• Pour 1/2 cup of raisins onto a cutting board and chop them into smaller pieces. Dump the chopped raisins into a bowl, cover with hot tap water, and set aside. Cutting them smaller will make a cleaner cut through your baked bars after they're cooked. And soaking the raisins allows them to plump and soften before being baked.
• Pour 1/4 cup of shredded coconut into a food processor or chopper cup and pulse until blended into smaller pieces and set aside.
• Peal 3 medium carrots and chop them into 1" pieces. Then drop into a food processor or chopper cup and pulse until finely chopped.
• Combine the wet ingredients including eggs, maple syrup, unsweetened apple sauce, milk, oil, apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract, and almond extract in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Whisk until eggs are well-blended.
• Add the dry ingredients including almond flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt to the mixing bowl. Gently stir with a spatula until the ingredients are combined.
• Drain the water from the soaking raisins. Gently stir the shredded coconut, carrots, and drained raisins into the mixing bowl.
• Pour the mixture into a parchment-lined 8x8" baking pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• Pour 1 cup of whipping cream into a bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.
• Dump an 8-ounce block of room-temperature cream cheese into a separate mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt to the bowl and whisk until blended.
• Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixer and gently mix until smooth.

Carrot Square Decoration

• Spread the whipped cream cheese frosting onto the cooled cake.
• Melt one teaspoon of butter in a frying pan on medium heat. Drop 1/4 cup of shredded coconut into the pan. Stir the coconut continuously until lightly toasted.
• Repeat for toasted pumpkin seeds.
• Remove the cooled cake by lifting the sides of the parchment paper. Cut the frosted carrot cake into 16 squares.
• Shred 16 strips of carrot using a vegetable peeler for carrot rosettes.
• Place a small mound of toasted coconut in the center of the square.
• Roll up a carrot slice, starting with the wider edge, and place it on top of the mound of coconut.
• Place three toasted pumpkin seeds on the outside of the carrot rosette.
• Place carrot cake bars on an attractive serving platter and proudly share it at your next special event!