Healthy 4th of July Dessert

Red, White and Blue American flag cake, we made this flag cake recipe healthy, with less saturated fat and calories than the traditional versions, by replacing some butter in the yellow sheet cake with oil. Plus, for the cream cheese frosting, we used reduced-fat cream cheese and low-fat Greek yogurt instead of full-fat cream cheese and butter. And for decoration we used fresh blueberries, strawberries and raspberries.

INGREDIENTS CAKE:

1 1/4  cups granulated sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature 

4 large eggs,

2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour

1 cup cake flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 cup buttermilk 

zest and juice from 1 lemon 

2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

FROSTING & DECORATION:

12 ounce reduced-fat cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup confectioner sugar plus 2 tablespoons, divided 

3 tablespoons low-fat plain Greek yogurt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups raspberries 

2 cups strawberries, sliced

PREPARATION:

1. To prepare cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 9-by-13- inch baking pan with parchment. 

2. Beat granulated sugar, oil butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until just incorporated. 

3. Whisk whole-wheat flour, cake flour, backing powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. combine buttermilk, lemon zest, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons vanilla and almond extract in a measuring cup. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl alternately with the buttermilk mixture, beating just until incorporated after each addition, scraping down the side as necessary. Spread the batter in the prepared pan. 

4. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 28 to 34 mins. Let cool in the pan for 15 mins. Turn out onto a rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour. 

5. To prepare frosting: Beat cream cheese, 1/2 cup confectioners sugar, yogurt and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in mixing bowl until smooth. 

6. To decorate: Invert the cake onto a platter. Spread the frosting over the top and sides. Mark 3 horizontal lines for the white "stripes" and a rectangle in the upper left hand corner for the "blue rectangle." Gently pat berries with a paper towel to dry. Make 3 "stripes" of raspberries on the marked lines. Place half of the blueberries in the "blue rectangle," leaving space between each berry. Sift the remaining 2 tablespoons confectioners sugar over the raspberries and blue berries to make them the white "stripes" and "Star." Fill the rest of the "blue rectangle" with the remaining blueberries. place strawberries between the rows of raspberries as the red "stripes." 

Vist: http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/eatingwell_flag_cake.html to learn how to make the healthy flag cake and other healthy desserts.