Carrot Cake Oatmeal Bake
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I love carrot cake. It is usually seen as a dessert, but I wanted to use those flavors to make something you could have for breakfast or dessert. Carrot Cake Oatmeal Bake has that carrot cake vibe, but is much lighter and created with breakfast in mind.
The ingredients are a bit lighter and translate into a well-balanced breakfast with fiber and protein.
Cake Ingredients
As with regular carrot cake, this recipe calls for shredded carrot. You only need three-quarters of a cup, which is about one large carrot. If you don’t have something to shred it with, you can peel the carrot into thin strips with a Vegetable Peeler and then chop the strips with a 7-1/2″ Vegetable Knife into smaller shreds.
To give the bake some texture, raisins and pecans are added. The nuts are easily chopped using a 7-5/8″ Petite Chef knife.
Of course, you can leave out the raisins and nuts if you prefer.
The rest of the ingredients for this bake are what really lighten it up compared to regular carrot cake, and offer good sources of fiber and protein.
The addition of oatmeal gives it that breakfast feel, but offers the fiber boost. Instead of sugar, the recipe calls for applesauce. It also uses skim milk as a lighter alternative to cream or whole milk to cut down on some of the fat.
The frosting includes protein-packed Greek yogurt and light cream cheese, both help to cut down on fat. It also uses sugar-free cheesecake-flavored pudding mix instead of sugar, making the frosting lighter, but also adding another delicious flavor element.
Serving the Oatmeal Bake
When it’s time to spread the frosting, use Cutco’s Spatula Spreader. Its wide, flexible blade makes big sweeping strokes for quick coverage.
You can also use the sharp side of the knife to cut and serve the Carrot Cake Oatmeal Bake when it’s done. Eat it right away or make it ahead of time and eat it throughout the week.
I love how this bake incorporates the flavors of carrot cake, but is lightened up and transformed into a balanced breakfast.
Nutrition: 274kcal, 11.52g total fat, 208mg cholesterol, 178mg sodium, 43.8g carbohydrate, 6.7g fiber, 11.9g protein
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 cups skim milk (or alternative milk)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 3/4 cup shredded carrots (1 large carrot)
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
Yogurt frosting:
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons light or fat-free cream cheese softened
- 2 tablespoons sugar free, cheesecake flavored pudding mix
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease an 8 x 8-inch square baking dish.
- In the baking dish, whisk together applesauce and eggs. Add maple syrup, milk and vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
- Add oats, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and ground ginger. Mix until all are incorporated.
- Fold in shredded carrots, raisins and pecans.
- Bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until the top begins to turn golden brown.
- For cream cheese topping: In a small bowl whisk together yogurt, cream cheese, and pudding mix. Once baked oats are cool, top with yogurt frosting and slice into 6 equal-sized pieces.
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