seed
- 2 tbsp water
- 8 oz Follow Your Heart Dairy-Free Cream Cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Carrot Cake Blondies:
- ½ cup plant milk
- ¼ cup oil 1 cup brown sugar 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 cup shredded carrot
- Optional: ½ cup chopped walnuts
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 4 oz vegan butter
- 4 oz Follow Your Heart Dairy-Free Cream Cheese
- 1 ½ – 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 350 ºF and lightly grease an 8” square dish. Optional: line with parchment paper to remove the blondies from the pan after chilling.
- Mix together the ground chia seed and water in a small dish. Let sit and thicken for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice.
- Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the thickened chia mixture and beat in. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the plant milk, oil, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add the flour, cornstarch, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder and mix in. Fold in the shredded carrots and walnuts (if using).
- Spread about half of the batter (~1 ¼ – 1 ½ cups) to cover the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Add the cream cheese filling and gently spread across the pan. Then add the rest of the blondie batter and gently spread to cover.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a tester comes out clean and the cake is only a little jiggly. The cream cheese layer will have expanded a lot in volume and bubble around the edges, it will collapse as it cools.
- Let cool at room temperature and then chill in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
- Make the frosting: Using an electric mixer beat together the vegan butter and cream cheese until smooth. Mix in the powdered sugar in ½ cup increments until frosting is thick and spreadable. Frost blondies and serve!
Note: The blondies are great unfrosted as well, or you can create a drizzle instead of a thick layer of frosting, simply warm the frosting until it thin enough to drizzle.
