Make an Instant Pot Carrot Cake in your pressure cooker that's both gluten-free and Keto-friendly! It's perfect for days you don't want to heat up your kitchen and guess what? It tastes like real cake.
You can make cake in the Instant Pot?
So I created this AMAZING Carrot Cake which was also Gluten-Free. It is without a doubt, the best Keto cake I've ever created. It is made in the oven and is wonderful, but I wanted to find a more efficient way to cook it.
Enter the Instant Pot. I had made another Instant Pot Keto Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cake a while ago, but I wanted to try one with carrots, walnuts, and cream cheese. So I went to work again and created this delicious Instant Pot Carrot Cake.
Cake cooks well in the Instant Pot because it bakes it without drying it out. This is perfect for Keto baking which can be dry if you're not careful.
Okay, this pressure cooker Keto Carrot Cake isn't pretty as the baked version and it doesn't taste as "baked" as the baked version, because duh! That one tastes "toastier". But I do like not having to heat the kitchen and house for 40 minutes, so I'm posting this as an alternative for times you don't want to use an oven or don't have one, such as in your RV, or dorm, etc.
What do you use to frost this Instant Pot Carrot Cake?
You can serve this cake without frosting, or you can make it a million times better and add my Keto Cream Cheese frosting. It's only a few ingredients, but takes this Instant Pot Carrot Cake from good to incredible.
Is this cake Keto-friendly?
Yes! I use almond flour instead of regular flour, and Swerve instead of sugar to make this recipe. You still get all the great flavors of a carrot cake without all the carbs and calories from a traditional carrot cake recipe.
Can I use coconut flour instead of almond flour?
Unfortunately, no. Coconut flour and almond flour are two totally different ingredients and can never be subbed for one another. If you're not allergic to almonds, I highly suggest getting almond flour, because it's a common Keto and Gluten-Free baking ingredient and is good to have on hand.
What kind of pan do I need to cook this cake?
I recommend using a metal, 6" springform cake pan. I don't suggest using silicone or glass to make this Instant Pot Carrot Cake. The reason is that it slows down the cooking process to use those types of pans.
If however, you have to use a glass or silicone pan, you will likely need to add more time. If you open the Instant Pot after cooking, and it's still raw, cook for 5 more minutes.
How do you make Instant Pot Carrot Cake?
- Grease a 6-inch cake pan.
- Mix together all ingredients using a hand mixer, until the mixture is well-incorporated, and looks fluffy. This will keep the cake from being dense as almond flour cakes can sometimes be.
- Pour into the greased pan and cover the pan with foil.
- In the inner liner of your Instant Pot, place two cups of water, and a steamer rack. Place the foil-covered cake on the trivet.
- Press the CAKE button and allow it to cook for 40 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release remaining pressure. If you don't have a cake button, just set your pressure cooker for 40 minutes at high pressure.
- Let it cool before icing with a frosting of your choice or serve plain.
Want more Instant Pot desserts?
- Instant Pot Keto Cheesecake - this cheesecake is SO good you won't even remember it's Keto!
- Instant Pot Keto Almond Cake - this is a lovely cake you can frost or leave plain for a yummy dessert!
- Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake - this one is Keto and made in the Instant Pot too! You will love the gentle tang of the lemon in this recipe.
- Instant Pot Pandan Cake - Wonderfully soft, moist, and crazy delicious.
Check out my little friend Sam from Plate Art for Kids making this cake in the recipe card below! She's got a whole host of other cute videos you need to check out.
Whenever and however you decide to make this Instant Pot Carrot Cake, I'm sure you're going to love it. If you've been missing carrot cake since starting Keto, you're
★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below! Just click on the stars in the recipe card to rate. Don't forget to pin this recipe for later!
Ingredients
- 3 (3 ) Eggs
- 1 cup (112 g) Superfine Almond Flour
- 2/3 cup (121.33 g) Swerve
- 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) Baking Powder
- 1.5 teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) Apple Pie Spice
- 1/4 cup (54.5 g) Coconut Oil
- 1/2 cup (119 g) Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1 cup (128 g) Carrots, shredded
- 1/2 cup (58.5 g) walnuts, chopped
Instructions
- Grease a 6-inch cake pan.
