Vegan Smash Cake for Baby’s First Birthday

Looking for a healthy vegan smash cake for your baby’s first birthday? We’ve got you covered with this kid-tested, delicious recipe that’s vegan, gluten-free, and sugar-free!

Caleb’s first birthday, and the vegan smash cake I made for him, were a huge success!

While we’re all about giving kids the freedom to enjoy sweets and treats at PBJs, I didn’t think that his first birthday was the time to give him a sugar overdose. Especially with all of the other excitement and stimuli that day!

Instead of making the day a total sugar bomb, I decided to make my own smash cake using many of the same ingredients he’s used to, and enjoys, on a regular basis.

For instance, bananas, strawberries, cashews, dates, and non-dairy milk are things that Caleb eats often and enjoys. As it turns out, they also make a really nice contribution to baby’s first birthday cake.

While this came out to be more of a muffin or bread texture than a cake, he didn’t know the difference. He wolfed it down with utter joy and I may have stolen a few bites too.

Why A Healthy Smash Cake?

Major health organizations, like the American Heart Association, recommend waiting until at least two years of age to introduce added sugar to kids. Even after age two, it’s best to limit sugar intake to less than six teaspoons (or 25 grams) per day.

Why? Research shows that eating large amounts of added sugar is linked to a heightened risk for issues like high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.

Since early childhood is a time when numerous health habits begin to form, we can probably all agree that this isn’t the best time to make added sugars a regular part of our PBJ’s diet.

That’s why we love this healthy smash cake.

So, if you’re looking for a healthy alternative for your baby’s first birthday cake, we highly recommend this recipe. It’s vegan, gluten free, and sugar free… as well as kid-tested and delicious!

Here’s the recipe:

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Vegan Smash Cake

A healthy version of the traditional smash cake. Instead of the typical birthday sugar bomb, try this sugar-free, gluten-free, vegan baby smash cake recipe. Great for baby's first birthday celebration!

Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Ingredients

Cake

• 1 3/4 cups oat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 each bananas, mashed
• 1 cup strawberries, sliced
• 1 Tbsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup milk (we like soy, almond, or cashew)

Frosting

• 1 1/2 cups cashews (soaked for at least 2 hours)
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2-3 each dates

Instructions

To make the cake:

• In a large bowl combine oat flour and baking powder.
• In another bowl, combine mashed bananas, strawberries, vanilla, and milk.
• Mix wet with dry ingredients.
• Pour into 3 x 4-6 inch round, greased cake pans and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
• While the cake bakes, make your frosting!

To make the frosting:

• In a high-powered blender, combine cashews, lemon juice, vanilla, milk, and dates until smooth.
• Let the frosting chill in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use.
• Let the cake completely cool, then stack the layers adding frosting in between.

Notes

For best results, frost the cake right before serving or keeping the cake in the fridge until serving to keep the frosting hard.

Do you have any favorite birthday foods or sweet treat alternatives for your kiddos? Share below!