One year for my birthday while still in college, my family drove up to visit me. Since we planned on a small celebration with just the four of us, I decided to bake my own birthday treat, and I bought a couple of small 6”-round cake pans at the store.
I baked a basic white cake from scratch, substituting almond extract for the vanilla, and I mixed up a fresh peach filling for in between the layers. On a whim, I decided to cover my little cake with fondant to make it look pretty and elegant, so I found a recipe to follow online.
After mixing it together and dying it a light peach color to match the filling, I rolled out my homemade fondant into a large circle. But when I started to drape it over my little layer cake…
It cracked. A lot. The original recipe creator suggested to rub a little shortening on your fingers before smoothing out the cracks, and by the time I finished disguising those imperfections, I was so glad I had only made a 6”-round two-layer cake… Rather than an 8”-round four layer cake like some of the fancy bakeries in town offered. That would’ve taken more than double the work!
As the amazing people that they are, my parents and brother still admired and praised my little birthday cake, and they proclaimed they enjoyed every bite!
However, that particular baking episode taught me that if I wanted stress-free birthdays, I should stay away from homemade layer cakes, especially ones with fondant… So I opted for this Healthy Blueberry Almond Bundt Cake this year instead!
I absolutely love bundt cakes because they look so pretty and elegant fresh out of the oven, and sometimes they don’t even need a drizzle! Plus this particular one contains lots of juicy berries, no refined flour or sugar, and just 128 calories!
That makes for one extra happy birthday! ?
Let’s talk about how to make this healthy blueberry almond bundt cake!
You’ll start with white whole wheat flour (like this!). Yes, white whole wheat flour actually exists… And it’s not a combination of white (aka all-purpose) flour and regular whole wheat flour!
Instead, white whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!), whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. They both have the same health benefits (like extra fiber!), but white whole wheat flour has a lighter taste and texture… Which lets the moist and tender texture of this healthy cake truly shine!
Hint: I also included my preferred gluten-free option in the Notes section of the recipe!
Whereas traditional bundt cake recipes often call for ½ cup (or more!) of butter or oil, this healthy blueberry almond bundt cake only requires 1 tablespoon. That definitely helps keep this cake low calorie!
Even so, this healthy blueberry cake is still really moist and tender, and that’s because of Greek yogurt! If you’ve been to my blog before, you probably know how much I love baking with Greek yogurt. 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 healthy bundt cake a protein boost, too!
You’ll skip the refined granulated sugar and sweeten your healthy blueberry almond bundt cake with another one of my favorite ingredients: liquid stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing refined or artificial (aka it’s clean-eating friendly!), and it’s also really concentrated. You just need 5 ½ teaspoons to sweeten this entire cake!
This is the kind I use because I love its warm flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertaste, like with some other stevia products. Although you can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, I buy mine online here because that’s the best price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Nerd Alert!
Although it may seem strange, you’ll mix 4 tablespoons of vinegar into the cake batter. The vinegar reacts with the baking soda, which (a) helps the cake rise and (b) gives the cake a better texture. I promise you can’t taste the vinegar in your finished healthy blueberry almond bundt cake!
Of course, you can’t make this bundt cake without the two very important ingredients… Fresh blueberries and almond extract! I strongly prefer fresh blueberries because they’re currently in season and oh-so-juicy, and they also don’t stain the batter a weird gray color like frozen ones do.
As for the almond extract (like this!), I absolutely love the sophisticated flavor it gives the cake! It almost makes the cake taste a little sweeter too, in my opinion. It’s my favorite baking extract, so I’ve been adding it to lots of my recipes lately!
Once your batter is ready… You must thoroughly coat your bundt cake pan with cooking spray before adding in the cake batter. Because bundt pans have a lot more nooks and crannies than regular smooth, round cake pans, it’s easier for the cake to get stuck to the sides… But if you thoroughly coat your bundt pan with cooking spray, the cake should slide right out!
One last thing! The drizzle. It’s so simple to make! You just mix together a little confectioners’ style erythritol (this kind!), almond extract (like this!), and milk in a small bowl. Transfer that to a zip-topped bag, cut off a tiny piece of one corner, and drizzle over your completely cooled bundt cake!
How beautiful and delicious does that look? 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 healthy blueberry almond bundt cake!
| Healthy Blueberry Almond Bundt Cake | | Print |
- for the cake
- 3 ¾ cups (450g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 4 large egg whites, room temperature
- 4 tsp almond extract
- 5 ½ tsp liquid stevia
- ¾ cup (180g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup (60mL) white vinegar
- 1 ½ cups (360mL) nonfat milk
- 2 cups (280g) fresh blueberries
- for the drizzle
- 3 tbsp (45g) confectioners’ style erythritol
- ½ tsp almond extract
- 2 - 2 ½ tsp nonfat milk
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and generously coat a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray or nonstick cooking spray with flour.
