Do you love carrot cake, but avoid it because of the copious amounts of fat and sugar? This Lighter Carrot Cake may not be a health food, but it is a healthier indulgence than most traditional recipes.
And with less fat and sugar the flavors of carrot, pineapple, coconuts and pecan can really shine through.
Read on to learn how to make this delicious and less guilt riddled dessert.
Out of the blue, my son walked out of class and immediately asked if we could make carrot cake. Even though I was exhausted, carrot cake is my favorite so it didn't take much effort to convince me.
I pulled out a recipe I'd created awhile ago from a combination of three or four recipes. Everyone loves it and no one noticed that it has far less oil and added sugar than most carrot cake recipes.
The absolute best part of this recipe is the Pineapple Cream Cheese Icing. Seriously, I could swipe the bowl with my finger and eat it straight. I didn't, of course. I mean if there happened to be a little bit extra I might have spread some on some crackers.
Ingredients for Lighter Carrot Cake
The ingredients are what you would expect to see in a carrot cake, just less of some.
- all purpose flour
- granulated sugar and powdered sugar
- carrots
- canned crushed pineapple (with the juice for the icing!)
- sweetened or unsweetened flake coconut
- pecans or walnuts
- eggs, or just egg whites or an egg substitute
- butter
- reduced fat cream cheese
- canola oil or other neutral oil
- baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon
Yes, I add both coconut and pineapple to my carrot cake. They add moisture and fabulous flavor, allowing me to cut back on the fats. If you prefer raisins, add them.
Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup all purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup sweetened flake coconut
- ⅓ cup pecans, finely chopped (plus extra for decoration if desired)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 large eggs ( or ½ cup egg substitute or egg whites)
- 2 cups grated carrots
- 1 ½ cup canned crushed pineapple (drained with juice reserved for icing)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
- 3 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Grease a 13 x 9 pan or line 24 cupcake tins.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, coconut, pecans, baking soda, salt and cinnamon with a wire whisk.1 ½ cup all purpose flour, 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar, ½ cup sweetened flake coconut, ⅓ cup pecans, finely chopped, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- In a separate bowl combine oil and egg substitute/whites. Stir egg mixture, carrots, and pineapple into flour mixture.3 tablespoons canola oil, 2 large eggs ( or ½ cup egg substitute or egg whites), 2 cups grated carrots, 1 ½ cup canned crushed pineapple
- Put in prepared pan or cupcake tins. Bake at 350℉ until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean (approximately 20 minutes for cup cakes, 30 minutes for cake). Cool completely on a wire rack.
- Combine butter and cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add powdered sugar and a teaspoon of pineapple juice. Add additional pineapple juice as needed.2 tablespoons butter, 8 ounces reduced fat cream cheese, 3 cups powdered sugar
- Spread frosting on the cake. Top with chopped nuts if desired.
Sound fabulous? Share it!
Until next time, happy eating.
~Audrey
Lou Lou Girls
Hello Gorgeous! I always love coming to your party. Thank you for hosting. We would love it if you would stop by our party. That would be amazing! Happy Tuesday! Lou Lou Girls
Kara
Sounds delicious! I also love that there's no raisins in it! Hate biting into carrot cake expecting to hit nuts only to realize they are raisins ><
Simple Hacks Living
A great spring recipe!
Heaven
I love carrot cake! Pinned and following on G+. I'm glad I found your party in time to link up. I'm 70, 71, and 72.
Jennifer Abel
I love carrot cake, thanks for your link up and thank you for sharing your post on #mum-bomonday have a great week
Winnie
I really liike this carrot cake 🙂 Lucky me my family loves carrot cake, so I just might try this recipe (especially when I hove tons of egg-whites in the freezer)
Jen@The Evolution of Mom
I'm going to have to try this. Carrot cake is my absolute favorite, but the calories!!! This looks so good!
Thanks for sharing on Momma Told Me!
~Jen
Sydney @ Tastefully Frugal
My dad loves carrot cake and I am always looking for new ways to change it up. This one looks really good. Thanks for linking up with us at Talented Tuesdays. I hope you join us again this morning.
Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai
I bet Rory would LOVE this! She is all over anything that is pineapple and cream cheese. 🙂 Thanks for sharing at the #HomeMattersParty - we hope to see you again on Friday. 🙂
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai
Jennifer @ The Jenny Evolution
Congratulations! You've been featured over on The Jenny Evolution's Friday Flash Blog linky party. Be sure to grab some swag for your post that says you’ve been featured. You can get it here — http://www.thejennyevolution.com/grab-button/
Jennifer @ The Jenny Evolution