--- title: Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake description: Find out how to make a delicious, moist, gluten-free and healthy carrot cake topped with labna. canonical: https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/ author: Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-02-08T21:00:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T19:10:35.646Z article:section: Health og:title: Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake og:description: It's topped with labna — a creamy yogurt og:url: https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt110b667e7af04be9/6988fad4e76ad2a3f0630ea3/carrotcake_thehealthychef.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: CarrotCake_TheHealthyChef og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake twitter:description: It's topped with labna — a creamy yogurt twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt110b667e7af04be9/6988fad4e76ad2a3f0630ea3/carrotcake_thehealthychef.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake by [Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef](https://time.com/author/teresa-cutter-the-healthy-chef/) ## Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef Feb 8, 2018 9:00 PM UTC  Paul Cutter / The Healthy Chef by [Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef](https://time.com/author/teresa-cutter-the-healthy-chef/) ## Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef Feb 8, 2018 9:00 PM UTC I designed my [healthy carrot cake recipe](https://itunes.apple.com/book/healthy-baking/id1201095016?mt=11) when I opened The Healthy Chef Café in Avalon Beach in Sydney, Australia. It was a hangout for moms, kids, yogis, supermodels and pro surfers — a place where a variety of people could get nourished and feel great. This cake has over one pound of fresh grated carrot, so it’s packed with goodness and fiber. The large amount of carrots in this recipe also helps to keep the cake moist, which is important due to the longer baking time. When making gluten-free cakes, I find ground almonds make a great replacement for the usual white refined flours that you’ll find in most cakes. Almonds boost protein in the recipe and they’re [packed with vitamin E](http://time.com/3763271/gnc-supplements-nutrients-food/). I’ve also used extra virgin olive oil in order to give this cake a luxurious flavor. In the winter, I like to add a handful or two of plump raisins, which adds a little sweetness and marries the carrot and spices perfectly. You can also use fresh blueberries instead of raisins when they’re in season. Spread the cake generously with a thick, strained Greek style yogurt called labna. It’s easy to make on your own, and is a wonderful topping to both sweet and savory dishes. **WHAT’S GREAT ABOUT IT** Carrots are a rich source of [beta-carotene](http://healthland.time.com/2013/08/20/eat-this-now-rainbow-carrots/), which can convert to vitamin A in the body. Vitamin A is essential for many functions including [immune system health](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2906676/) and [thyroid health](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23378454). **INGREDIENTS** **CARROT CAKE** * 500 g (16 oz) raw carrots, grated * 4 eggs * 2 teaspoons vanilla extract * 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon * 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg * 350 g (3 1/2 cups) almond meal * 60 ml (2 fl oz) extra virgin olive oil * 160 g (1/2 cup) pure maple syrup or raw honey * 150 g (1 cup) raisins * 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder **MAPLE VANILLA FROSTING (see notes)** * 500 g (16 oz) strained Greek Style yoghurt (labna) or cream cheese * 6 tablespoons pure maple syrup * 2 teaspoons vanilla extract **DIRECTIONS** **CARROT CAKE** 1. Preheat your oven to 160°C (320°F), fan forced 2. Combine carrot, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, almond meal, olive oil, maple syrup, raisins and baking powder into a large mixing bowl 3. Mix well by hand until combined 4. Pour the cake batter into a lined 25 cm (10 inch ) baking tin 5. Bake for 80 – 90 minutes or until cooked through. Cover if necessary with foil half way through cooking to prevent burning 6. Remove cake from the oven and allow to cool for 1 hour in the tin before turning out 7. Combine labna or cream cheese, maple syrup and vanilla in a bowl and mix until smooth and creamy 8. Spread frosting over the carrot cake and garnish if you like with some lightly roasted walnuts **NOTES + INSPIRATION:** For larger cakes, double this recipe and divide between 4 x 20 cm (8 inch) cake tins – enough to get four even layers. Sandwich cakes together with frosting and enjoy. Ricotta can be used in place of the labna and cream cheese. Just combine the same amount of ricotta with half the amount of maple syrup and vanilla. Whisk or blend using a food processor until smooth and creamy, adding a splash of water if needed then use as directed. For a dairy free topping, dollop the carrot cake with coconut yoghurt or whipped coconut cream. **To make your own** **Labna:** 1. Sit a strainer, lined with a piece of muslin, over a bowl 2. Spoon 1 kg (2.2 LB) of the yogurt into the muslin, cover loosely 3. Strain in the fridge for 24 hours. The next day remove the yogurt cheese and drain the liquid (whey) (This can also be used as a probiotic rich ingredient for your favorite smoothies) _Teresa Cutter, founder of_ [_The Healthy Chef_](https://www.thehealthychef.com/about/)_, is an author, nutritionist and classically trained chef. You can find more of Cutter’s tips and recipes on her website,_ [_app_](https://itunes.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1019047858?mt=8)_,_ [_eBooks_](https://itunes.apple.com/au/book/id1029254909) _and_ [_Instagram_](https://www.instagram.com/teresacutter%5Fhealthychef/?hl=en)_._ “_My main goal at The Healthy Chef is to get people cooking and eating healthier. Eat natural foods, focus on fresh fruits and vegetables and just keep it simple.” — Teresa Cutter_ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/"},"headline":"Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake","datePublished":"2018-02-08T21:00:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T19:10:35.646Z","description":"Find out how to make a delicious, moist, gluten-free and healthy carrot cake topped with labna.","url":"https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/","keywords":["Food","Recipes","healthytime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt110b667e7af04be9/6988fad4e76ad2a3f0630ea3/carrotcake_thehealthychef.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Teresa Cutter — The Healthy Chef","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/teresa-cutter-the-healthy-chef/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt110b667e7af04be9/6988fad4e76ad2a3f0630ea3/carrotcake_thehealthychef.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"CarrotCake_TheHealthyChef","caption":"","creditText":"Paul Cutter / The Healthy Chef","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/food/","name":"Food"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5136378/weekend-recipe-healthy-carrot-cake/","name":"Weekend Recipe: A Healthy Carrot Cake"}}]}] ```