Carrot Cake with Maple Greek Yogurt Frosting

Carrot Cake always seemed to be one of my childhood mysteries. Like seriously - a cake with veggies? and it tastes totally over the top awesome? moist and sweet yet totally not like vegetables are involved? Mysterious, mysterious, but I loved it!!





I've never been a kiddo that had to get it's veggies sneaked in somehow, so I happily took carrot cake whenever it was offered. I think the orange spots and the cute little marzipan carrot on top of the white frosting  (which never touched my lips though, as I'm not the biggest fan of marzipan) somehow attracted my eyes, and nothing's better than a thick white glaze isn't it? Pure sugar shock and not so healthy at all :-P.

Oh, yes: I've finally found the time to make a gif :D Just look how easy the slicing is!

 

Whenever veggies are used in cakes, they provide a good basic moisture and for such the fat content can be decreased (hey all butter lovers out there, you won't have to decrease it's amount in your carrot cake, but give it a try - I promise, you won't miss it!). If you throw in some applesauce, whole wheat flour and eggs alongside a little cinnamon and a subtle addition of a few coconut flakes then you're all ready to go for a healthyfied Carrot Cake - comforting yet wholesome and nutritious!




We all know that carrot cake isn't really carrot cake without a nice thick glaze or frosting. Choose your favourite from a simple white glaze, a sweet cream cheese one or the rich buttercream - you might also feel totally sophisticated and pour melted chocolate on top, whatever you do - you can't go wrong with frosting!





I opted for a Maple Greek Yogurt Frosting - sticking to the healthified cake theme AND adding in some protein and natural honey goodness! I love win-win situations :).

Serve it alongside a fresh homemade cappucino or latte macchiato - preferably with some latte art atop, because we're all really gorgeous and love to act like baristas from time to time and enjoy to drink a piece of art :P. This step can be skipped when you're short on time (or you were raised to NOT play with food...), but if you like to swirl around with the cappucino ingredients and love some quick and easy input to wow your friends, family and yourself overall, then you might want to look here or here for some short beginners latte art tutorials ;).





Carrot Cake with Maple Greek Yogurt Frosting
-makes enough for a regular 9 inch cake tin
For the cake:
- 250g Carrots (about 4 medium sized ones)
- 2 eggs, yolks and whites seperated
- 130g brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp Honey/Molasses
- 3/4 cup applesauce, unsweetened
- 250g Whole Wheat Flour
- 2 and 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
- 50 g Coconut
- 1 and 1/2 Tbsp Vinegar

For the frosting:
- 150g Greek Yogurt
- 3 Tbsp Maple Syrup

Optional toppings:
- 50g of mixed nuts, seeds or dried fruits
- a dash of grated carrot/coconut
- cinnamon sugar in a 1:2 ratio

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F/175°C. Grease and flour your cake tin. Peel and grate your Carrots, set aside. In a  bowl beat together the egg yolks, the sugar and the honey. Add in the applesauce. Mix all dry ingredients and add them to the batter.
2. Add in Vinegar and the grated carrots. In a seperate bowl beat your egg whites until stiff peaks form, then carefully fold them into your batter.
3. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a cake tester inserted comes out clean (Baking time depends on oven and the used cake pan, so yours might need longer/shorter). Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and allow to fully cool. You can even bake the cake one day ahead and assemble on the day of serving.
4. Meanwhile prepare the frosting. Beat together Greek Yogurt and Maple Syrup on high, until fluffy and well combined. Optionally allow it to sit in the refrigerator for ~30 minutes to set.
5. Assemble the cake when ready to serve: generously slather the frosting on top and garnish with some optional grated carrots, nuts, seeds or seasonal pomegranate seeds for a dash of colour. Enjoy!

Notes: I strained the yogurt overnight (because the used maple sirup is of a thin consistency) as well as baking the cake one day pre-serving. The yogurt will get a thicker consistency and the flavours of the cake have some time to settle.

And another short gif - prepare for a whole lot more of these guys in the future! (sorry not sorry) :)