Almost every year, Dad and I prepare nearly every dish of our Thanksgiving feast just the two of us. Since Mom doesn’t enjoy cooking nearly as much as we do, she usually offers to help with simple tasks like whipping up homemade pie crusts and decorating the table… Or just keeping the dogs distracted and out from underfoot!
Last year, Mom avoided cooking altogether by volunteering to buy all of the ingredients from the grocery store instead. Dad and I quickly agreed, and we wrote down a list for her before she drove to the supermarket.
She returned an hour later with four huge bags overflowing with produce and pecans and meat. We all pitched in to unpack their contents, neatly arranging them on the counter and in the refrigerator like a game of Tetris.
As I reached into the last bag and pulled out a carton of eggnog, Mom glanced over with a sheepish smile. “I couldn’t resist!” she admitted. Eggnog is her favorite part of the holidays, and she enjoys a tiny bit almost every single day from Thanksgiving until New Year’s.
So every holiday season, I come up with a few baked eggnog treats that I know Mom will love. This year, I started with this Healthier Greek Yogurt Eggnog Pound Cake! It’s supremely tender and full of cozy spices, perfect for enjoying while wrapped in a fuzzy blanket in front of a softly crackling fire… Probably alongside a fresh glass of eggnog, if you’re like Mom!
But unlike traditional pound cake recipes, this one contains no refined flour or added sugar—and just 130 calories!
When Mom heard that, her eyes lit up. “Maybe I can have two slices plus a little glass of eggnog for dessert…” she mused. (I know exactly where my sweet tooth came from! ?)
A super quick history lesson before we start baking… Don’t groan—it’s short, I promise! Traditional pound cakes earned their name because they contained a pound of four key ingredients: all-purpose flour, refined sugar, eggs, and butter. That’s about 2 ⅓ cups of sugar, 9 eggs, and 2 cups of butter. Yikes… So many calories!
So let’s talk about how to make this healthier pound cake instead! (History lesson over!)
You’ll start with white whole wheat flour (like this!) instead of all-purpose. Yes, such a thing actually exists—and it’s not a combination of whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour! White whole wheat flour is made exactly the same way as regular whole wheat flour, so it has all of the same health benefits (like extra fiber!). The only difference? White whole wheat flour comes from a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!), whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. This subtle difference gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, which makes it perfect for baking tender treats like this cake!
To cut back on unnecessary calories, you’ll just use ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil (but I prefer the taste of butter!) and 3 egg whites. Then you’ll mix in Greek yogurt to provide the rest of this pound cake’s tender texture! Although you probably guessed that already from the recipe title…
If you’ve been around my blog for a while, you already know my spiel. I ♡ Greek yogurt and use it in nearly everything—muffins, scones, brownies, even frosting!—because it adds the same moisture to your cake batter as extra butter or oil… But for a fraction of the calories. And it gives your treats a protein boost, too!
Then you’ll skip the refined sugar altogether and sweeten your pound cake with another one of my favorite ingredients: vanilla stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing refined or artificial (aka it’s clean-eating friendly!). It’s also very concentrated—you just need 4 teaspoons to sweeten your entire cake! This is the kind I use because I love its warm flavor, and although you can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, I buy mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Of course, we can’t forget the most important part… The eggnog! Even though my mom adores it, I still feel a little funny thinking about drinking raw eggs… So I actually use vegan “nog” (this kind!) instead. Even Mom said it tastes the same, if not a little bit better!
Bonus: This vegan “nog” has less than half the calories of regular eggnog! And you can use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!
And because it’s virtually impossible to enjoy eggnog without a sprinkling of nutmeg on top… (Trust me; my family would mutiny!) You’ll mix some into your batter, along with a little cinnamon. Those two spices really enhance the eggnog flavor!
