Add the perfect finishing touch to a midweek dinner or just enjoy a tasty afternoon pick me up...

Carrot and walnut cake

By Katie and Josh Bailey from Delightful Vegans (delightfulvegans.com)

Serves 8-10 | Prep 10 mins | Cook 45 mins | Calories 645 (per slice)

280g (10oz) self-raising flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

150g (5¼oz) coconut sugar

60ml (2floz) oil

175ml (6floz) plantbased milk

3 tbsp apple purée

2 medium carrots, grated

60g (2oz) walnuts, roughly chopped

1½ tbsp crystallized ginger, chopped

FOR THE ICING

175g (6oz) plant-based butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp lemon juice

60ml (2floz) coconut cream

310g (11oz) icing sugar

TO DECORATE

60g (2oz) walnuts, roasted

25g (1oz) flaked coconut, toasted

25g (1oz) sliced almonds, toasted

1 For the cake, preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

2 Mix the self-raising flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and coconut sugar in a bowl. Add the oil, plant-based milk, and apple purée and mix through. Lastly, add the grated carrots, walnuts and crystallized ginger. Mix through well. Pour into a greased 20cm (8in) cake tin.

3 Bake for 40-45 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.

4 For the icing, add all the ingredients to a food processor or mix in a bowl with a wooden spoon until smooth and no more plant-based butter lumps are left.

5 Once the cake comes out of the oven, let it cool completely and then ice it.

6 To decorate, I usually roast the walnuts in the oven for 7-8 minutes while the cake is cooking.

7 Next, I toast the flaked coconut and sliced almonds in a shallow pan on the stove top. I cook them separately, as the coconut doesn’t take as long to cook.