- To prepare the cake, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, almond extract, and liquid stevia. Add in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Stir in the vinegar and ½ cup of milk. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350°F for 55-65 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 the cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cake has completely cooled to room temperature and just before serving, prepare the drizzle. Stir together the erythritol, almond extract, and milk in a small bowl. Transfer the mixture to a zip-topped plastic bag, cut off a tiny piece of one corner, and drizzle over the cooled cake.
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.
It’s extremely important to measure the flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own!) Too much flour will dry out your cake and give it a crumbly texture, instead of having it turn out moist and tender!
The cake requires 4 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 4 egg whites, the cake will collapse while cooling and turn out much denser.
If you aren’t a fan of almond extract, substitute vanilla extract instead.
I do not recommend substituting for the liquid 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 best price I've found. However, if you really prefer to omit the liquid stevia from the cake, substitute 2 ¼ cups (432g) granulated sugar and reduce the milk to ¼ cup (60mL), but the cake will no longer be clean-eating friendly. You may substitute 2 ¼ cups (432g) coconut sugar and reduce the milk to ¼ cup (60mL) to keep the cake clean eating friendly, but it will be much darker in color. The baking time may vary with either of those substitutions as well. Do not substitute honey, maple syrup, or agave because the cake batter will be much too liquidy with any of those.
The vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the cake rise and give it a better texture. You can’t taste it in the finished cake—I promise!
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
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.
Make sure you coat your bundt pan really well with cooking spray! (This is the bundt pan that I use!) With so many nooks and crannies, compared to traditional round or rectangular cake pans, the batter has more chances to stick to the sides, so a generous coating of cooking spray will ensure your bundt cake slides right out of the pan.
This is the confectioners’ style erythritol that I use. Regular confectioners’ style (powdered) sugar may be substituted for the confectioners’ style erythritol in the drizzle. Regular powdered sugar is much more absorbent, so start with just ½ teaspoon of milk and add more as necessary.
For more drizzle (and a sweeter cake!), double the drizzle.
If you have a 6-cup bundt pan, you can make a half-recipe and bake at 350°F for 50-60 minutes instead.
When refrigerating leftover slices of already drizzled bundt cake, the drizzle will turn brittle and crack if made with erythritol, or it will dissolve into the cake if made with powdered sugar. Neither will affect the flavor—only the appearance!
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, lower sugar, higher protein}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Lemon Bundt Cake
♡ Healthy Orange Bundt Cake
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Blueberry Pound Cake
♡ Healthy Blueberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Blueberry Lemon Pound Cake
Please forgive me for the belated birthday wishes! I’m catching up on blog reading ???
Thank you so much, Liz! You’re such a sweetheart! 🙂
Hi. I really like your recipes I have made several. In this recipe you say 1 1/2 cups of milk but your instructions say 1/2 cup. I did rhe 1/2 cup but had to add the rest because it was too dry. Can you clarify this please? Thanks
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Joyce! Towards the end of Step 2, you alternate between adding the flour mixture and remaining milk. It can be easy to speed read through the Instructions and miss that! 😉 So if you added the full 1 ½ cups of milk, that’s exactly right!
Hi! I just tried out this recipe for the first time, only replacing the almond extract with vanilla and replacing the blueberries with peaches. It was….interesting. Granted, I made quite a few mistakes in the baking process, including leaving the butter out for too long and having it partially solidify, and forgetting to alternate with the milk and flour which caused me to over mix the batter. The first thing I noticed was that the cake wasn’t sweet. Like, at all. I used the suggested 5 1/2 tsp of stevia, but I wonder if my brand (365) is less potent than others or if using regular over vanilla stevia made a difference. It tasted just like vaguely sweetened bread. Combine that with my own over mixing and I pretty much just got peach bread. I’m not sure if I’ll make it again, I mean the pictures you show of your own correctly done cake looks like it has a pretty good texture so it’s clear that it can be done right. But if I am to do it again, I’m definitely going to use more stevia because it really needs more sweetness.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Alyssa! That sounds disappointing, and I’d love to work with you to make sure your next cake turns out much better if you decide to try again. 🙂 I don’t have any experience with the 365 brand of stevia. Does the label or packaging state how much of their liquid stevia is the equivalent of 1 teaspoon or 1 cup of sugar? My guess is that it isn’t a 1-for-1 substitute for the vanilla stevia that I used and linked to, if your cake tasted like bread instead of cake! If you can find any sort of sugar equivalent for your 365 brand liquid stevia, then we can definitely sort out how much more you’d need to use!
