Healthy Birthday Cake Recipes

Find healthy, delicious birthday cake recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

Most Popular

One-Bowl Chocolate Cake

Rating: 4.5 stars 34
This easy-to-make chocolate cake is dark, moist, and rich, and it's made with healthful canola oil and whole-wheat flour. Plus, it only dirties one bowl! It's not quite as easy as boxed cake mix, but our simple 3-step recipe gives you an entirely homemade cake in about an hour.
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By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Diabetic Carrot Cake

Rating: 4 stars 6
With this luscious take on an all-time favorite, you can fit this low-sugar cake into a diabetic meal plan with style.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Chocolate-Fudge Pudding Cake

Rating: 4.5 stars 7
When you have a craving for a comforting dessert, try this pudding cake, which forms its own rich-tasting sauce as it bakes. The coffee flavor is subtle, but it adds complex depth to the cake's flavor.
Patsy Jamieson
By Patsy Jamieson

Carrot Cake

Rating: 4 stars 18
Carrots give carrot cake a health-halo effect--people think it's health food, but it's usually very high in fat and calories. But our version has about 40 percent less calories and 50 percent less fat than most. First, we use less oil in our batter. Then we skip the butter in the frosting (don't worry, it's still light and smooth). To ensure the cake is moist, we add nonfat buttermilk and crushed pineapple.
Patsy Jamieson
By Patsy Jamieson

Vanilla Cake

Rating: 3.5 stars 2
This lightened-up cake has the flavor of real vanilla beans, but it's still sweet, delicious, and ready to eat as is or topped with your favorite frosting.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Flourless Honey-Almond Cake

Rating: 4 stars 17
Honey and almonds flavor this simple (and gluten-free) cake. It's lovely for afternoon tea or a spring holiday dessert. Be careful not to overbeat the egg whites--they should be white and very foamy, but not at all stiff or able to hold peaks. If you beat them too much, the cake may sink in the middle as it cools.
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By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Double Chocolate Cupcakes

Rating: 5 stars 1
This Double Chocolate Cupcake recipe is perfect for the ultimate chocolate lover. Topped with Chocolate Frosting, these diabetic-friendly cupcakes are delicious and impossible to resist.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Greek Walnut Spice Cake

Rating: 4.5 stars 2
A rich, flavorful syrup infuses this Mediterranean-inspired walnut coffee cake with the bright aroma of oranges and cloves. Heart-healthy olive oil and whole-grain barley flour add subtle complexity and texture to this nutty treat.
By Maria Speck

Chocolate Decadence

Rating: 4.5 stars 16
Inspired by the old-school, ultra-rich, mousselike chocolate cake that usually called for a whole pound of chocolate, half a dozen eggs and lots of butter, this enlightened rendition has deep bittersweet chocolate flavor and dense melt-in-your-mouth texture. No one will guess it's healthier. The secret is excellent natural cocoa powder and good-quality bittersweet chocolate, preferably with 70% cacao. Although the cake can be eaten once it's completely cool, it comes out of the pan much easier and even tastes better if it has been chilled at least overnight.
By Alice Medrich

No-Bake Cherry Cheesecake

Rating: 4 stars 4
This no-bake cherry cheesecake is an easy summertime treat. This no-bake cheesecake recipe has omega-3-rich walnuts in the graham cracker crust and uses nonfat Greek yogurt and reduced-fat cream cheese in the filling to keep saturated fat in check. If you want a bright red topping, use sour cherries. Sweet cherries give it a more purple hue. To make gluten-free no-bake cherry cheesecake, use gluten-free graham crackers.
By Carolyn Malcoun

Vegan Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Frosting

Rating: 5 stars 1
Classic carrot cake goes vegan in this easy recipe, and gets covered with coconut whipped cream to replace the traditional cream cheese frosting. A mixture of flax and water makes a sturdy substitute for eggs in this vegan cake. Plus, sweet crushed pineapple helps to make this cake delicious with less added sugar.
By Carolyn Casner

Sweet Potato Pudding Cake

Rating: 4.5 stars 8
This cake was inspired by the one of the most popular Jamaican desserts, sweet potato pudding. Traditionally, raw shredded sweet potatoes are used, but we found that sweet potatoes sold in the U.S. don't provide the same texture as those in Jamaica. Instead, we mix mashed sweet potato with eggs and flour to get a slightly different, but equally delicious, cheesecake-like result.
By Carolyn Malcoun
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Inspiration and Ideas

Our Best Diabetes-Friendly Birthday Cakes
Make a wish! What better way to celebrate another year than with a delicious birthday cake? Here are some of our favorite kid-friendly diabetic birthday cakes, plus delicious treats that will bring out the kid in you.
15 Healthy Birthday Cake Recipes for Your Next Celebration
Fruity, chocolaty or packed with spice—there's a birthday cake (or cheesecake!) to fit every occasion.
Basic Yellow Cake

This is your go-to yellow cake recipe. Top it with your favorite frosting and sprinkles for a birthday cake! To lower the sugar, swap out the sugar for sugar substitute blend.