Baking with children can be such a challenge.

Not just for the mess. Or the tiny fingers that invariably find themselves precariously close to moving mixers, sharp utensils and hot ovens. But also for health reasons.

Much as I love to involve my toddler in the holiday baking tradition, it bothers me to fill him with so much sugar, fat and refined flours. Yet it’s not always easy to find healthier recipes that are child-friendly and still a treat.

So I started playing with carrot cake, an ideal candidate for this sort of makeover. Moist cakes tend to be more forgiving of healthy substitutions, such as cutting the fat or swapping refined flours for whole grain.

And I liked the idea of a vegetable being a major ingredient. My son generally won’t touch carrots, but he’s oblivious to them in a recipe like this. That was a good excuse to up the amount of carrots, which also contribute a subtle sweetness.

I ditched the all-purpose flour in favor of white whole wheat, which has all the nutrition and fiber of regular whole wheat but with a lighter taste and texture. It performed wonderfully in this recipe, baking up light and fluffy.

Many carrot cake frostings are a blend of cream cheese, a stick of butter and powdered sugar. I eliminated the butter and found the frosting much improved (not to mention much less fattening). The flavor was cleaner and a better complement to the cake.

The result was an indulgence packed with whole grains, vegetables and mostly healthy fats. And the toughest part of the assembly is the grating of the carrots, which older children should be able to handle.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is an indulgence packed with whole grains, vegetables and mostly healthy fats. Eliminating the butter from the frosting reduces the fat from the typical recipe.

Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

(Start to finish 1 hour, not counting cooling)

Cooking oil spray

2 cups white whole wheat flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

Zest of 1 orange

5 large carrots, grated

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)

2 large eggs

2/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup orange juice

8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9-by-9-inch baking pan with cooking oil.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and orange zest. Add the carrots, brown sugar and raisins (if using), then stir with a wooden spoon until well-mixed. Set aside.

In a large measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, canola oil and orange juice. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix well. Transfer batter to the prepared baking pan and use a rubber spatula or butter knife to smooth the top.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry. Let cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, use an electric mixer to whip the cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the extract and whip another minute. Cake can be frosted as one piece, or cut into squares and each serving frosted individually.

Makes 9 servings.