Sugar Free Carrot Cake

For every family holiday gathering, my job is to make dessert. I'm the only one in my family who really enjoys baking, so it's a good fit. For Easter, I wanted to make something a little on the light side. When I found this carrot cake recipe at Splenda.com, I knew I had to give it a try. Carrot cake is one of my mother's favorite desserts. I have to say this lighter version was great. It was really moist, and since I upped the spices a bit from the original recipe, it had lots of flavor. I made a frosting with 8 ounces of fat free cream cheese, 1/3 cup splenda, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. I would not reccommend using fat free cream cheese, stick to light. The texture of the frosting was off using the fat free. Overall, though, the cake was great, and I would make it again if I was looking for a lighter dessert.

Sugar Free Carrot Cake
Source: Splenda.com

Ingredients:

• 7/8 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (I used 1 teaspoon)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice (I used 1/2 teaspoon)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (my addition to the original recipe)
• 2 large egg whites
• 1/4 cup eggbeaters
• 3/8 cup splenda
• 3 tablespoons reduced fat margarine
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened apple sauce
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 1/4 cup finely shredded carrot
• 1/3 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup golden raisins (my addition to the original recipe)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg. Set aside.
• In small bowl whisk together egg whites and eggbeaters. Set aside.
• In large bowl beat SPLENDA® Granulated Sweetener, margarine, honey, vanilla, applesauce, and canola oil. Mix in egg mixture, stir until well mixed. Stir in flour mixture, then carrots, walnuts, and raisins.
• Pour into greased 8 cup loaf pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool, ice if desired. (I used 2 round pans, and baked for 30 minutes).