The Unconventional Ingredient Swap To Make Carrot Cake So Much Easier
Carrot cake is delicious, there is no doubt about it. With little bits of shaved carrots, raisins, walnuts, and cream cheese icing, it's one of our favorite desserts. It does have some healthy ingredients like carrots and nuts, and it's one of the most versatile desserts out there, with simple modifications to make it gluten-free, dairy-free, and even sugar-free.
Whether you make it into the traditional cake, cupcakes for birthday parties, or loaf cakes for gifts, the carrot cake recipe has been around for many years. In fact, the dessert dates back to even the Middle Ages when sugar wasn't as available and carrots were used as the sweetener, according to National Today.
While we no longer have that problem, the jury is still out on what the best carrot cake recipe is. We've seen recipes with honey yogurt as the icing, swapping the raisins for cranberries, and even making your own spice blend. But what about the carrots? Grating the carrots is laborious, and reaching for the bagged kind just doesn't cut it. The unconventional ingredient swap to make carrot cake so much easier? Baby food.
Jarred baby food makes for a moist cake
According to Paula Deen, just two, 4 oz. jars of pureed carrot baby food adds so much moisture to the cake you won't even miss the shredded kind. We love that this unexpected ingredient basically takes out the most time-intensive step in making this delicious cake. Grating the carrots take time, and delays the finished product, even though it is traditionally the best way to add the most flavor and moisture to the cake. Shredded carrots in a bag are dry and flavorless, which is not what you want.
The addition of jarred carrot baby food also adds a ton of unexpected flavor that blends so well with the rest of the ingredients. We recommend adding in the pecans or walnuts for the crunch factor, but granola will also work if you are looking for a nut-free alternative. After you try making this recipe with baby food, it might go down as one of the best carrot cakes you've ever had.