No-Bake Carrot Cake Cookies with Coconut and Pineapple Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

• 2 large carrots, peeled
• 1 cup raw pecans
• 0.5 cup cashews
• 0.5 cups unsweetened coconut flakes + extra for garnish
• 1/4 cup almond paste
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tbsp + 2 tsp maple syrup
• 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
• 110 g softened cream cheese or vegan cream cheese
• 3 tbsp. l. pineapple juice

Preparation:

1. Line a baking sheet with foil and parchment paper and set aside.
2. Chop the carrots into large chunks and place them in a food processor fitted with a slicing disc. Process until finely chopped. Add the pecans, cashews, coconut, almond butter, cinnamon, ginger, salt, 2 tablespoons maple syrup, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the food processor as needed. The mixture should be moist but not runny, and is ready when it begins to pull away from the sides of the processor and forms a ball.
3. Using clean hands, form the dough into 15 equal balls, approximately 3 cm each. Place the balls on a lined baking sheet, then flatten them with your thumb, leaving an indentation.
4. Prepare the glaze in a bowl, mixing the cream cheese and pineapple juice with the remaining 2 teaspoons of maple syrup and 0.5 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Beat with a hand mixer until creamy. For a vegan version, use a vegan cream cheese, such as Daiya Cream Cheese or Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese.
5. Spoon a dollop of glaze onto each cookie and sprinkle with coconut, if desired. Refrigerate the cookies for 1–2 hours or freeze for 15 minutes before serving. Cookies can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer.