Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

People often think carrot cake is healthier than other desserts, but beware of recipes that sound healthy! Most carrot cakes are full of oil, butter, eggs and regular sour cream. This version greatly reduces the fat by using pineapple, extra carrots, low-fat yogurt and ripe banana to create the moist texture typical of carrot cake. You can replace the raisins with chopped, pitted dates, apricots or prunes. If you use a food processor to mix the batter, take care not to overprocess it. A garnish of shredded carrots or orange zest is a nice touch.

RECIPE INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch Bundt pan with cooking oil.

2. For the cake, beat the oil and granulated sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla, beating the mixture well (it may look curdled). Add the banana, carrots, raisins, pineapple and yogurt. Stir until everything is well combined.

3. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg in a separate bowl, mixing well. Add to the carrot mixture and stir just until everything `is combined.

4. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.

5. Place the pan in the center of the oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a rack. When it’s no longer hot, invert the cake onto a serving plate.

6. For the icing, beat the cream cheese, icing sugar and milk in a bowl or food processor until smooth. Drizzle over cake.

INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 large ripe banana, mashed
1/2 cup low-fat yogurt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 cups grated carrots (about 6 oz)
2/3 cup raisins,
1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple drained
2/3 cup icing sugar
1/3 cup light cream cheese, softened
1 Tbsp low-fat milk or water

NOTES
Nutritional Analysis
per Serving
Calories 223
Protein 4g
Fat 5g
Saturated Fat 1g
Carbohydrates 41 g
Cholesterol 30 mg
Fiber 1g

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes

Make Ahead: Keep for up to 3 days well wrapped, or freeze for up to 2 weeks.

Serves 16

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