Carrot cake was always a favourite of mine, but as I reduced the sugar and oil in my diet, I moved away from it. The old recipes had like 1/ 1/2 cups of sugar and 1/2 cup of oil, and the frosting had 4 cups of sugar and 1/2 cup vegan butter. Yikes. Not what I was looking for any more.
Today I'm sharing a version that's adapted from Chef AJ, that works for our SOS-free (no added Sugar, Oil or Salt) lifestyle and is just as moist, sweet and tasty as I remember. And I always liked a sour cream frosting on it, so we included a version sweetened with sweet potatoes.
Check out the video of me making it here, and the recipe is below:
I made the cake in this video in a spring-form pan so it looks like a cake, but to be honest, I prefer it just cut in squares when I bake it in an 8" x 8" baking dish.
And this may surprise you, but I often eat this as a breakfast. I don't do dessert after a meal much any more, but still like sweet tasting foods, especially for breakfast.
And, here's the latest twist, I'll put a square of the carrot cake in the bottom of a bowl, slice some banana on top and pour some of my green smoothie over it like milk. It's a smoothie bowl, kind of like a breakfast cereal. It may sound like a crazy breakfast, but this body of mine loves it!
However you choose to do it, ENJOY!
To Your Amazing Health,
Bill and Connie
Carrot Cake / Squares
Adapted from Chef AJ’s The Secrets to Ultimate Weight Loss
- 1½ cups of banana purée (2 medium bananas, the riper the better)
- 1¼ cups rolled oats
- ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup of ground millet (or any flour)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla powder (optional)
- 1¾ cups loosely packed shredded carrots
- 1¾ cups grated apple (2 medium sized apples)
- ½ cup raisins or dried currants
- 1/3 cup pineapple, crushed or small chunks
- Optional: walnut halves for garnish
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a food processor fitted with the “S” blade, purée the ripe bananas.
Add the rolled oats, applesauce, millet, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, apple cider vinegar and vanilla powder (if using). Pulse to mix well, but don’t over blend.
Transfer to a large bowl and fold in the carrots, apple, raisins and pineapple. Mix well.
Pour the mixture into a spring form pan or an 8” x 8” baking dish.
Bake for 40-50 minutes until top is lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean.
Sweet Potato Frosting
- 2 cups cooked sweet potato
- ½ cup date paste (made from 1 cup dates and 1 cup water on high in blender for 1 minute)
- 1 tablespoon crushed pineapple
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth, about 1 minute.
NOTE: If you want the frosting to be lighter in color, peel the sweet potato.