The Best Healthy Carrot Cake Recipe

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Total Time
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Recipe posted by Palouse Brand on March 21, 2016

If you are looking to improve your carrot cake, we have an easy carrot cake recipe for you! This recipe has won over all of our taste testers and many claim it is the best carrot cake recipe they have tasted.

This recipe for moist carrot cake includes 1 cup of brown lentils giving you yet another delicious recipe for lentils. This is an easy cake to throw together, especially if you have some leftover cooked lentils on hand from another lentil recipe. If not, lentils are quick to cook and can be rinsed under cold water to cool quickly.

The 1 cup of lentils adds essential nutrients, 16 grams of dietary fiber, and 18 grams of protein, to the cake. The pureed lentils in this recipe reduce the amount of oil needed to produce a tender and moist carrot cake. We leave some of the lentils whole to add texture and flavor to the cake.

This recipe utilizes whole-wheat flour for even more added nutrition. That’s right! You get the nutrition from not only lentils, but from whole grain wheat as well! Can we call this a healthy carrot cake recipe yet?

As with any classic carrot cake recipes from scratch, this recipe includes all the favorite ingredients: carrots, walnuts, pineapple, cinnamon, and cream cheese frosting (a carrot cake icing wouldn’t be complete without cream cheese!)

This cake is extremely moist and tender. When baked, it does not dome, making it perfect as a layered cake. We have baked our cake in three 9” pans, but this recipe can also be baked as a sheet cake or cupcakes. You will simply have to adjust the baking time.

This lentil carrot cake featuring cream cheese frosting is guaranteed to be the most decadent cake. The pineapple adds the perfect amount of freshness and the walnuts and carrots combine for a perfect texture. Try this for your Easter dessert and you will not be disappointed.

healthy carrot cake recipe

Milling your own Flour Tip: If you are milling your own whole grain flour, be sure the flour is very fine. For this recipe we recommend you use our Soft White Wheat Berries.

prep_time	20 min
total_time	90 min
ingredients_number	12
servings_number	12
recipe_ingredients
3 oz Walnuts 4-5 Large Carrots, Peeled and cut into 1” pieces 4 Eggs 1 Cup Canola Oil 1 Cup Cooked Brown Lentils 8 oz can of Crushed Pineapple in Juice 2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour (330 grams of freshly milled flour) 2 Cups Sugar 1 TBS Baking Powder 1 tsp Baking Soda 2 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 tsp Table Salt
recipe_directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit Grease three 9” round baking pans with butter, shortening, or pan spray. We recommend lining the bottom of your pans with parchment paper as well. In a food processor, chop walnuts to desired consistency. Empty the food processor by placing the walnuts into a large bowl. Place peeled and chopped carrots into the food processor and process until fine. You should have about 2 cups of chopped carrots. If not, peel and process more. Add eggs, canola oil, 2/3 cup cooked brown lentils, and crushed pineapple to the carrots. Process for 2 minutes. In the large bowl with the walnuts, add the whole wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and remaining 1/3 cup of cooked lentils. Whisk to combine. Make a well in the flour mixture and add the wet ingredients. Fold in the wet ingredients just until combined. Separate the batter evenly between the three pans and bake for 40-50 minutes. Cakes are done when the tops are firm and sides start to pull away from the pan. Allow cakes to cool for 20 minutes before removing from the pans. Cakes may be frosted once cooled or wrapped in food grade plastic wrap and refrigerated or frozen to be used at a later time. Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients 8 oz cream cheese 1/2 cup butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 cups confectioners sugar Directions Cream cheese and butter in a mixer until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl when needed. Add confectioners sugar and vanilla extract and mix slowly until combined. Increase speed and beat for 5 minutes. The frosting should be light and fluffy. If not, scrape the sides of the bowl, and mix longer.
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