I’ve been promising this recipe for about a week now, and am so happy to be getting to it while the carrots are still in the share boxes!
This cake was adapted from a Weight Watchers magazine that I happened upon at the library, and thought I’d give it a try as dessert is one of those courses that I often don’t get to unless it’s quick and easy. As you can see, it’s a little bumpy of a cake as I skipped the step of purchasing a separate plastic liner. Instead,I used aluminum foil to cover the inside of my slow cooker, and sprayed the oil directly onto the foil before pouring the batter right in. The minor bumps in the cake from this approach were really negligible, nothing a little extra frosting couldn’t easily cover!
CAKE:
- 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (I used some All Purpose because I had run out of whole wheat)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt (I used Kosher salt)
- Pinch of ground cloves
- 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 15 ounce can pumpkin puree (I used about 1 1/2 cups of pureed baked acorn squash)
- 2 medium carrots, grated (I used 3 good sized ones, about 1 1/2-2 cups grated)
FROSTING:
- 4 tablespoons room temperature cream cheese (or Neufchâtel)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon plain low fat Greek Yogurt
- 3/4 cups confectioners sugar
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
DIRECTIONS:
- Line the inside container of 6 quart slow cooker (the long way) with a long piece of foil. Carefully work 2 more sheets in crosswise to the first sheet. Spray the inside of the cooker (onto the foil) using non-stick cooking spray.
- Mix your dry ingredients together (flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and ground cloves.
- Mix your brown sugar and eggs until smooth, then whisk in your squash or pumpkin puree.
- Stir the dry mixture gently into the egg mixture until just combined, then fold in the carrots.
- pour the batter into the foil lined pot, and cook on HIGH until done, about checking at 2 1/2 hours and every subsequent 15 minutes using the “toothpick” method (make sure the toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean). The cake should be done by 3 1/2 hours, (mine was done in 2 1/2).
- Let the cake cool slightly in the cooker. Use the handles created by your foil liner to gently lift the cake out of the cooker. While the cake is cooling, start on your frosting!
- Place the softened cheese, vanilla, and yogurt into a mixing bowl. Add a pinch of salt. Beat in your mixer for 2-4 minutes or until smooth. Reduce the speed of your mixer and add the confectioner’s sugar. Beat the mixture until smooth, about 4-6 minutes.
- If your cake is cool, add your frosting and top with chopped pecans. Enjoy!