1st Birthday & Reduced Sugar Smash Cake Recipe

My daughter turned 1 year old today. I am still in shock. A whole year has gone by? Seriously? You mean I didn’t just bring my little 8 pound, 20.5 inch sleeper home yesterday? Because it sure feels like it!

I have been telling her that her birthday is right around the corner for the past month and teaching her the birthday song. I obviously knew it was coming. So why the heck did I wait til the last minute to figure out what I was going to do about a cake?! The “theme” of her party was cupcakes so I clearly needed to make cupcakes. But to smash cake or not to smash cake? I was on the fence until Thursday, when I decided that I would just buy all of the basic ingredients for a cake and figure it out later (meaning Friday, when I had to make it).

I’m a little bit obsessive about what my daughter eats. I try to make sure she only has healthy, fresh, wholesome foods. She’s never had sweets. Never, ever. Okay, she had a taste of her uncle’s ice cream last month, but that’s it. I was having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that giving her a smash cake would mean that she would actually be eating cake. You know, with sugar and stuff. And then I had an idea! Fruit is pretty sweet – it’s also natural and good. Why not replace some of the sugar in her cake with a fruit puree? So that’s exactly what I did. And, to my surprise, it was pretty good. Like really good. She liked it and so did her grandma, who kept the cake leftovers.

So mommies and daddies, I give you:

Mackenzie’s 1st Birthday Cake
(AKA Reduced-Sugar Smash Cake – adapted from here)

• 1/2 cup fruit or sweet vegetable puree (your child’s favorite kind! I used Ella’s Kitchen sweet potatoes, blueberries, pumpkin and apples)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350. Grease two 6″ cake pans.

In a medium bowl, cream the puree, sugar and butter together. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking powder and blend with a whisk. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in milk until smooth. Spoon even amounts into pans.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes until lightly golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

Ice cake with your favorite frosting. I used this recipe from Martha Stewart. Totally not healthy and totally delicious. I also used it on my cupcakes and didnt have the time/energy to make a special smash cake one. Sue me.

Using a serrated bread knife, cup the curved top off one cake so it is flat. Frost the cut part then place the second cake on top. Finish frosting cake, decorate to your desire and serve! Don’t forget the candle.

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