I love it when holiday treats taste this amazing—and are still completely guilt-free! ⛄️ And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your pound cake and feature it in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthier Greek Yogurt Eggnog Pound Cake | Print |
- 2 ¾ cups (330g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¾ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 3 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 ½ tbsp (22mL) vanilla extract
- 4 tsp vanilla stevia
- ¾ cup (180g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 ¼ cups (300mL) light eggnog or vegan “nog” (see Notes)
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat a 9x5” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, vanilla extract, and vanilla stevia. Stir in the Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Stir in ¼ cup of eggnog. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining eggnog, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.)
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350°F for 45-55 minutes or until the top feels firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted in place of the white whole wheat flour. Regular whole wheat flour may be substituted in a pinch, although the cake will be less tender and have a distinct wheat-y flavor.
The cake requires 3 full egg whites. The whites contain the majority of the protein in eggs, and that protein is required to ensure the cake maintains its shape and texture while cooling. Without all 3 egg whites, the cake will collapse while cooling and turn out much denser.
I do not recommend substituting for the vanilla stevia, if at all possible. (It’s one of my favorite ingredients, and you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!) I buy mine online here because that's the cheapest price I've found. However, if you really prefer to omit the vanilla stevia from the cake, substitute ¼ cup of this powdered stevia. I do not recommend substituting other sweeteners (such as honey, pure maple syrup, agave, coconut sugar, granulated sugar, etc) because they will add too much volume to the batter, so your pound cake will not bake properly.
This is the vegan “nog” that I use. It has the same flavor but less than half the calories of traditional eggnog! This is another good option, if you can't find the one I used.
Do not use an electric mixer to mix up the batter. This will result in a dense or tough cake. Use a whisk where instructed, and use a fork for everything else.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, lower sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthier Eggnog Snickerdoodles
♡ Healthier Baked Eggnog Donut Holes
♡ Healthier Eggnog Fudge
♡ Healthier Eggnog Cinnamon Rolls
♡ Healthier Chocolate Chip Eggnog Oatmeal Cookies
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy pound cake recipes!
Can you substitute almond flour for the whole wheat flour? If so, is the almond flour measured the same?
Thanks.
P.S. I love your recipes! I was just diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and love to bake. You have helped me find healthier recipes for the stuff of love. Thank you again!
I truly appreciate your interest in my recipes Ginger! I’m so glad they’re able to fit into your diet. 🙂 I typically don’t recommend substituting almond flour in my recipes because it makes your baked goods turn out overly dense. However, knowing that tidbit, and assuming that you’re probably trying to reduce the carb count because of your diabetes, you can substitute almond flour if you also add in xanthan gum (see the Notes section underneath the Instructions for the amount). Your pound cake will still turn out denser than mine, but the xanthan gum will prevent it from collapsing while cooling — and therefore make it a little less dense than if you skipped the xanthan gum! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think if you try this pound cake!
To recap: eggnog, cake AND healthier in the same recipe. I am SO sold. Simply must try this!!
Aww you’re so sweet Karly — thank you! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you end up trying this pound cake!
Do you think I could make these into muffin instead of a loaf?
Yes, definitely! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this recipe Julie!
Are those the right measurements for the vanilla and vanilla stevia? They seemed large amounts to me before making it, and the cake seems overpowered by the almost alcohol taste of the extract now that I’ve made it.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Ilana! Yes, the measurements are correct. It could be that you’re more sensitive to the vanilla stevia taste than most. The alcohol flavor often diminishes over time, so try putting your cake in an airtight container (or tightly sealing it inside of plastic wrap) and refrigerating for 24 hours. Hopefully that decreasing the tastes a bit! Also, next time, you can try reducing the vanilla extract to 2-3 teaspoons instead. That should also help with the alcohol taste you’ve detected! 🙂
HElP!!!! I followed the recipe (almost*) precisely. * I did’t use vanilla stevia, only plain. I also used mini loaf pans. The mini loafs were awful. There was a crust all around the loaf. I could “peel” it off but the cake inside was not moist. What do you think I did wrong? I was hoping to give mini loafs to my friends, in a gift basket.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Brenda! I’m honored that you wanted to give your mini loaf cakes to your friends in gift baskets. 🙂 How long did you bake your mini loaves?