You asked for it – the Carrot Cake recipe you tasted – or hearing about it, you wish you had tasted.
I made a gluten-free carrot cake for a birthday party on Sunday.
It turns out that about 100 people had some!
A lot of people had no clue it was gluten-free, it was simply moist and flavorful and not too sweet.
Some people told me that they do not like carrot cake, and they liked this cake.
Others who love carrot cake said it was the best one they had ever tasted.
Bette Hagman was a pioneer in gluten-free baking. She wrote books as she figured things out for herself after she was diagnosed with celiac disease, which necessitates a gluten-free diet for recovery. She converted a lot of family favorite foods to gluten-free, maintaining the flavor and texture of the original.
I found Bette Hagman’s books in the local library as well as bookstores. This recipe comes from one of her books.
These days when gluten-free products are readily available in our area, it still is fun to bake. There are lots of parts of the country where the wide variety is not available locally, and people order ingredients or finished products from the internet.
One baking mix I enjoy using is Pamela’s Baking and Pancake Mix. I have successfully used it in a lot of recipes I have gathered over the years. As well, Pamela has oodles of recipes on her website PamelasProducts.com.
Gluten-free is seen as a fad in this country by some. Some medical conditions such as Celiac disease require a gluten-free diet. The fact is that lots of people do better physically and mentally avoiding gluten grains which can cause inflammation in the gluten sensitive.. Often auto-immune conditions are exacerbated by gluten. A gluten-free diet can clear up some cases of joint pain, digestive distress and brain fog.
However, just because a product is gluten-free does not make it automatically healthy. Because gluten-free baking often lacks fiber, it can be a higher glycemic level, meaning it goes into the blood stream faster, and can be a problem with spiking blood sugar. As well, most gluten-free baked goods have just as much sugar as the originals. In addition, there are lots of things that are gluten-free because they do not involve any grains – but that in itself does not make them healthy. Sure, vegetables, animal protein, beans, nuts and fruits are all gluten-free. Look carefully at the packaged foods with a gluten-free label – see my Health Information or Hype? blog post from last week.
For this birthday cake, I was sneaky and chose a recipe that had a fruit and vegetable in it – pineapple and carrot. You use your discretion about making it with sugar – I wanted a wide appeal, and did not want to change too many variables in the recipe, so I used cane sugar like the recipe called for.
Please comment below about your experience with the cake, if you tasted it. And when you make this recipe for yourself, please let us know how you enjoyed it!
Gluten Free Carrot Cake Supreme
from Bette Hagman
Grease and flour a 9” x 13” pan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir together: (and set aside)
- 2 ½ cups light gluten-free baking mix* (like Pamela’s)
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp powdered ginger
- ½ tsp salt
Beat together:
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 16 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained
Gradually beat flour mix into wet ingredients.
Stir in:
- 3 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Pour batter into pan. Smooth out top if the batter is stiff.
Bake 45 – 50 minutes, until tester comes out clean.
Cool in pan.
Serve with whipped cream or cream cheese frosting.
Makes 16 servings.
*Or baking mix:
- 1 ½ cups rice flour
- ½ cup garbanzo bean or soy flour
- ½ cup potato starch
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
