Healthy Birthday Cake Recipes
Healthier Recipes for Birthday Cakes
The first year of my daughter's life was so fascinating. And her first birthday was quite a celebration. When it came to making her cake, I decided that I wanted to continue her healthy eating habits and make a cake that was on the healthier side - well, as healthy as cake can be. :)
For me, keeping the sugar content low was most important. And I also wanted to leave out artificial colors and preservatives. So, below is the recipe we used for her first birthday, as well as other lower sugar recipes for birthday cakes. Enjoy!
Sweet & Natural Baking
Applesauce Spice Cake
1/2 cup molasses
1 cup applesauce
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1-3/4 cup flour
1 tsp ginger
Mix the molasses and applesauce in a large bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Bake in a nonstick 8 x 8-inch baking pan or one sprayed with a non-stick spray, in a 350° F for 30 to 45 minutes, or until it tests done.
**The batter may be a bit dry and you may need to add more applesauce or a bit of water. Try adding 1/4 cup of applesauce first then gradually add a bit of water by tablespoon**
Frosting:
I just combined organic vanilla yogurt and cream cheese to the consistency I was looking for.
I made a round pink cake as requested by Syna.
To get the natural pink color I reduced the liquid from a can of beets and added a tablespoon to the frosting.
Here's the recipe for the cake and whipped cream frosting:
Dorie Greenspan's Perfect Party Cake (adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours)
Makes one 9-inch layer cake
For the Cake
2 ¼ cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups whole milk or buttermilk (use buttermilk if you want to intensify the lemon flavor)
4 large egg whites
1 ½ cups sugar (I actually used 3/4 cup)
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ teaspoon pure lemon extract
For the Whipped Cream (double this if you want to cover the whole cake with whipped cream)
1 cup heavy cream, cold
1/8 cup sugar
2 tbsp raw wild flower honey (or another flavorful honey of your choice)
For Finishing
2/3 cup strawberry jam, stirred vigorously to loosen (feel free to use another flavor of jam)
Method
1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl.
4. Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl whisk until the sugar is moist and fragrant.
5. Add the butter to the lemony sugar mixture and working with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light and fluffy.
6. Beat in the lemon extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed.
7. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated. Add the rest of the milk-egg mixture, beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients.
8. Finally, give the batter a good 2- minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated.
9. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber or offset spatula.
10. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch - a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean. Cool the cakes in the pans for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, take them out of the pans, and peel off the parchment paper. Invert the cakes so they are right side up and cool to room temperature. The cooled cake layers can be wrapped airtight and stored at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to two months.
11. While the cakes are cooling, whip heavy cream to soft peaks, then add sugar, slowly, continuing to whip. Once sugar is incorporated, add honey in a slow stream to the mixture. Make sure the honey gets incorporated by scraping the bottom of your bowl well, as the honey will sink to the bottom. Whip cream to stiff peaks and set in the refrigerator until you're ready to assemble the cake.
12. Once the cake layers are cool, place one layer on a serving plate. Top that layer with the strawberry jam. On top of the jam, spread 1/3 of the whipped cream. Place the second cake layer on top of the whipped cream and top that with the remaining whipped cream. Enjoy!
Other Healthy Cake Recipes
Fresh Fruit Cake
Layer sponge cake with strawberries and peaches (or any favorite fruit) and whipped cream frosting. Mmmm...