Healthy Eats – Food Network Healthy Living Blog: Food Network's Healthy Eats: Healthy Recipes, Weight Loss Tips & Nutrition Information

It's super awesome.

What’s not to love about chocolate cake? One of my most vivid childhood memories involves sneaking slivers of my mom’s rich chocolate layer cake iced with a killer fudge frosting. For some reason, the cake tasted better the second day, when I ate it directly off the serving plate (with the refrigerator door wide open).

In my opinion, there’s always room for decadence in a healthy diet. Enjoy what you love once in awhile and eat healthy most of the time. If you want to know why you should relegate chocolate cake to “once in awhile,” consider that one unfrosted slice, can have 650 calories and 33 grams of fat.

So what about those everyday chocolate cravings? I’ve developed a sinful-tasting chocolate cake – one that tastes naughty but is nice nutritionally. In fact, I wanted THIS cake for Mother’s Day this year (after considering all my store-bought options). I prepped the ingredients 2 days ahead (dry ingredients in one bowl, wet ingredients in another) and waited until Mother’s Day to mix and bake. Easy breezy. And so heavenly. I hope you love it too!

Note: This cake is an excellent addition to spring and summer parties and it makes a fabulous hostess and teacher appreciation gift. You can even decorate it with unique and fun toppings, such as edible flowers, marzipan flowers or fun things like marzipan bees, circus animals and so on.

Super Awesome Chocolate Cake

Cooking spray
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups low-fat buttermilk
3 large egg whites
4 tablespoons light butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
1 tablespoon confectioners’ (powdered) sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9×12-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix well and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine buttermilk, egg whites, melted butter and vanilla. Mix on low speed until blended. Gradually beat in boiling water. Gradually add flour mixture and mix on low speed until blended.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 20-25 minutes until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool cake, in pan, on a wire rack.

Sift confectioners’ sugar over cake just before cutting into 12 squares.

Serves 12

Nutrition Info Per Serving (1/12 of cake)
Calories: 246
Total Fat: 3.8 grams
Saturated Fat: 2 grams
Total Carbohydrate: 51 grams
Sugars: 34 grams
Protein: 5 grams
Sodium: 291 milligrams
Cholesterol: 7 milligrams
Fiber: 2 grams