Healthy First Birthday Cake: No Sugar, No Egg, No Dairy
My son is allergic to eggs, dairy, and oats. So, trying to find a recipe to use for his smash cake was difficult. Since I couldn’t find the perfect recipe, I adapted this one from several recipes I found online and tried a few variations until I got it right.
The end result was a success! He devoured the cake at his birthday party. I was able to make three tiers out of this and he ate two of them in one sitting at his party. He probably would have eaten the whole thing if we had served it to him.
Several of our family members tried the cake and asked for the recipe so they could have a healthier option for their kids. So, I decided I should share it here as well. Let’s quickly talk about the ingredients I used for this cake and then get into how you can make it too.
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Ingredients
As I mentioned before, my son is allergic to quite a few things that are commonly used in baking. We haven’t been serving anything sugary quite yet either. Therefore, this cake had to be:
- Egg-free
- Dairy-free
- Oat-free
- Sugar-free
If you or your little one are sensitive to these ingredients too, then this might be the perfect recipe for you. Let’s talk about what this recipe does contain.
This cake recipe is made with the following ingredients.
- Whole wheat flour
- Baking soda
- Coconut oil
- Applesauce (no sugar added)
- Coconut milk
Substitutions
The great thing about this cake is that it is made of simple ingredients that are easy to substitute if needed. For example, if coconut is not an option, you can replace the coconut oil and coconut milk.
- For this recipe, you can switch out the whole wheat flour with another flour of your choice.
- You can swap the coconut oil for another oil like olive, avocado, or vegetable oil.
- The applesauce can be traded with mashed banana.
- The coconut milk can be replaced with any other type of milk.
The important thing to remember when making substitutions is that the consistency needs to stay the same. If you use a lighter flour, you may need less liquid.
Frosting Options
You can serve this cake with or without frosting. To sweeten it up, you can add fruit toppings, whipped cream, or regular frosting.
In order to keep the ingredients simple and healthy, I made a whipped coconut cream topping with a splash of pure maple syrup for sweetener. However, you could use any sweetener of your choice if you choose to add any at all.
For the frosting, you’ll need:
- One can of coconut cream (refrigerated for at least one night)
- Sweetener of your choice (optional)
Preparation and Serving
This cake is pretty versatile and can be treated like your average cake. Let’s talk about how to prepare and serve this cake. First of all, while this cake is perfect for a first birthday smash cake, you can make it for any occasion.
Can You Make This Ahead of Time?
This cake can be made ahead of time. It will last at room temperature for about three days on its own in an airtight container. If frosted, with coconut cream frosting, it needs to be refrigerated and won’t last as long.
How to Serve this Smash Cake
This cake can be served naked or topped with frosting or other toppings. You can bake the cake in several pans and create a tiered cake or use a single pan.
Assembling the Cake
I didn’t have any small cake pans on hand. So, I used a 10” springform pan and cut three 4.5” cakes from the larger one.
I added a layer of coconut cream between each layer and frosted the whole cake as well. So, it went: a layer of cake, coconut cream, layer of cake, coconut cream, layer of cake. Frost the whole cake with coconut cream. I waited until I was ready to serve the cake before frosting.
This recipe also makes great cupcakes if you’d like to serve it in smaller portions.
No Sugar, No Egg, No Dairy Healthy Cake
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup coconut oil can substitute with oil of your choice
- 1 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 cup coconut milk can substitute with milk of your choice
Optional Coconut Cream Frosting
- 1 can coconut cream chilled for at least 8 hours
- optional sweetener to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°
- Grease or line your cake pan(s)
- Pour all ingredients into a bowl and mix thoroughly. The batter will be thick but shouldn't be lumpy.
- Pour the batter into your cake pan(s). You may need to adjust your cook time if changing the size of the pan from a 10" round cake pan.
- Bake your cake for about 25 minutes or until cooked thoroughly. You can check the cake by inserting a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, it is done.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool.
- You can cut and stack your cake as desired and add any toppings or frosting that you'd like.
Optional Coconut Cream Frosting
- Put one can of coconut cream in the refrigerator overnight. You can leave it longer, but make sure it is in for at least 8 hours to harden.
- Remove only the solid cream from the can leaving the excess liquid at the bottom.
- Use a hand or stand mixer to whip the cream into peaks resembling whipped cream.
- Mix in sweetener if desired. I used about 1/2 tsp of pure maple syrup to sweeten mine just a bit.
- Store frosting in the refrigerator until ready to use.
If you or your little one has allergies, don’t let that stop you for making a delicious cake! Although this cake doesn’t have the sweetness of your average recipe, the texture is spot-on and you can add toppings or a frosting of your choice to dress it up.
Have fun baking!
For those that didn’t have allergies and were able to have sugar, I served these vanilla cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes.
