Healthy Carrot Bread

There are so many breakfasts out there that are loaded with excessive sugar and fat that you may as well be eating cake. But not this one! This Healthy Carrot Loaf is healthier than many of the other carrot loaf recipes because it isn't loaded with sugar and fat inside. And it doesn't have a glaze, cream cheese frosting, or any kind of icing on top. It makes a great snack, breakfast, or dessert!

I grew up eating really healthy food. We ate whole grains and I wasn't allowed to eat tasty things like white bread, Cheez whiz, or sugary cereals because they were 'junk food'. Dessert was a very rare treat. My Mom regularly shopped at health food stores, which in the 1970s, was a pretty hippyish thing to do. Hence the reason she was deemed a 'health nut' by the other neighborhood mothers. So when, in Grade 3 health class, when we were asked to record what we had for breakfast one random day, you can only imagine my mother's mortification when I came home with my food chart, and under the breakfast category it read, "CAKE".

It's not like cake was something we commonly ate, much less for breakfast. But for some reason, that was the day she happened to give in to our begging and pleading for one of Baba's baked treats she had sent home with us on the weekend.  

Mom claims that it was more like a rhubarb loaf, not a cake, and at the time thought, 'How bad can it be? Rhubarb is a vegetable after all." But I guess it seemed like cake to me! I relate to how my Mom felt when I had a similar thing happen to me with my daughter over Christmas...

🥘 Ingredients

The extra sugar and calories are just not necessary. So, if you want a healthy carrot bread that tastes like you are eating cake for breakfast, but without the fat and sugar, then give this one a try!

For this carrot bread recipe, you'll need:

• flour - whole wheat and all-purpose
• cinnamon
• nutmeg
• baking powder
• baking soda
• egg
• vegetable oil
• non-fat plain Greek yogurt (or regular yogurt
• brown sugar
• vanilla
• carrots

You don't need unsweetened applesauce for this delicious bread, as it can make baked goods too chewy.

*see recipe card for quantities

🍰 Cake for Breakfast is a thing

I was recently perusing the 2018 food trends and came across the cake for breakfast trend. Apparently, this is now a thing. The article went on to say that basically sometimes you just gotta treat yourself

. And although I am really all about treating myself and eating cake, I just can't bring myself to do cake for breakfast! All that sugar just sends me right up, then crashing right down again.... hard. And it just seems all wrong - like having a beer for breakfast.  I'd rather leave the cake (and beer) for PM indulgences.

🔪Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/176 degrees C. Spray a 9X5 loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Combine flours, spices, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In a large bowl beat egg till fluffy.
• Beat in oil, then add in yogurt, sugar, and vanilla. Stir in carrots.

• Add flour mixture to wet mixture and stir until combined.
• *if you are adding pineapple, add it here
• Pour into prepared loaf pan.

• Bake at 350F for approximately 50 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted comes out clean.
• Let cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely.

On the other hand, my kids are always trying to get cake for breakfast. Sometimes I admire the tenacity, but mostly it's annoying. My pat answer is "Are you new here? When have we ever had cake for breakfast? " But I guess I can't blame them for trying; it did work for me that one time.

💭 Top Tips

• You can use a box grater, but I prefer to grate carrots with a food processor and then freeze them in 1 or 2-cup bags (I do both so I have a variety for other dishes like my Honey Sriracha Chicken Lettuce Wraps- shown below).

• Don't slice the loaf until you are ready the eat the pieces. Cut the loaf as you need it, as slicing it dries it out more quickly.

📖 Variations & Substitutions

Oil: you can use olive oil or canola oil instead of vegetable oil

**Optional: You can add ½ cup finely chopped pineapple (fresh or canned). Just make sure you squeeze out the liquid. It's a really nice addition and makes for a moist bread. But you'll potentially need to cook the loaf 8-10 minutes longer (I did) or until a cake tester comes out clean. It makes for a very moist carrot bread.

My kids love this healthy carrot bread too! And getting kids to like eating healthy food is not always an easy feat, especially when they'd rather be eating cake.

Kids are relentless and will try to get anything and everything they can out of you- especially junk food. And they are very good at it. They are also very skilled at flying under the radar when they want and need to. My daughter is an excellent example of that.

🌡️Storage

• Fridge: The loaf can be stored in a sealed airtight container or freezer Ziplock bag for up to 3 days in the fridge. 
• Freezer: This carrot loaf recipe freezes well for up to 3 months. You can leave it in the loaf pan to freeze if you prefer (I do this sometimes). Simply cover the loaf with Glad Press n' Seal (affiliate link) or plastic wrap and slide the entire loaf into an extra-large Ziplock freezer bag. Or you can use a loaf pan that comes with a lid. I would still put that into a Ziplock bag, just to ensure it stays as fresh as possible.

