Air fryer healthy carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

By now it should be quite clear that I like recipes that are as healthy as possible while still being tasty. When I first found out there is such a thing as carrot cake, not the Singapore hawker stir-fried savoury type, I was skeptical. How good can it be... it's a vegetable cake!
However during my second pregnancy, I began to like this cake very much and even until now. I like that it's healthy and the cream cheese is literally the 'icing on the cake'. No carrot cake can do without the cream cheese!
I searched online and to my disappointment, many of the carrot cake recipes were not healthy at all. The cake can contain 2 cups of sugar! And the cream cheese another 2 cups!
But there were also many others who really wanted healthy versions and so I combined 3 recipes that I found, with some adaptations of my own, and here goes.
The end result: the cake's taste has too much cinammon (so I reduced it in the recipe below) but still overall it's tasty and moist. The sugar still can be reduced (so I did in the recipe below). The cream cheese has a nice light tangy taste.
According to my husband, it's good but not sweet enough commercially. So I shall take that as a compliment!

Seriously, if you like carrot cake you have got to try this!

Makes two 6-inch cakes.

Adapted from http://www.littlespicejar.com/super-moist-healthy-carrot-cake-muffins/

& http://natashaskitchen.com/2013/09/10/the-healthier-carrot-cake-recipe/

& http://fooddoodles.com/2013/06/27/whole-wheat-carrot-cake-with-honey-cream-cheese-frosting/

 

INGREDIENTS

Carrot cake:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 eggs at room temp
• 1/3 cup sugar (can convert this to honey for a healthier alternative)
• 1/4 cup honey
• Less than 3/4 cup sunflower oil (I used 3/4 cup and found it too oily)
• 2 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup plain yoghurt
• 2.5 cups shredded carrots (~2 sticks)
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup walnuts

Cream cheese frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup icing sugar (can try honey instead too)
• 1/2 cup plain yoghurt
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 tbsp lemon juice for a tangy taste (optional)

HOW

Before starting take cream cheese out from fridge.

Carrot cake:

1) Grease baking tray and line bottom with paper.

 

2) In a medium bowl, sift together all purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt, set aside.

 

3) In a large bowl with a handheld mixer on medium speed, combine the sugar/honey and oil. Beat in the yogurt and apple sauce until fully combined - about 1 minute. Mixture will be gritty and thin.

(I used a hand whisk so just beat slightly longer)

 

4) Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.

 

5) Preheat Airfryer at 175 deg C for 10 min.

 

6) With a spatula, manually stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined and all flour pockets are gone - do not overmix.

 

6) Fold in the finely shredded carrots,  raisins, and walnuts.

7) Pour into prepared pan and in the Airfryer. Cover loosely with aluminium foil. 

Bake at 175 deg C for 30 minutes. (I tried 175 deg C for 25 min with no foil and it was burnt on top and not cooked inside. Then I added 5 more min at 160 deg C and it was ok).
 

8) Remove and cool. If the top part is burnt, cut it off. Unfortunately mine was burnt :(

 

Cream cheese frosting:

1) In a food processor(or with hand beaters) beat the cream cheese until soft.

note: this step is very important to do before adding anything else if not you will get lumpy frosting.

2) Add the icing sugar a little at a time and cream till it's not visible, then repeat. Do the same with the yogurt.

3) Then add vanilla and lemon juice and beat until completely smooth.

3) Pour into a container, cover and chill until ready to frost (frosting will thicken in the fridge after a couple hours).

 

Finally:

1) Cut cooled cake into 2 layers, add frosting to 1 layer and add frosting on top and side. Top with walnut.

2) Chill in fridge before serving.