- Mix together all ingredients using a hand mixer, until the mixture is well-incorporated, and looks fluffy. This will keep the cake from being dense as almond flour cakes can sometimes be.
- Pour into the greased pan and cover the pan with foil.
- In the inner liner of your Instant Pot, place two cups of water, and a steamer rack. Place the foil-covered cake on the trivet.
- Press the CAKE button and allow it to cook for 40 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release remaining pressure. If you don't have a cake button, just set your pressure cooker for 40 minutes at high pressure.
- Let it cool before icing with a frosting of your choice or serve plain.
Watch The Video
- You can sub sweetener of choice for the Swerve.
- If you use a silicone or glass pan, you will likely need tocook for longer. If at the end of cooking it still looks raw, cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- You cannot sub coconut flour for the almond flour in this recipe.
BETH
I love this cake. It was my FIRST use of my instant pot and it came out perfectly!!
Now I want to know, can I make it into cupcakes in the instant pot (in the egg-bite cups)? How must the cook time be adjusted?
Thank you, Urvashi, for all you give us. My first of your cookbooks was "Keto Fat Bombs ..." where I learned to make macaroons and your swoonworthy spice cookies. Your Keto Instant Pot cookbook has given me your magnificent Butter Chicken, surpassing even our favorite Butter Chicken sauce recipe from Diet Doctor.
You are a blessing to us all!
Geraldine
I am new to keto and instant pot.
I made your carrot cake tonight. I cooked as per directions but forgot and left it WAY too long on natural release.
It appears soggy/undercooked, though the flavour is great. I'm wondering if it's because it stayed too long on natural release or is it undercooked? Or, I used Lakanto sweetener- could that have affected the recipe? I used the high pressure setting 40 min. Any suggestions for a newbie is much appreciated.
URVASHI PITRE
Hi there I did not see this earlier sorry. Did it get any better after being out and cooling down? If it’s still running on the inside then it just needed cooking for longer. If it’s soggy on the outside you might want to cover it with foil and cook for 60 minutes next time instead. I find what works best those to use a Bundt pan. That helps the middle of the cake cook equally fast
Tina
I used the same almond flour but my cake came out very dense and dry. Not delicious at all. I used the Bake setting on my IP. Would not make this cake again.
Tina
Can I substitute whipping cream with almond milk?
URVASHI PITRE
I really don’t understand comments like this. Why do you assume it’s the recipe? You can see others have made it and rated it well. You can see I have a video showing exactly how it was made. I’m sorry yours didn’t work out but it wasn’t a recipe issue.
Jenn
Love this recipe, but I used a bigger pan and it didn't come out so well. I am a TERRIBLE baker, and wasn't sure how much to increase for an 8" pan. Going to give it another shot with the 6". I used the cream cheese layer recipe from Sex in A Pan for the frosting and that worked great. If anyone can tell me the proper measurements for making this in an 8" pan, I would appreciate it.
darra
Must this have heavy cream or could half and half work?
Christopher Weeks
I am anxious to make this recipe ASAP. I have one question - as I dislike the taste of coconut in carrot cakes, can I substitute canola oil or butter for the coconut oil? I so hope I can make this work without coconut taste!
KellyM
Refined coconut oil does not have the coconut smell or flavor.
URVASHI PITRE
Butter would be a great sub
jason d
i used high pressure for 40 minutes, following recipie exactly except the nuts and after 40 minutes the cake was still quite runny. i just put it back on for an additional 40 minutes, tbd
jason d
last night's cake was a fail. after three 40 minute cycles the inside was still under-cooked. i am reattempting now, using standard spring-form pan instead of the silicone and glass instant pot brand. also i am using carrot pulp from a juicer instead of shredded carrots.
URVASHI PITRE
In which case something else is wrong such as gasket seal vent etc. no cake should take 120 minutes and still be raw. As you see from the picture mine was well cooked at 40 minutes. At this point it’s not a recipe issue but an equipment issue that I would investigate.