pumpkin cake, a bit healthier......

warning, NO pretty picture, or photo shoot etc, just a piece of cake, lol...so...can pumpkin cake be a little bit healthier, I think so...or least in my mind I feel like it is.......in the current issue of A Primitive Place magazine (Fall 2015) there is a pumpkin cake recipe that I tweaked a bit.......for the cake the recipe calls for :
~16oz. can of pumpkin
~2 cups sugar
~1 cup vegetable oil
~4 eggs
~2 cups flour
~2 tsp. baking soda
~2 tsp. cinnamon
~1/4 tsp. nutmeg

...mix together well and put into a greased and flour 9 x 13 pan.......instead of the 2 cups sugar, I used 1 cup Truvia Baking Blend, it has 75% fewer calories.....AND, instead of 1 cup of vegetable oil I used: 1/2 cup applesauce and 1/2 cup sugar free apple butter....
......the cake turned out wonderful, not a light and fluffy cake but more dense......now if I could figure out how to make a healthier cream cheese icing that would be awesome........

for my icing I used:
~1 stick of butter
~1 large package of cream cheese
~1 box powdered sugar
~1 tablespoon vanilla extract
~and some milk, just a tablespoon at a time, until creamy and spreadable

enjoy....and until the next time...smiles, Linda