👪 Serving Size

This quick bread recipe serves 12. However, you can double or triple this recipe by adjusting the serving size on the recipe card. Just click on the serving size (it's highlighted in blue) and select the number of servings you’d like. You'll need extra loaf pans. *You can freeze the extra loaves (see storage, above). 

Is popcorn for breakfast a future trend?

While we were visiting some relatives over Christmas, for some odd reason, someone asked my daughter what she had for breakfast that day and she replied, "Popcorn and a slushy." I can assure you that was not one of my proudest parenting moments.

Although I wasn't even in charge of eating that morning (my Mom was), I couldn't very well throw Grandma under the bus. Plus, I know that my daughter had slept really late, they were in a rush to get to the noon movie, and my daughter will do just about anything to avoid a healthy breakfast. It was easy to fly under the radar when Grandma had 4 kids to wrangle on her own.

So, I ended up wearing that one. But in retrospect, I should just be happy that my Mom didn't give her cake for breakfast, given her penchant for such things haha. I was wishing I had this Healthy Carrot Bread handy that morning!

So, if you want to feel like you're eating cake for breakfast, without actually eating cake for breakfast, save the cake for a PM indulgence/afternoon snack and indulge in some of this Healthy Carrot Bread (see review below) ! This "carrot cake bread" is a recipe the whole family will love!

But if you still really want cake, here's a super Healthy & Light Carrot Cake (that's also Weight Watchers friendly)!

You just may want to save it for the evening! 🙂

⭐ Reviews

Did you make this recipe? Please RATE THE RECIPE below

Here's what others are saying: "This recipe is incredible, and has now become my go-to carrot cake! I've made it twice, firstly as a loaf cake, and then as a two-tier 8-inch cake with added toasted pecans (I increased the ingredient quantities and adjusted the cooking time), and they were both a total success. Neither my guests, nor myself for that matter, could believe that it wasn't a normal, full-fat, high-sugar cake. Thank you so much for this recipe, I look forward to making it again! " ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If you loved this recipe, give my Healthy Rhubarb Bread a try!

🥕Healthy Carrot Bread Recipe

This easy and healthy carrot bread is quick, simple to make and full of real wholesome ingredients, like whole wheat flour and yogurt! It makes a great lunchbox snack or dessert.

5 from 9 votes

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Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: North American

Keyword: carrot bread, carrot loaf, healthy carrot loaf

Servings: 12 slices

Calories: 137kcal

Author: Terri Gilson

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

loaf pan

electric mixer

Ingredients

• ▢ ¾ cup whole wheat flour
• ▢ ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 3 tablespoon vegetable oil *or canola oil
• ▢ ¾ cup non- fat plain Greek yogurt (0%) ( or regular yogurt)
• ▢ ½ cup packed brown sugar
• ▢ ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 cup shredded carrots about 3 medium carrots
• ▢ ½ cup finely chopped pineapple/crushed pineapple Optional: You can add a ½ cup finely chopped pineapple (fresh or canned). Just make sure you squeeze out the liquid. It's a really nice addition and makes for a moist bread. But you'll potentially need to cook the loaf 8-10 minutes longer (I did) or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C).

  Spray a 9X5 loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. 
• Combine dry ingredients (flours, spices, baking soda, and baking powder) in a medium bowl. Set aside.
  
• In another large bowl, beat egg till fluffy.
  
• Then beat in other wet ingredients (oil, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla.) Stir in grated carrots.
  
• Add dry mixture to wet mixture and stir until combined.
  
• If you are adding pineapple, add it here.
  
• Pour batter into greased loaf pan.
  
• Bake at 350F for approximately 50 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted comes out clean.
  
• Let cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes

💭 Top tip

Shredded your carrots with food processor then freeze them in 1 or 2 cup bags (I do both)

📖 Variations

** Optional: You can add a ½ cup finely chopped pineapple (fresh or canned). Just make sure you squeeze out the liquid. It's a really nice addition. But you'll potentially need to cook the loaf 8-10 minutes longer (I did) or until a cake tester comes out clean.

My Amazon recommendations (affiliate links)

Nutrition Facts

🥕Healthy Carrot Bread Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 137 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Fat 4g6%

Saturated Fat 2g13%

Cholesterol 14mg5%

Sodium 125mg5%

Potassium 146mg4%

Carbohydrates 22g7%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 3g6%

Vitamin A 1800IU36%

Vitamin C 0.7mg1%

Calcium 52mg5%

Iron 0.8mg4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition

Calories: 137kcal (7%) | Carbohydrates: 22g (7%) | Protein: 3g (6%) | Fat: 4g (6%) | Saturated Fat: 2g (13%) | Cholesterol: 14mg (5%) | Sodium: 125mg (5%) | Potassium: 146mg (4%) | Fiber: 1g (4%) | Sugar: 9g (10%) | Vitamin A: 1800IU (36%) | Vitamin C: 0.7mg (1%) | Calcium: 52mg (5%) | Iron: 0.8mg (4%)

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