Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake

This Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake recipe is my very own made-up recipe; a baker's creation. I made it several times to tweak the ingredients to get it on the healthier side, and still be delicious enough for kids to love. It's not an easy balance, but it's important. My kids absolutely love it.

The Greek yogurt adds that deliciously sour offsetting taste to the sweet buttercream frosting. Toasted almond chips finish that irresistible tasty slice of cake, which goes wonderfully with a cup of tea or coffee. Feel a little less guilty having a piece of this cake with loads of carrots. So, enjoy it!

Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Batter Ingredients

• Organic all-purpose flour
• Ground cinnamon
• Baking soda
• Baking powder
• Nutmeg
• Sea salt

• Home eggs (or organic pasture-raised)
• Organic sugar
• Pure vanilla extract
• Organic unsweetened apple sauce
• Homegrown carrots (or organic carrots)

Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

• Cream cheese (softened)
• Organic sugar
• Unsalted butter (softened)
• Organic Greek yogurt (plain)
• Pure vanilla extract

Carrot Cake Topping

Toasted sliced Almonds

Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Instructions

First thing first, toast sliced almonds (or any chopped nuts) in the oven for 8 - 10 minutes at 350 F (180 C). Set aside to cool completely before topping the cake.

Peel, rinse and grate carrots. Set aside until ready for use.

Next, measure out all dry ingredients, mix them all together with a wire whisk. Set aside until ready for use.

Preheat the oven to 350 F  (180 C). Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Reduce mixing speed to medium/low and add vanilla extract and apple sauce. Mix for another minute or so.

Remove bowl from the mixer stand and add mixed dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt) into the egg mixture in 4 separate additions. Carefully mix the dry ingredients with each addition trying not to deflate air pockets as much. (I use a wire whisk to mix the first 3 and then a spatula for the last addition of dry ingredients.) Use a large spatula to mix in the grated carrots very carefully in 2 additions.

Divide batter evenly into 2 - 8” baking pans greased with butter (I use a digital scale to weigh the batter in pans). Bake in a preheated oven at 350 F (180 C) for 25 – 30 minutes. Remove from the oven; let them cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing the cake sponges from pans.

Cool sponges completely before slicing and frosting. (If you're short on time, you may bake the sponges the night before and frost them the next morning.)

Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Cream Cheese Frosting Instructions

Beat softened cream cheese and sugar on high for a minute, scraping down the cream on the sides of the mixer bowl halfway through. Add butter, and beat again until combined.

Then add Greek yogurt, beat again for about a minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl in the middle of mixing. Add vanilla extract and beat again for another minute.

Assembling the Carrot Cake

Finally, slice each sponge cake in half. See HERE how I slice my cake sponges with a thread. Add about 2 cups of cream in between each sponge layer. Push some of that cream off the edges of the sponge, for easier icing of the sides of the cake.

Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream. Top the cake with toasted and cooled nuts. Refrigerate the cake for at least 4 hours or overnight (I prefer to keep it the fridge overnight for a moister turnout).

Guys, this stuff is truly delicious! The benefit is that it’s a much healthier version than your original carrot cake. I know, at first, it may be kind of weird having vegetables in a cake, because a lot of us traditionalists growing up in this era are not used to this combination. But it is so good, you will want one piece for breakfast and one for dinner, lol!

If you make this Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake recipe, please share a picture with me on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. Tag with #valyastasteofhome. I’d love to see your creations! 🙂

Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake

This Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake recipe is my very own made-up recipe; a baker's creation. The Greek yogurt adds that deliciously sour offsetting taste to the sweet buttercream frosting. Toasted almond chips finish that irresistible tasty slice of cake, which goes wonderfully with a cup of tea or coffee.

5 from 6 votes

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Keyword: clean eating, easy recipe, fall baking, healthier carrot cake, soft and moist cake

Prep Time: 55 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes

Servings: 14

Author: Valya's Taste of Home

Ingredients

• Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Batter Ingredients
• 2 ½ cups (600 g) – all-purpose unbleached organic flour
• 1 tbsp. (15 g) – ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. (5 g) – baking soda
• 1 tsp. (5 g) – baking powder
• ¼ tsp. (1.25 g) – nutmeg
• ¼ tsp. (1.25 g) – sea salt
• 6 large – eggs
• 1 cup (200 g) – sugar
• 1 tsp. (5 g) – pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup (250 g) – unsweetened apple sauce
• 3 cups (400 g) – grated carrots
• Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Greek Yogurt Butter Cream Ingredients
• 16 oz. (454 g) – cream cheese (softened)
• 1 cup (200 g) - sugar
• 2 sticks 226 g – unsalted butter (softened)
• 1 cup (227 g) – any plain Greek Yogurt
• 1 tsp. (5 g) – pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cup (165 g) – toasted sliced almonds (walnuts or pecans)

Instructions

• Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Batter Instructions
• First thing first, toast sliced almonds (or any chopped nuts) in the oven for 8 - 10 minutes at 350 F (180 C). Set aside to cool completely before topping the cake.
• Peel, rinse and grate carrots. Set aside until ready for use.
• Next, measure out all dry ingredients, mix them all together with a wire whisk. Set aside until ready for use.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Beat eggs and sugar on high for 5 minutes. Reduce mixing speed to medium/low and add vanilla extract and apple sauce. Mix for another minute or so.
• Remove bowl from mixer stand and add mixed dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt) into egg mixture in 4 separate additions. Carefully mix the dry ingredients with each addition trying not to deflate air pockets as much. (I use a wire whisk to mix the first 3 and then a spatula for the last addition of dry ingredients.) Use a large spatula to mix in the grated carrots very carefully in 2 additions.
• Divide batter evenly into 2 - 8” baking pans greased with butter (I use a digital scale to weigh batter in pans). Bake in preheated oven at 350 F (180 C) for 25 – 30 minutes. Remove from the oven; let them cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing the cake sponges from pans. Cool sponges completely before slicing and frosting. (If you're short on time, you may bake the sponges the night before and frost them the next morning.)
• Healthier Homemade Carrot Cake Cream Cheese Frosting Instructions
• Beat softened cream cheese and sugar on high for a minute, scraping down the cream on the sides of the mixer bowl half way through. Add butter, and beat again until combined.
• Then add Greek yogurt, beat again for about a minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl in the middle of mixing. Add vanilla extract and beat again for another minute.
• Carrot Cake Assembling Instructions
• Finally, slice each sponge cake in half. Add about 2 cups of cream in between each sponge layer. Push some of that cream off the edges of the sponge, for easier icing of the sides of the cake.
• Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream. Top the cake with toasted and cooled nuts. Refrigerate the cake for at least 4 hours or overnight (I prefer to keep it the fridge overnight for a moister turnout).

Notes

To get beautiful and clean slices of cake, warm the knife in hot water and wipe between each slice. It takes a little more time but is worth preventing a sticky mess. I hope you find this tip helpful with slicing all of your cakes. 

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PS. To get beautiful and clean slices of cake, warm the knife in hot water and wipe between each slice. It takes a little more time but is worth preventing a sticky mess. I hope you find this tip helpful with slicing all of your cakes. 

Looking for more delicious vegetable related desserts? Here are a few to choose from:

• Greek Yogurt Carrot Zucchini Bread with Dark Chocolate Chips
• Honey Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Need more cake? Check all cake recipes HERE!

Kitchen items I used in making this recipe:

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This recipe was originally posted on October 7, 2016, and updated on October 8, 2019.