Using the alternating additions of the flour mixture and milk will make a HUGE difference in the texture of the cake! Also, did you use a fork to stir in those ingredients or an electric / stand mixer? If you used the latter, then that would also contribute to overmixing and a tough or gummy texture. I highly recommend using a whisk where instructed and a fork (with a gentle hand for stirring!) for everything else for the best results. 🙂
Thanks for the reply! I just checked the bottle of stevia and unfortunately it doesn’t really have a solid conversion factor. I have noticed that it is less sweet than the sugar amounts of other stevia conversion charts, so I probably should have known that I would have needed more, but I was little reserved knowing how concentrated stevia is. Oh, I was supposed to use a fork? Whoops, I just used a whisk! Wow, I really did screw up this recipe. ? I’ll be sure to keep that in mind if I decide to make this again. Thanks for the tips!
It’s my pleasure Alyssa! If you read through the Notes section, you’ll find that I actually recommend using a whisk where instructed and a fork for everything else. I know the Notes sections can be lengthy, but I give lots of tips there (along with substitution alternatives), so it’s always worth reading before you begin! 😉 That’s such a bummer that your stevia bottle doesn’t have a conversion factor anywhere… Hopefully the company changes that in the future! I think if you add more, maybe an additional 1-2 teaspoons, that should help! Another alternative is to use a second non-stevia sweetener. Often that second sweetener brings out the sweetness of liquid stevia so it tastes as sweet as it should! This is my favorite “second” sweetener. Try adding 3-4 tablespoons (and decrease the milk by about 1 tablespoon), and that should also help! 🙂
I just got my first bundt pan, and this was the perfect healthy recipe to break it in with! I love that the cake is flavorful but not overly sweet. The extra sweetness of the glaze was a nice contrast. I can’t wait to try more of your bundt cake recipes!
I’m so honored that you tried this recipe as the first cake to bake with your bundt pan! I’m so glad you enjoyed it Melissa! Thanks for taking the time to let me know! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear which recipe you decide to try next!
This is great recipe! I love the texture, mine at least is something I can pick up and eat with no crumbs falling everywhere! A hearty cake of sorts with great taste. Except, that I can taste the Stevia so much! I use the same liquid as you. Wondering if I can do 1/2 cup of coconut or regular sugar and Stevia to taste, how much would I need to reduce the milk by? Thankyou for a great recipe! And there is a whisk/fork thing on Amazon that can be either, just an FYI.
I truly appreciate your interest in my recipe Trish! I completely understand about the liquid stevia; my mom is also really sensitive to its flavor and can detect it in literally anything. If you’d prefer to use coconut sugar or granulated sugar instead, then I’ve actually included that modification in the Notes section of the recipe already (located directly underneath the Instructions). I know it can be easy to miss that bit! 🙂 I’d love to hear whether that option tastes any better to you!
Hello amy, for starter i love your blog and recipe. I’m changing my baking for a healthier bake so i will definitely try a lot of your recipes. I want to use chickpeas flour and a bit of almond flour for the flavour as there is no one sell almond extract here. Do you think it will be possible? If yes, please guide me for the convertion. Much Love!!!!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Christina! I don’t have much experience with chickpea flour, so I’m not sure if that will work. Almond flour doesn’t have nearly as strong of a flavor as almond extract, so I’m afraid your cake won’t have the same almond flavor even if you use that substitute. However, I’ve included what to do if you don’t like (or don’t have!) almond extract in the Notes section of the recipe. I know it can be easy to miss that! 😉 I’d love to hear what you think if you try this bundt cake!
Hi Amy,
Can I use normal wheat flour or normal flour?
also, instead of white vinegar can I used apple cider or lemon juice?
Thanks for all the recipes, love you!
I’m honored that you’d like to try this recipe, Leony! I’ve actually answered your first question in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions). I know it can be easy to miss that section! 😉 Of those two ingredients, lemon juice would be the slightly better option (because it’s typically more acidic!), but apple cider vinegar could also work. I’m really excited to hear what you think of this bundt cake! 🙂
If I do not have a bundt cake pan could I use a 8 inch round springform or 8×8 rectangle glass pyrex
Thank You
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Eileen! Unfortunately, as written, this cake won’t work in either of those baking pans. (It usually collapses and sinks in the middle.) However, it will work as cupcakes, if you have muffin pans!
You should be able to get 20-22 cupcakes out of the batter. I’d recommend baking them at 350°F, and begin checking on them after about 18 minutes. They may take longer to bake, but they’ll be done when the centers feel firm to the touch and toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. If you’re using cupcake liners (paper or foil!), then generously coat them with cooking spray first. Low fat batters (like this one!) tend to stick to cupcake liners a LOT, but coating them with cooking spray helps them peel away much more easily!
I’m so sorry I’m just now responding too. I had some family things I needed to take care of, but if you do end up making this recipe, I’d love to hear what you think of it!
thank you for your response
I surely hope all is well with your family
You’re so thoughtful, Eileen! I truly appreciate your kind words. ♡
I’m happy to help, and I really hope you enjoy this cake (or cupcakes!) if you try making this recipe!