Carrot cake?

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Aethelstan
Aethelstan Posts: 10 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I love cakes which is not so great now I am counting the calories. So, I was thinking (perhaps naively) that carrot cake would be better as it bulks out with carrots rather than the pure carbs of flour. Is that correct, and if so, does anyone have any recipes they may recommend? I am avoiding artificial sweeteners because of migraines, but low sugar recipes would be good.

Thanks you!

Replies

  • majope
    majope Posts: 1,325 Member
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    Traditional carrot cake recipes are loaded with oil, and tend to be more calorie-dense than your average chocolate or yellow layer cake. You might find a reduced-fat recipe somewhere online, but it probably won't taste quite as yummy. Or, just accept that it's a calorific treat and indulge in moderation when you can fit it in your daily goals.
  • tommygirl15
    tommygirl15 Posts: 1,012 Member
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    It is possible to make a carrot cake that has more carrots and less flour, but it wouldn't have the nice fluffy texture of cake but possibly taste like you're eating a carrot square. I actually just came across this recipe today and it looks to have only a small amount of flour and sugar - http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2012/04/03/five-minute-carrot-cake-for-one/
  • heidihorton
    heidihorton Posts: 110 Member
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    Try this. 1 box off carrot cake ( Pillsbury) and 1 cup water, add 1 cup of vanilla Greek yogurt ( I use 100 cal dannon) no egg, no oil, reduces calories a lot. Also, make them cupcakes for portion control, no need for foisting super moist. Bake at temp and time on box
  • allaboutthecake
    allaboutthecake Posts: 1,535 Member
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    Your post caught my eye. Are you wanting your cake for a special occasion or just a treat? Posters above are correct, carrot cake is not any better calorie-wise than white/chocolate. My own recipe pegs the carrot-cake cupcakes ounce-for-ounce at a higher calorie and fat content than my other cupcakes, including the triple chocolate.

    One thing you can do, make your cake into cupcakes. Keep 1 or 2 for yourself, then give the cupcakes to the neighborhood kids.

    HTH.

    (Edited to add: Since your weight loss is just beginning, perhaps skip the cake altogether? Add more whole fruit, especially berries, and add more raw veggies, including raw cucumbers & carrots into your daily food intake. your body is still probably going thru a sugar detox state, so your mind on cake is *probably* your body's way of saying HEY I want some sugar! Adding in fresh fruit---or even canned, but rinse off---is way better than empty calorie-loaded sweets that can make your blood sugar spke. THIS coming from a Caker myself)
  • tabfjo
    tabfjo Posts: 78 Member
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    There is a great carrot cake recipe in April/May issue of Clean Eating Magazine, page 41. Only 177 calories a serving!
  • lizw1518
    lizw1518 Posts: 1 Member
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    Had this the other night for my birthday. So delicious & not as high-calorie as traditional carrot cakes. Not necessarily low-sugar, but still great.
    http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/carrot-cake-50400000111142/
  • azzuri123
    azzuri123 Posts: 2
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    Tks HeidiH I'm going to try it :smile: I'm 56 yrs & have 4 small grandkids, done as cupcakes it also allows me to personalize them. They eat very healthy but once in a while it's nice to treat them, & I love fat free Greek yogurt :smile: ... tks again
  • fit4lifeUcan2
    fit4lifeUcan2 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    My MIL is diabetic and substitutes sugar with splenda. So that has to cut the calories quite a bit right there. I saw one recipe where they substituted the oil with crushed pineapple and another where they used apple sauce instead of the oil. Google low calorie carrot cake and you'll come up with a lot of recipes. I saw one on WW.

    edited to add that for every one cup of sugar you use half a cup of splenda.

    edited again...ooops forgot that artificial sweeteners give you migraines. Sorry!! Just ignore me lol
  • heidihorton
    heidihorton Posts: 110 Member
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    Tks HeidiH I'm going to try it :smile: I'm 56 yrs & have 4 small grandkids, done as cupcakes it also allows me to personalize them. They eat very healthy but once in a while it's nice to treat them, & I love fat free Greek yogurt :smile: ... tks again

    Use this with any flavor of cake mix. I notices that Betty Crocker cake mix has lower calories to start with so might want to use this, Pillsbury and Duncan Hines are both 170 cal for 1/12. Betty Crocker is 160 for 1/10
  • heidihorton
    heidihorton Posts: 110 Member
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    I LOVE desert so feel free to add me and I can give you guys Alot of lower cal cakes and muffins! I have a great banana bread muffin for on 57 cal per cupcake
  • kiddoc88
    kiddoc88 Posts: 244 Member
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    if you want low cal cake your best bet is angel food. it's also fate free since it;s only made with egg whites
  • kiddoc88
    kiddoc88 Posts: 244 Member
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    also, you could make it even lighter by using a sugar/stevia blend, and top it with some fresh strawberries
  • fit4lifeUcan2
    fit4lifeUcan2 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    if you want low cal cake your best bet is angel food. it's also fate free since it;s only made with egg whites

    yes and no oil or fat in angel food cake. If there is any oil at all then it won't puff up. It falls flat. You can't even grease the pan or use flower. It needs to stick to the pan to hold it up and keep it from dropping down. Then when its done you invert it till its cooled...again to keep it from falling. I make it all the time and add lemon zest and lemon extract. Top with low fat or light whipped cream and fresh fruit.
  • fit4lifeUcan2
    fit4lifeUcan2 Posts: 1,458 Member
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    Here is the lemon angel food cake I make. My family loves it!

    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-angel-food-cake-recipe/index.html

    Remember that it is very important....do NOT grease your pan or get fat or oil on any of your utensils.
  • Reinventing_Me
    Reinventing_Me Posts: 1,053 Member
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    bumping for the ideas
  • sweetnlow30
    sweetnlow30 Posts: 497 Member
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    Here is the lemon angel food cake I make. My family loves it!

    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-angel-food-cake-recipe/index.html

    Remember that it is very important....do NOT grease your pan or get fat or oil on any of your utensils.

    Thanks, I saved that recipe to try ;)
  • sunnyskys2013
    sunnyskys2013 Posts: 159 Member
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    Now i want some carrot cake.

    I have a recipe i use the is sweetened with honey and has pineapple. I haven't figured it up on MFP yet tho. I made it into cup cakes for one of my kids birthdays last fall. They ware a big hit. BTW i didn't use eggs because one of my kids has a egg allergy, i use energy egg and they still turn out fine. I also used gluten free flour.

    Ingredients:
    3 cups all-purpose flour
    2 teaspoons baking soda
    2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
    1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
    1 1/2 cups honey
    3/4 cup buttermilk
    3 eggs
    1/2 cup vegetable oil 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
    2 cups finely grated carrot
    1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple,
    Drained
    1 cup chopped walnuts
    2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese,
    Softened
    1/3 cup honey
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Directions:
    1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
    2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. In a large bowl, stir together the honey, buttermilk, eggs, oil and 2 teaspoons of vanilla until well blended. Add the flour mixture to the buttermilk mixture, and stir until all of the dry ingredients are absorbed. Stir in the carrot, pineapple, and walnuts by hand. Pour into the prepared pan.
    3. Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting with cream cheese frosting.
    4. To make the frosting, mix together the cream cheese, honey and 1 teaspoon of vanilla until smooth and well blended. Spread over the cooled cake.
  • Aethelstan
    Aethelstan Posts: 10 Member
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    Thanks for the replies everyone, definitely some food for thought there (no pun intended). Most interesting is this addiction to sugar mentioned. I never thought about it like that and now it makes sense. I often get cravings for sweets so I must try and keep that in check.

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