{{{image-476}}}Carrot Cake by: Allrecipes.com
• 2 cups white sugar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups grated carrots
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 (15 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk. Stir in carrots, coconut, vanilla, and pineapple. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; gently stir into carrot mixture. Stir in chopped nuts. Spread batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake for 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. Remove from oven, and set aside to cool.
4. In a medium mixing bowl, combine butter or margarine, cream cheese, vanilla, and confectioners sugar. Blend until creamy. Frost cake while still in the pan.
This recipe might be a no brainer for eye health with its special ingredient in its name (Carrots!) but as a sweet treat it does win (in moderation) for the Dr. Tavel Eye Health Food 
Challenge. The carrots and the walnuts in the cake help our eye sight stay sharp and our sweet tooth’s happy. Carrots are an eye health food suggested by many of the best eye doctors including those at Dr. Tavel as they contain high amounts of beta carotene.
Beta carotene found in carrots directly helps our vision especially our night vision. After eating carrots, (raw or like those within carrot cake) they are converted to Vitamin A in our livers and go to our retina transforming to rhodopsin helping our night vision according to WHFoods.com. The nutrients found in carrots also act as antioxidants and help protect against macular degeneration and senile cataracts. They are a power eye healthy food according to many Indiana eye doctors and many parents and doctors alike should prescribe them to their kids for snacks!
Nuts, like the walnuts in the carrot cake, help increase our intake of Vitamin E according to “Diet and Nutrition Tips for Optimal Eye Health” by Teri Thackston. A handful of nuts each day can help eye sight immensely as well as your overall health making Carrot Cake a winner!
Premium contact lenses and glasses and lenses can help eye sight be truly clear but carrots too can help eye sight and overall health. So enjoy today’s Dr. Tavel Eye Health Food recipe!