Healthier Low Fat Carrot Cake

Wonderfully moist and almost good for you. At about 250 calories and 7 grams of fat you get one of the best carrot cakes I have had plus it won't leave a pool of oil on the plate. I away though carrot cake would be hard to make. Nope... it was relatively easy with 3/10 skill level and just a little more work than a coffee cake. You can do this cake.

A normal recipe for carrot cake starts with a cup of oil. Read that as almost 2000 calories and you have not added even a carrot yet. You can't really do that very often. So I looked around a lot for just the right recipe. Many had "odd" ingredients. While I'm not a "all natural" guy, it still needs to be reasonably natural ingredients.

The best of the recipes was Super Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting by Gina at Skinnytaste.com. I loved that it uses normal common ingredients. But I can never keep my fingers off a recipe but made only a few minor adjustments. I want two layers. Carrot cake "needs" to be two layers. A few minor changes in ingredients and since I was doing layers, I needed more frosting so I changed that around a little.

Rating

An easy 5. Much better then a lot of full fat carrot cake. I like a carrot cake that has what I would term "good crumb" and this has it.  I don't want a pound cake texture. Along with great taste.

Notes: This recipe uses a 20 oz can of pineapple where many others use 8 oz. Even with all the pineapple, you don't taste it. It seems to belong there plus it keeps it moist. The cake itself is 160 calories. The frosting adds about 90 calories. Combined with just under 7 grams of fat.

Preheat the oven to 350 not convection. Look at all that good stuff.

Spray two 9" round baking pans with a good coat of PAM.

Peal and grate 3-4 medium carrots to get about 2 cups of carrots. A little more or less should be fine.

Chop 1/2 cup of walnuts.

Drain one 20 oz can of crushed pineapple.

In a medium bowl, combine 2 eggs, 2 T oil and 2 t vanilla. Mix well, then add in the carrots, pineapple and 1/4 cup of the walnuts.

In a large bowl mix 3/4 cups each of AP flour and whole wheat flour, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 c flaked sweetened coconut, 2 t baking soda, 1 t salt and 2 t cinnamon. Mix well. Now fold the wet into the dry and keep folding until all is incorporated.

Divide into the two baking pans and spread reasonable smooth. Bake until tooth pick comes out clean. About 30-35 minutes. Remove and allow to cool in pan for about 5 minutes. Then invert pans on cooling rake and remove from pans and allow to cook completely (at least 30 minutes)

While cake is cooling, it is cream cheese frosting time.

Mix together 8 oz of reduce fat cream cheese (not fat free), 1 t vanilla and 1 T milk. Beat on well. Slowly add 2 cups of powdered sugar while continuing to beat. You may need 1-2 more teaspoons of milk to get the texture you want.

Place the first layer on a plate. Cover with about 1/3 of the frosting and spread evenly. Add second lay and use about 1/3 on top and 1/3 on the the sides.

Add the final 1/4 cup of chopped nuts to the top.

Healthier Low Fat Carrot Cake

by DrDan at 101 Cooking for Two March-27-2013

Wonderfully moist and almost good for you. At about 250 calories and 7 grams of fat you get one of the best carrot cakes I have had plus it won't leave a pool of oil on the plate. I away though carrot cake would be hard to make. Nope... it was relatively easy with 3/10 skill level and just a little more work than a coffee cake. You can do this cake.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup AP flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 t baking soda
• 1 t salt
• 1/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup divided chopped walnuts
• 2 t cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 2 T oil
• 2 t vanilla
• about 2 cups carrots grated
• 1 - 20 oz can crushed pineapple in juice drained

Frosting

• 8 oz lower fat (not fat free) cream cheese
• 1 t vanilla
• 1T and a little more milk
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

1) Preheat the oven to 350 not convection. Spray two 9" round baking pans with a good coat of PAM.2) Peal and grate 3-4 medium carrots to get about 2 cups of carrots. A little more or less should be fine.3) Chop 1/2 cup of walnuts. Drain one 20 oz can of crushed pineapple.4) In a medium bowl, combine 2 eggs, 2 T oil and 2 t vanilla. Mix well, then add in the carrots, pineapple and 1/4 cup of the walnuts.5) In a large bowl mix 3/4 cups each of AP flour and whole wheat flour, 1 cup sugar, 1/4 c flaked sweetened coconut, 2 t baking soda, 1 t salt and 2 t cinnamon. Mix well. 6) Now fold the wet into the dry and keep folding until all is incorporated. Divide into the two baking pans and spread reasonable smooth.7) Bake until tooth pick comes out clean. About 30-35 minutes. Remove and allow to cool in pan for about 5 minutes. Then invert pans on cooling rake and remove from pans and allow to cook completely (at least 30 minutes)8) Mix together 8 oz of reduce fat cream cheese (not fat free), 1 t vanilla and 1 T milk. Beat on well. Slowly add 2 cups of powdered sugar while continuing to beat. You may need 1-2 more teaspoons of milk to get the texture you want.9) Place the first layer on a plate. Cover with about 1/3 of the frosting and spread evenly. Add second lay and use about 1/3 on top and 1/3 on the the sides. 10) Add the final 1/4 cup of chopped nuts to the top.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 35 mins Total time: 1 hour 40 mins Yield: 16 good size slices

Updated

March 27 2013

Dan Mikesell