Healthy Peach Pound Cake
Yields: 1 pound cake, 12 slices
 
This is one of my all-time favorite pound cake recipes! The sweet juicy peaches paired with the almond extract and hint of cinnamon are absolutely irresistible. I never end up with leftovers! But if you do, they’ll keep for at least one week if stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap.
  • 2 ¾ cups (330g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
  • 3 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 tsp almond extract
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 4 tsp vanilla stevia
  • ¾ cup (180g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup + 2 tbsp (270mL) nonfat milk
  • 1 cup (200g) diced peaches (fresh or canned in 100% juice and drained)
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat a 9x5” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. To prepare the cake, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, almond extract, vanilla extract, and vanilla stevia. Stir in the Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Stir in 2 tablespoons 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.) Set aside 1 tablespoon of peaches, and gently fold in the rest.
  3. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, and gently press the remaining peaches on top. 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 carefully transferring the pound cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes: For the gluten-free flour, use the following: 1 ½ cups (180g) millet flour, ¾ cup (90g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 2 teaspoons xanthan gum. Most store-bought gluten-free flour blends (like this one!) will work as well, if measured like this.

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.

Make sure you 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 also make it taste not as sweet.

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.

For a stronger almond flavor, increase the almond extract by an additional ½ to 1 teaspoon.

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 best price I've found. For a sweeter pound cake, increase the vanilla stevia by 1 teaspoon.

However, if you really prefer to omit the vanilla stevia from the cake, substitute 1 ¼ cups (240g) granulated sugar and reduce the milk to ½ cup, but the cake will no longer be clean-eating friendly. You may substitute 1 ¼ cups (240g) coconut sugar and reduce the milk to ½ cup 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.

Dice the peaches to be about the same size as blueberries to ensure the pound cake bakes evenly. I know it takes a little extra time, but I promise it’s worth it!

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.

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low sugar, higher protein}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2018/05/31/greek-yogurt-peach-pound-cake/